Issue link: http://www.epageflip.net/i/1043933
November/December 2018 I 11 The FTTZ Solution The fiber-to-the-zone (FTTZ) solution is not new. It used to be referred to as fiber-to-the-enclosure (FTTE). The concept is simply to extend the fiber backbone further into the office space by removing the main rack or cabinet in the TR, and replacing it with multiple smaller enclosures in the zones around the users as shown in Figure 4. Clearly, this will increase the cost of the enclosures and sometimes the active equipment due to lower port usage, but it also offers many advantages including: • Saves real estate space with smaller and fewer FDs. • Smaller patching zones, ensuring easier cord management. • Smaller and less dense pathways. The largest change is on the main pathway out of the TR, previously supporting hundreds of copper cables; now filled with only a few fiber cables. • MACs: adding or changing cables locally can be far simpler with shorter lengths. This can often make the difference between disrupting only one office rather than a complete floor of office space. • Fire risks: there is less material to burn in case of fire. More importantly, the cables from the patching area to the outlets do not cross fire barriers. The need to firestop is eliminated, along with the risk of non-compliance. • Improved efficiency: compared to an average 50 m length with the traditional solution (ranging from 15 m to 90 m), the cables are now reduced to average 15 m, lowering the resistance and loss while transmitting power. PoE is far more efficient on shorter lengths. • Performance: shorter cables simply mean higher performance, increasing the likelihood of compliance for higher data-rate applications. It can also allow deployment of Category 8 in a commercial environment. The FTTZ solution improves many aspects of the traditional star topology, while maintaining compliance FIGURE 4: An example of an FTTZ design. 48 dual outlets "Mini" Cabinet for each of 4 zones equipped with: ○ 1x Fiber panel 12-cores ○ 1x Patch panel 24 ports ○ 1x Switch 24 ports Gigabit Cabinet for BD equipped with: ○ Fiber panels for 20x 12-cores ○ 1x Switch 24 ports Fiber 12-core fiber cables to each of 20 enclosures Typical Floor F D B D 96 cables To other 4 FDs Corridor Office area 4 per floor Work area