Caring Dental, Petts Wood: shielded Cat6A structured cabling for a new dental practice
ACCL designed and installed 38 Excel shielded Cat6A data outlets during the fit-out of Caring Dental’s new practice in Station Square, Petts Wood, specified around the clinical environment.
Caring Dental was creating a new dental practice in Station Square, Petts Wood when ACCL was invited to tender for the structured cabling installation. Following acceptance of our quotation, we designed the cabling around the requirements of the individual rooms and installed an Excel shielded Cat6A system across the practice.
The result
The completed project provided Caring Dental with:
- 38 Excel shielded Cat6A data outlets
- A cabling layout designed around the individual rooms
- Shielded infrastructure selected for the clinical environment
- Data cabling incorporated during the new-practice fit-out
- Cabling designed with X-ray and other specialist equipment in mind
Services delivered
Overview
When Caring Dental’s new practice in Station Square, Petts Wood was at the fit-out stage, ACCL was asked to tender for the structured cabling installation. Our quotation was accepted and the next stage was to turn the practice layout into a practical data-cabling design, rather than treating the premises as a conventional office and applying the same outlet arrangement to every space.
ACCL considered the requirements of the individual rooms and the equipment that would operate within them. The agreed solution was an Excel shielded Cat6A structured cabling system, with 38 data outlets installed across the practice.
The challenge
The key consideration was the environment in which the network would operate. A dental practice combines normal IT requirements with specialist clinical equipment, and in this case the practice included X-ray equipment, so ACCL did not want the passive data infrastructure to introduce an avoidable vulnerability to electromagnetic interference. We therefore proposed a shielded Cat6A system rather than approaching the installation as a standard office cabling project.
The challenge was not the size of the installation. It was making the correct cabling decision at the design stage, while the practice was still being fitted out and the infrastructure could be coordinated around the rooms it needed to serve.
Designing around a clinical environment
ACCL designed the structured cabling layout around the requirements of the various rooms within the new practice. The presence of X-ray and other specialist electrical equipment was an important part of that design decision: we proposed an Excel shielded Cat6A system to provide additional protection against electromagnetic interference, alongside appropriate cable routing and installation practice.
This was a preventative design decision, not a response to an existing interference problem. The aim was to specify the passive infrastructure appropriately from the outset so that the new practice did not begin life with an avoidable cabling concern.
Project context
Dental practice fit-out · Station Square, Petts Wood
Structured cabling for clinics & GP practices →Planning the data cabling for a new dental or healthcare fit-out?
Getting the cabling contractor involved while the practice is still at fit-out stage makes it possible to coordinate outlet positions, cable routes and the cabling specification before the rooms are finished.
What ACCL installed
The final installation comprised 38 Excel shielded Cat6A data outlets distributed across the practice. The outlet layout was developed around the requirements of the individual rooms, allowing the data infrastructure to become part of the fit-out design rather than something that had to be adapted after the clinical spaces were completed.
ACCL’s involvement during the fit-out gave us the opportunity to design the network before the practice became operational. That matters in specialist environments: once clinical rooms, finishes and equipment are in place, changes to concealed cable routes and outlet positions become more disruptive.
Technologies used
ACCL’s role
ACCL’s role covered the structured cabling design and installation for the new practice, including:
- Tendering for the structured cabling package
- Reviewing the requirements of the individual rooms
- Recommending a shielded Cat6A solution for the clinical environment
- Supplying and installing the Excel shielded Cat6A system
- Installing 38 Cat6A data outlets across the practice
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Related guidance
Foreword by Wayne
“Caring Dental was not a large project in terms of outlet numbers, but it is a good example of why the design of a structured cabling system matters just as much as its size. We knew the network would be operating in a clinical environment alongside specialist dental and X-ray equipment, and our view was that the right time to deal with that consideration was at the design stage, not after the practice had opened, so we proposed an Excel shielded Cat6A system. Being involved during the fit-out also meant we could look at each room and design the data infrastructure around how the practice was going to use it. That is how we prefer to work: understand the environment first, then specify and install the cabling to suit it.”Wayne Connors, Managing Director, ACCL
Frequently asked questions
What did ACCL install at Caring Dental in Petts Wood?
ACCL designed and installed an Excel shielded Cat6A structured cabling system during the fit-out of the new dental practice.
How many data outlets were installed?
ACCL installed 38 Cat6A data outlets across the practice.
Why did ACCL specify shielded Cat6A?
The practice contained X-ray and other specialist electrical equipment. ACCL proposed a shielded Cat6A system as a preventative design measure to provide additional protection against electromagnetic interference.
Did the X-ray machines cause a network interference problem?
There is no evidence of an existing network suffering interference. The shielded specification was selected at the design stage to reduce an avoidable risk in the new clinical environment.
Which cabling manufacturer was used?
The installed structured cabling system was manufactured by Excel.
Was the cabling layout designed specifically for the practice?
Yes. ACCL designed the system around the requirements of the various rooms rather than applying a generic office outlet layout.
At what stage did ACCL become involved?
ACCL was invited to tender while the new dental practice was at the fit-out stage.
Why is early cabling design useful in a dental practice?
Early involvement allows the outlet layout, cable routes and cabling specification to be considered while the rooms are being created, before completed finishes and installed equipment make later changes more disruptive.
Can ACCL design cabling for other healthcare environments?
Yes. ACCL provides structured data cabling services for healthcare and medical environments, with the infrastructure designed around the requirements of the individual project.
Planning a dental practice or healthcare fit-out?
ACCL can review the environment and develop the structured cabling design before installation begins for dental practices, clinics and healthcare refurbishments.
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