There’s currently no dictionary definition of a smart building, though we seem to be moving towards a shared understanding that for a building to be considered ‘smart’, it should use technology to deliver useful, consistent, user focused experiences as well as space and energy efficiencies. We can contrast this with ‘connected’ and ‘intelligent’ buildings,
Enterprises in the Nordic countries see the rollout of 5G mobile services, with their faster networking speeds, as a catalyst for the broader adoption of Internet of Things (IoT) solutions according to a new report published today by Information Services Group (ISG).
The increased focus on cybersecurity for smart buildings is being driven by the ever-growing number of networked IoT devices and the convergence of OT and IT security. The seamless interconnection of IoT devices makes smart buildings increasingly vulnerable and susceptible for cyber-attacks with expensive and destructive consequences.
When it comes to testing a cabling installation, there are essentially three choices–verification, qualification and certification. Verification is great for troubleshooting as it will tell you if your cabling is connected correctly and can help you find breaks, connectors and splices. Qualification lets you know if your cable under test will support a specific application, making it great for small moves, adds and changes or determining if an existing cable plant can support an application. But only certification will tell you if the cable plant fully meets industry standards – it’s the only test that measures across predefined ranges and compares the results to TIA, ISO and IEEE specifications to determine if a link is compliant with a specific category or class of cable and able to support the application. Certification is also what most cable manufacturers require for a warranty.
EdgeConneX has launched its newest facility in Buenos Aires, Argentina. According to EdgeConneX, global service providers and local organizations throughout the region will gain access to scalable data capacity with low-latency connectivity, critical content delivery solutions, and advanced cloud services previously unavailable in this region. The data center supports and provides local connectivity, peering, and internet exchange solutions from leading network providers, including Metrotel, Silica Networks, CenturyLink, and others. It also facilitates interconnection between multiple networks and other service provider customers.
With higher speeds comes increased sensitivity to more factors in the network, creating problems that earlier and slower networks could tolerate with little or no impact. But while continuous upgrades in technology have resulted in more dynamic and adapting networks today, the fundamental requirements for fiber performance remains mostly unchanged. Establishing and maintaining networks requires accurate testing of the fiber infrastructure to ensure it can handle the system’s performance requirements and keep it operational. There are a wide range of tools that can accomplish these tasks, but there is arguably no other single instrument more important for testing and maintaining fiber networks than the Optical Time Domain Reflectometer (OTDR).
As Smart Cities gain traction, there are some shining examples of possibility. However, 99% of the existing buildings in any city remain dumb. Addressing the intelligence level of the majority of buildings is the key to creating smart, clean, and human-centric urban environments. New solutions are evolving to address this problem. The smart building retrofit offering is evolving rapidly to serve the needs of all kinds of buildings. Approaching its 90th birthday, the Empire State Building in New York has been retrofitted with advanced technologies, achieving a 38% reduction in energy consumption. Younger buildings are registering significantly higher savings, with minimal installation costs, as retrofit technology is designed for common legacy systems.
The optical fiber network infrastructures installed today will typically see four generations of transmission systems over the network’s expected lifetime. As recent history has shown, the amount of data traffic these networks will carry will increase dramatically and continuously. In order to cope with this increasing growth and anticipate the networks of tomorrow, a completely open spectral transmission window from 1260nm to 1625nm for data transmission and up to 1650nm for network monitoring is necessary in optical fiber cables.
Harsh environments require an IT network that will rise to the challenge. Siemon Ruggedized Infrastructure Solutions protect critical network connections from dust, moisture, industrial cleaning chemicals and vibration. Ruggedized infrastructure solutions are ideal for protecting valuable connections in laboratories, hospitals, food processing plants and other harsh environments.
The Ethernet Alliance has revealed outcomes from its latest High Speed Networking (HSN) Plugfest, which took place in April at the UNH Interoperability Lab. The Plugfest highlighted the key role multivendor interoperability plays in Ethernet’s continued success, with pass rates greater than 97%, consistent improvement over past events. Equipment capability ranged from 25 Gb/s to 400 Gb/s. 13 companies participated.
