At the BICSI Winter Conference in mid-January, Tyco Electronics' AMP Netconnect business unit (www.ampnetconnect.com) introduced three product offerings for cable management and termination.
The AMPTRAC Mini-Analyzer is dubbed a cost-effective intelligent infrastructure management system for small remote branch offices. It provides complete AMPTRAC network infrastructure physical management capabilities and is compatible with the AMPTRAC system and iTRACS software. It offers enterprise companies and third-party service providers with branch offices, such as banks, medical offices, and sales offices, a cost-effective solution to manage the physical infrastructure of those facilities from a centralized location.
"The AMPTRAC Mini-Analyzer will save companies with small branch offices significant time and money," says Tony Beam, director of AMP Netconnect business development for Tyco Electronics. "From a centralized location, network administrators can control the physical layer of these offices without having to dispatch network or cabling technicians, which reduces response and down-time.
The Mini-Analyzer provides 128 analyzer ports, which typically supports a branch office with up to 64 cabling drops. It connects to the iTRACS server via the existing wide area or local network and the Mini-Analyzer Ethernet port.
"Prior to the development and release of the AMPTRAC Mini-Analyzer, implementation of the AMPTRAC Connectivity Management System within remote office locations was not always financially feasible," continues Beam. "However, with the lower AMPTRAC Mini-Analyzer cost-typically 60% lower than AMPTRAC Enterprise Analyzers-implementation of the AMPTRAC system in even the smallest remote offices is economically feasible and offers significant return-on-investment opportunities."
Tyco also introduced the AMP Netconnect SL Series Jack Termination Tool, which it says simplifies the termination process for Category 6 jacks. The tool terminates and cuts all 8 conductors at once, allowing for terminations in about half the time of a punchdown tool. It also simplifies the lacing process and speeds up terminations.
"This tool will revolutionize Category 6 terminations," predicted Brian Davis, copper connectivity product manager for Tyco Electronics. "By simplifying the process of lacing the pairs and maintaining the pair twist, Category 6 terminations can be done in half the time with improved consistency, even among different technicians."
The AMP Netconnect SL Series Jack Termination Tool works with Category 3, 5e, and 6 SL Series jacks.
Additionally, AMP Netconnect now distributes Eastern Wire & Conduit's Protect-N-Duct product. Eastern Wire & Conduit is also a Tyco International company. The family of innerduct products offers cable protection to the fiber-optic and telecommunications industries. The products combine durability, chemical resistance, waterproof connections, ease of installation, and reduced pulling friction in a single system.
"It made sense to combine Eastern Wire & Conduit's reputation and expertise in the cable-protection industry with the wide range of AMP Netconnect products that yield benefits for structured cabling customers worldwide," according to John Apgar, product manager for Tyco Electronics.
The Protect-N-Duct system is manufactured from PVDF for plenum applications, PVC for riser applications, and HDPE for outside-plant applications. The plenum PVDF and the riser PVC product lines are both UL 2024 listed and are flexible. The corrugated HDPE outside-plant products offer high tensile strength while being virtually impervious to abrasion, scouring, and root penetration, the company says.
