There is an alarming trend being seen across the cabling
industry. There are suppliers in the marketplace selling cable -- particularly
network cable -- that is mislabeled and fails to meet basic safety
requirements.
Case in point-network cable rated for a certain level of fire
resistance that does not actually meet that rating, causing serious safety
issues when installed.
Also, network and/or power cable being sold that is made with
copper-clad aluminum wires (CCA), as opposed to pure copper wires. The most
concerning issue here is the possibility of fire, in the case of power and POE
(Power over Ethernet), due to aluminum's higher resistance and lower melting
point. While less important, there is a degraded network performance that comes from
using the wrong metal and the possibility of paying full price for a product
that fails to meet specifications.
A network cable (Cat5e/6/6a) is defined by specific physical
and electrical characteristics, the most important being resistance across
distances. CCA-based network cables do not meet UL testing or meet approved
standards. This should be a concern for both the contractor and the
business/home owner who pays for specific category graded network cable. Quite
simply, a CCA cable is not an approved technology for Category cable, and
suppliers who try to pass them off as such are "ripping off" their
customers and opening them up to potential lawsuits.
GET, LLC advises that you know your supplier. Don't be fooled
by the cheapest cabling product on the market you can find. Make sure that what
you're buying is actually what it claims to be.
If you need network
cabling, contact us at 671-797-0789 or check out our website at
www.get-guam.com for more information on the related products and services we
provide-though our friends at Panduit or Fiber Optic Marketplace LLC, if you
don't see what you need just give us a call.