Networked Enterprise Featured Article

Panduit recently announced that it had accepted three awards from Cabling Installation & Maintenance Magazine (CIMM) on the strength of three projects that demonstrated innovation in structured cable installations.

CIMM is a publication available both online and in print, that features topics including cabling systems, industry standards, regulations, and how-to articles. The Nashua, New Hampshire-based magazine started in 1993, and is owned by PennWell Corporation a Tulsa, Oklahoma-based media company. It owns About 130 print and online publications relating to the energy industry, firefighting equipment, public safety, LEDs, network cabling, optoelectronics, water management systems and dentistry.

The most substantial of Panduit’s three award-winning projects came from its contributions to the cabling installation at Cisco (News - Alert) Canada’s headquarters at RBC WaterPark Place III, a 30-story office building.

By itself, the building is an impressive example of technology. Climate control, lighting systems, elevators, security, and even window blinds are connected to a network, enabling these features to be computer-controlled and monitored.

Cisco offered its technology and expertise during the building’s construction, but would later become one of its tenants. With cabling and related network supplies from Panduit, the tech giant added even more advanced technological features in the space it occupied. 

The second floor is home to Cisco’s Innovation Centre, which serves as R&D for Internet of Everything (IoE) projects. Floors 26-29 will house mostly office space that will be ultra-energy efficient. Sensors will detect any unused office space and dim lighting and reduce air flow when not in use.

Another award Panduit accepted was for its contributions to Royal Caribbean’s Quantum of the Seas. The new ship featured RFID luggage tracking, robotic bartenders, virtual balconies in interior cabins, and blazing fast wireless.

Turn-Tell label technology developed by Panduit that was used by a Japanese network service provider rounded out the award-winners. These labels can be printed on demand and wrapped over the wiring. The end result resembles a cord running snugly through a two-inch section of a soda straw. This design makes it much easier to turn the label to view the identification info and is very useful in identifying wiring runs where hundreds of wires could be packed tightly together in a small space.

Cabling is something that’s easy to take for granted. Once it’s installed, the tendency is to forget about it until it becomes obsolete, yank it out and reinstall new and improved cabling. What Panduit and its customers have demonstrated is that there is more to cabling than this upgrade cycle. It can be used to provide infrastructure for revolutionary technology that dramatically changes the way we live and work.