A horizontal cabling system is an essential component of a structured cabling system that connects the telecommunications room to work areas or outlets on the same floor. It typically uses a star topology that connects each work area to the telecommunications room via a single cable.

Components of a Horizontal Cabling System

To properly design a horizontal cabling system, you need to know what components you’ll use within it. It all starts with a telecommunications room. Most modern buildings have a telecommunications room on each floor.

• Telecommunications outlet – This is where the horizontal cable terminates in the work area.
• Horizontal cable – Runs between the telecommunications room and the telecommunications outlet. Most of these cables are now fiber optic cables, but copper cabling is sometimes still used.
• Patch panel – This is where the horizontal cables terminate in the telecommunications room. A good horizontal cabling system design makes accessing, connecting, and disconnecting cables easy.
• Jumper – This short cable connects the patch panel to the telecommunications equipment.

Design Factors of Horizontal Cabling

These cabling systems are required to meet specific performance and reliability standards set by the Telecommunications Industry Association (TIA) and the International Organization for Standardization (ISO). These standards are the most important factors to consider when designing a horizontal cabling system.

The following are some of the design factors for a horizontal cabling system:

• Location – It’s vital to locate the telecommunications room on each floor in a secure, centralized location. Ideally, it should be near the same place on each floor of the building to make it easy to interconnect the networks between separate floors. This location should be in a secure area, only allowing authorized personnel to access the system.
• Cable Type – The cable type you select depends on several factors. Copper cable is cheaper, easier to install, and better for rugged environments, but it does not work well over long distances or where there is a lot of electromagnetic interference. Fiber optic is the best solution for high bandwidth and doesn’t require additional equipment such as repeaters or signal boosters when transmitting over great distances.
• Cable Length – This depends almost entirely on the space available within the building—copper wire takes up a lot more physical space than fiber-optic cable—and the work areas within the building.
• Number of Cables – The number of cables needed impacts the size and accessiblity of the space between workstations and telecommunications room, as well as the number of workstations on the floor.

However, the most important element when designing your horizontal cabling system is the right company to design and install it. You need seasoned commercial electrical contractors with telecommunications experience to ensure that the installed cabling system meets all of your needs.

Let Tri-State Electrical Contractors Install Your Horizontal Cabling System

At Tri-State Electrical, we are commercial electrical service specialists who design, install, and maintain horizontal cabling systems. For more information, get a quote for this, or any other, of your commercial or industrial electrical projects, call us at (423) 800-2134, fill out our simple online form, or email us at info@tristateec.com today.

Commercial properties, whether retail spaces, restaurants, apartment buildings, or manufacturing plants, have many electrical needs. And commercial property owners need to select the best commercial electrical contractor to handle these needs. A commercial electrical contractor takes on a wide variety of projects, such as indoor and outdoor lighting, smart building systems, wiring repair and replacement, electrical for climate control systems, and much more. What should commercial property owners look for in a commercial electrical contracting company with this wide range of projects? What questions should you ask when selecting the right commercial electricians for your business? Here we have listed seven different areas with example questions you should ask any potential contractor.

• Licensed and insured –  Is the electrical contractor must be licensed and insured in the state where the building is located? This is extremely important to protect it if something goes wrong.
• Experience – Does the electrical contractor has a verifiable portfolio of projects of similar size and scope to yours?
• References – Get input from other customers. Are they pleased with the quality and cost of the electrical contractor’s work? What does the client think about the company’s customer service? Have they had any problems? Are they satisfied with the resolutions?
• Availability – How soon can they get started on your project? How long do they think it will take to complete the project? Does it fit your timeline?
• Quality – Does the commercial electrical contractor provide a warranty for their work? Are they members of professional organizations such as NECA and the Associated General Contractors of America? Have their electricians earned certificates and pursued additional training?
• Safety – What is the contractor’s commitment to safety? Are they members of organizations such as OSHA and the CORE Safety Group? Does the company culture promote safety?
• Affordability – Is the price competitive compared to other quotes for the work? What does the price specifically cover when evaluating the quotes? Is it by the project? Or is it a time and materials project? Do they provide a written quote?

Asking questions in these seven areas will help you choose the right electrical contracting company for your commercial property.

Let Tri-State Electrical Contractors Handle Your Commercial Electrical Services Needs

At Tri-State Electrical, we pride ourselves on answering all of your questions about your commercial electrical service needs. For more information, get a quote for your commercial electrical projects by calling (423) 800-2134, filling out our simple online form, or emailing us at info@tristateec.com today.

There are a lot of commercial electrical contractors out there. So how do you choose the best one for your electrical project? Here are a few suggestions:

Ask Around

Who do you know who might have had some commercial electrical work done for them lately? Talk to friends, family members, or local business owners or managers about who they used for the electrical work. Ask them a few questions such as:

• What was the quality of the work done for the project?
• Was it done on time and budget?
• Did they show up at the scheduled time, or were they late?
• Did they clean up after the project was completed?
• Would they use the company again for future commercial electrical work?
• Do they recommend them for your project?

Word-of-mouth is still the best way to find the best commercial electrical contractors. So, use this resource.

Read Online Reviews

If your network can’t help you come up with any good recommendations, then use the next best thing: online reviews. There are several different review sites you can use to get your information about the best commercial electrical contractors:

• Google Reviews – Google Reviews are quickly becoming the best known and most respected source of online business reviews.
• Angi – Formerly known as Angie’s List, Angi provides some of the best-curated business reviews available online, including commercial electrical contractors.
• Yelp – Better known for restaurant and motel reviews, Yelp has been branching out into other business areas.
• Buildzoom is a newcomer to the online review game but focuses specifically on construction businesses. The site has you enter details about your project, work with a dedicated project consultant, and they do the legwork to present you with vetted and qualified contractors.

Best Practices for Using Online Reviews

When using online reviews within your decision-making process, try to use a couple of different sources for the reviews. Read all of them. Pay special attention to the one- and two-star reviews. How many are there? If there are only one or two, and it is a small percentage of the total number of reviews you might be able to write them off as disgruntled customers or former employees. But if there are several low reviews and a pattern emerges, then steer clear of that commercial electrical contractor. Some of these sites also allow the contractor to respond to positive and negative reviews, so take a look at those as well. Does the contractor handle the complaint professionally or seem combative and assign blame?

Get a Free Project Estimate

Once you’ve selected a commercial electrical contractor, many of them provide free estimates, so have them take a look at your project and give you a quote. Pay close attention to them throughout the process. Are they prompt and courteous? Do they answer your questions to your satisfaction? Do they seem easy to work with? At this point, you should know which commercial electrical contractor you want to hire.

Tri-State Electrical Contractors Provide Best-in-Class Commercial Electrical Services in the Southeastern US

Tri-State Electrical Contractors understands what modern commercial companies need in the ever-changing, complex, world. We provide superior commercial electrical services including generator installations, high-voltage wiring for equipment, and much more. We can handle any commercial or industrial electrical work you need to be completed quickly and competently. For more information, give us a call at (423) 800-2134, fill out our simple online form, or email us at info@tristateec.com today.