The Benefits of Low Profile Cable Management Floors
No matter how much work you put into designing a workspace, cleanliness and organization leave the most significant impression. A clean look on a superficial level seems to be just about aesthetics, but there is more to it than that. A clean look indicates that the equipment is accessible and organized.
Cable management is a common problem that can make your space cluttered and inefficient. But with due planning, you can easily remove the bottlenecks and have a quicker project completion time.
Universal Problems of the Workplace
Here are some of the more common problems the right cable management system can solve.
Impact of Work Environment on Efficiency
A well-designed workplace will reduce workload stress and impart a sense of freshness among workers. In turn, the workers will be able to focus on their daily tasks. A cluttered desk and office, on the other hand, will reduce the efficiency and productivity of the workers.
Ease of Maintenance
Maintenance tasks are essentially chores, and with the number of cables and devices you have to manage, the work multiplies. On top of that, when the wires are unorganized, maintenance can be a central pain area for your IT team.
Cost of Setting Up
Counter-intuitively, using proper cable management can reduce the cost incurred for setting up and maintaining cables. It prevents undue access that results in wear and tear.
A traditional cable management system is cumbersome to set up and comes with high labor costs.
Visibility of Cables and Enclosing Structures
Earlier in this article, we established the problems associated with the visibility of cables. They bring down the charm of any facility. The same issues are associated with enclosing structures as well. It is easy to eliminate unwanted piping using modern cable management solutions such as access floors.
Scaling and Relocating
What’s more, if you need a bigger office space with the team’s growing size or need to relocate, you’ll have to go through the same process for setting up again. Some access floor designs can make it a smooth transition.
Problems Specific to the Industry
Apart from the problems discussed above, which are common to all industries facing cable management problems, a few industries need special attention due to their individual needs.
Data Centers
One of the most inconvenient situations that a data center can get into is unnecessary downtime. With proper design and installation, you can reduce the downtime associated with cable maintenance by having accessible, labeled, and organized cables. Sound cable management practices can help you in all three areas.
Offices
Offices need to be as spacious as possible to maintain a fostering environment where real innovation can happen. When you increase the floor area across the room, the cabling becomes challenging since you need to place multiple data power access ports across space.
Schools and Libraries
Schools and libraries adopt the emerging technological solutions more frequently than ever to accustom students to the technology they’ll use in the professional environment. The problem arises when they have to incorporate these changes within the existing infrastructure.
Retail
Retail stores need to power multiple devices throughout the day. The focus should go on the items on display, and no unwanted wiring should distract the customer. Besides, as new trends emerge in sales and marketing, the buying experience also includes the devices or the attendant and the store’s look and feel. The store layout must go with the brand image, and proper cable management plays a crucial role.
There is a comprehensive list of small and large issues, but the major ones discussed need priority. Many issues can be resolved by addressing just one of them. Irrespective of the available solutions, there is always room for innovation.
Scope for cable management innovation
Cable management has evolved into a commonly used system, and there is much innovation that has gone into it. The solution has worked well so far, but there are case-specific changes that we need to consider.
Size
Most workspaces will have multiple cables running in parallel. If the cable management undermines future scaling, it might not be big enough to hold all the power and data cables you need.
Quality
Out of the many available options, choose with longevity and finishing in your mind. Avoid cheap plastics. A common thought is to go for a cheap cable raceway and replace it while modifying or changing the premises. There are quality options available that are easy to adjust and reposition.
Interdependency of Challenges
Many of the set of problems mentioned above have a single solution. For example, you can improve both maintenance and aesthetics by using low profile access floors. You can group specific, seemingly unrelated issues and solve them through a single innovation.
What the Right Solution Looks Like
The sheer number of challenges shows the amount of thought that went into the design of access floors. There are many solutions available to you that address these challenges. Let us analyze the various parameters against which you should judge a cable management solution.
Low Profile and Durable
A recommended access floor will be neat enough to blend with the elements and be virtually unnoticeable. Doing this involves hiding the structure in a way. In the case of access flooring, the concern is whether it will withstand the weight or pressure exerted by the objects and people who populate the office. Always opt for a durable product.
Eliminate Cutting Trenches in the Wall
Access flooring runs along the ground inside cable raceways, and the cables run-up to the devices. We can altogether avoid cutting trenches in the wall or ceiling to accommodate the cables or other wiring.
Customize and Scale
You might want to redesign the workplace or rearrange the items or even increase the office size. It becomes easy to do so when using low-profile cable management access floors.
The Perfect Low-Profile Cable Management Access Floors
The ideal solution for every application, they say, can never be found. Still, we are pretty close just by doing the best with available technology. As a case, let us consider CSI 096933. It is a low profile solution for cable management. The access floors have an ergonomic design with a simple and elegant look and feel.
No Specialist Knowledge to Install
Anyone can do so with some essential tools. To install traditional cable management systems, you’d have to cut and drill through the walls, install the raceways and wiring and work with overhead systems, which might be risky for untrained workers. The fixed height low profile access flooring is easy to install and manage.
Install on Top of Existing Flooring
You do not need to redo the flooring of your office space to have efficient cable management. These low profile access floors fit right on top without disrupting the flooring. Neither does it take away the appeal or finishing of the flooring.
ADA Compliant
The CSI access floors follow ADA regulations to visit the premises at ease when moving around. The slope is smoother than the prescribed 1:12 ratio to show extra care for disabled visitors.
Recyclable
The material used is entirely recyclable, adding a checkmark on your list of eco-friendly practices. It helps reduce your carbon footprint and showcase the firm as a pro-environment organization.
Features
Most of the mentioned benefits are discovered benefits that come on top of the functionality. Some of these key functional areas need highlighting.
The access floors have an aluminum central wire-way with a base track and top cap. It features an anodized aluminum finish for an appealing look. The ultra-low sloping of the floor transition ramps is a crucial feature that eliminates tripping hazards and facilitates easy movement within the facility.
The floors come in 48′ and 72′ wire-way segments that can be cut and combined in any proportion to cover the desired area.
You can also enhance cable management using several additional items such as wire-way management clips that aid organization, pre-applied tape to save you the hassle, concrete screws, and drill bits for easy installation.
Rediscover Cable Management with Southwest Solutions Group
With easy-to-reach cable management access floors, cable installation and maintenance tasks will become easier for your authorized personnel. They do not need to use ladders or work in a lousy posture while accessing the overhead cables. They are also easy for anyone to install.
You can set up a personalized cable management solution using appropriate tools and devices with the right help. An expert can suggest a solution that works within the given parameters, such as the existing architecture and device arrangement. Whether you’re setting up or upgrading, go for low-profile access floors.
Southwest Solutions Group® makes space and people work better together. We have numerous innovative solutions to create an environment where your staff can excel in providing excellent customer service while reducing operating costs. For more information on low-profile access flooring, contact Southwest Solutions Group or call us at 1-866-447-3848.
Resources
DW I Series Specifications Guide
SM Wireway I Series Specifications Guide
On Floor Specifications Guide
In Carpet Specifications Guide
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