Paul Kreager
Level 0-1 Telecommunications Education
The Telecommunications Industry Association TR-41.8.3 working group that developed the TIA-569 pathway and space standard originally targeted late 1994 or early 1995 as the date for release of the standard`s first revision, TIA-569A. However, at its meeting last September in Montreal, the group decided to delay the update because of important work that was not yet completed or ready to be incorporated into the new version.
Separation distance between telecommuniciations cable and electrical power sources is not well understood in the world of high-performance cabling. This distance is critical in furniture raceways, utility poles, perimeter raceways and similar pathway systems, especially when plastic dividers separate the two media, as is permitted by the National Electrical Code. Work is in progress toward improving the recommendations in the revised standard in this area, with Donna Ballast, telecommunications analyst at the University of Texas (Austin,TX), chairing the subcommittee effort.
Open office cabling is another area where work remains to be done. Proposals are being considered that would allow a point close to the work area to be used to distribute cabling to multiple workstations where open-plan furniture systems are involved. George Weller, product manager at Steelcase (Grand Rapids, MI), is chairing a joint committee of TIA-568A and TIA-569 on this topic because it spans the two standards.
Another area of active interest is pathway fill and its relationship to United States and Canadian electrical codes. This is because there has been a debate in the industry as to whether or not pathways filled solely with telecommunications cables are subject to the fill requirements contained in the applicable codes. Bob Jensen at FOT Datacom, Ross Cotton at the Canadian Standards Association and Jim Romlein at MIS Labs have been making progress on this subject.
The working group is hopeful that work will be completed by mid-1995, allowing publication of TIA-569A by the end of the year.
Paul Kreager, PE, RCDD, principal of Level 0-1 Telecommunications Education, chairs the TR-41.8.3 working group that developed the TIA-569 and TIA-606 standards.