Author Archives

Liz Goldsmith

The future of cabling

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Technology trends in our personal life are now driving trends in the business world. If you don’t believe me, pull out your work-issued Blackberry and spend 10 minutes writing me an email about how you disagree. The Netflix Model, otherwise known as Software as a Service (SaaS), has changed the way we operate day-to-day business. What will be the next technology trend that changes the way we do business? It’s easy to look at the next five years and say things like cloud, co-located data centers, and IoT (Internet of Things) will continue to drive changes. But what comes next?

Flexibility in building cabling – does the world of work 4.0 really need it?

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Flexibility is particularly in demand when companies change their processes in order to master the challenges of digitization. The change in organisational structures has immense effects on jobs. The trend is away from individual offices and towards open areas that create communicative and creative workspaces. This meets the needs and working methods of the “digital natives”. And in view of the shortage of skilled workers, companies would do well, not to shut themselves off from this development.

PoE Pro Tester eliminates guesswork

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The new PoE Pro eliminates guesswork when installing, maintaining and troubleshooting networks where PoE is deployed. Previously technicians had to understand all the various standards, device power outputs and cable lengths to be sure a device will operate successfully. The PoE Pro identifies the Class of the PoE source and power available to a PoE device regardless of cable length, cable quality or other factors.

Editorial Guide: Intelligent Buildings

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Intelligent buildings’ promises to make properties more energy-efficient and make occupants more productive will only be kept if the physical-layer infrastructure supporting building systems is rock-solid. There’s no cookie-cutter formula for providing such an infrastructure, meaning each application environment must establish its own requirements, then meet them.The articles in this guide discuss several of the applications and capabilities of intelligent buildings, then focuses on the structured cabling and networking technologies that can enable intelligent buildings to fulfill their promise.

IoT Trends: 2020 and Beyond –

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What happens when sensor data in the workplace extends beyond machinery or tech infrastructure to employees? Performance management software has long played a role in the workplace, and the IoT can enable more comprehensive data gathering and better analysis of employee performance. This will inevitably drive an increase in discussion about which types of employee monitoring are optimal and ethical; is the added stress that comes with increased monitoring worth the analytics provided? Do employees perform better when not dealing with the anxiety of automated monitoring?

What Do You Mean, 5G Wireless? What It Would Really Take to Make the Switch

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5G is the cool-sounding name everybody uses for the next generation of cellular wireless. Changes in the wireless protocols and use of different radio frequencies are aimed at increasing the bandwidth capacity of 5G to about 100 times greater than the current 4G LTE cellular systems. These goals, if achieved, will enable wireless connections to equal the bandwidth of current Wi-Fi and fiber-to-the-home networks. To achieve those goals, wireless companies must overcome several technical and financial barriers including installing more fibers to the cell sites and denser urban cellular sites using small cells with a coverage of a few blocks or less.

Cyber-Smart Strategies For Smart Buildings

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In the age of smart buildings, the realm of operational technology needs cyber security equal to those employed for IT systems. Organizations often overlook Operational Technology (OT) environments, which can house sensitive control systems, when devising a cyber security plan. OT environments comprise the machinery, sensors, actuators, and other equipment that help form the backbone of building operations but have not traditionally connected to the Internet—until now. And without the precedent of strict cyber compliance, these environments are often vulnerable, and in certain instances, the weak link in the organization.