Innovations for Next Network Generation by R&M
R&M, the globally active developer and provider of cabling systems for high-quality network infrastructures, based in Wetzikon, Switzerland, is announcing further innovations. “It is our goal to advance to the next dimension at an early stage, both in copper and fiber optic cabling and to invest whatever is necessary in development,” R&M CMO Andreas Rüsseler said in a recent interview. Both technology worlds are looking at quadrupling the transmission performance of cables and connections – to 40 or 400 Gigabit Ethernet. “Users will be needing appropriate products in just a few years,” predicts Rüsseler. “The international standards have been defined. Now it is time to develop products that will give the users palpable value added,” says the R&M CMO. Current development work ties in with recent successes. Over the past two years, R&M has launched five innovations which brought decisive progress to local data networks in office complexes, to data center networks and to public FO networks.
One of these innovations is the RJ45 connection module Cat. 6A EL which is predominantly used in structured cabling systems. An installer can wire the Cat. 6A EL module in under a minute. “Whereas in the past, several days were needed to wire a distributor for structured cabling systems, it now takes just hours with the Cat. 6A EL module. A quantum leap in copper connection technology,” says Andreas Rüsseler.
With the FO patching system Netscale launched in 2016, R&M is setting standards for the concentration of cabling in data centers. In comparison to previous solutions, the ultra-compact platform increases the maximum number of FO connections per rack by two thirds.
To accompany this compression in network cabinets, R&M developed a compact fiber optic connector, the LC QuickRelease. R&M integrated the locking and unlocking mechanism into the connector housing. The LC QuickRelease is operated in a coaxial direction from the rear or at the boot. Because there is no longer any need for an unlocking clip or operation on the front of the housing, the connectors can be packed in more tightly.
For carriers, R&M has recently brought out the SYNO dome closure and the Polaris-box 6. The SYNO dome closure is used to distribute FO networks on the last miles to customers. It is placed in ducts, shafts or on masts. “The innovation here is the cable entry bay. Technicians no longer have to thread the cables and tubes through holes in the bottom of the closure. They are inserted in lateral bays and sealed with a gel seal. The inserting, removing and changing of cables and seals is just as easy as playing with a construction kit,” explains Andreas Rüsseler.
Similarly the Polaris-box 6, launched in the spring of 2017, will simplify network expansion. It is designed to provide individual homes or whole building complexes with FO connections as quickly as possible and entirely individually. Completely new in the industry is the two-part seal with slit elements to guarantee great protection against dust and jets of water (protection class IP67). The cables are easy to insert in the slits and no longer have to be threaded through seals – as is the case with conventional boxes.
“New ideas, solutions and products are usually the result of talking to our customers,” says Andreas Rüsseler of the company’s innovation drive in an interview. The CMO: “We ask our customers every day about what we could do better. We learn from them. But still, we don’t leave anything to chance.” The cabling specialist has established a holistic innovation process.