March/April 2019 I 19
Similar to the commercial
business and consumer worlds,
the interoperability and proven
performance of the IP
communication protocol is opening
the door to significantly improved
vision and efficiency for industries
of all shapes and sizes. So what does
this mean for ICT infrastructure
designers and installers? It means
understanding the unique
characteristics of these challenging
environments well enough
to design and install robust
and reliable IP infrastructure
systems to support the coming
explosion of the Industrial Internet
of Things (IIoT).
DESIGNER
CONSIDERATIONS
It is imperative that a designer
acquires detailed information
about the environment in which
the infrastructure is proposed.
Reviewing the ANSI/TIA 1005-A
standard is a good start, as it
provides tools to aid the designer
in selecting product that will
withstand the environment
in which it is placed. This standard
suggests the use of a 4 category
system that includes rating
the effects of Mechanical,
Ingress, Chemical/Climatic,
and Electromagnetics (M.I.C.E.)
on the infrastructure components,
utilizing a 3 tier rating in each
category. The designer must then
marry these environmental
conditions with material types
and designs that will function
within them reliably for the
intended lifespan of the system.
Harsh environment copper cable
terminations come in various
formats, with one of the most
common being the M12. A designer
should be aware of the different
styles, ratings, supporting hardware,
termination components,
and testing requirements
for this type of solution.
Logical industrial IP control
designs can require the use of ring
or linear physical topologies, which
many in the ICT industry have
considered obsolete in recent years.
This offers up a challenge when
establishing a standards compliant
and easy to follow labeling scheme
for these infrastructure segments.
Some devices on these physical
segments may reside in the same
control panel and can be connected
by simply using factory patch
cables, while others require
horizontal permanent links.
It is important to involve the client
in these discussions, since they
will need the labeling scheme
to be readily understood by their
support team. A suggested solution
is to utilize existing control panel
and equipment device identifiers,
incorporating both into the cable
identifier. For example, a horizontal
cable joining two control panels
(CP1A and CP2A) could simply
be labeled CP1A-CP2A and a patch
cable within a control panel
connecting two AC drives
(VSD11 and VSD12) could be
labeled VSD11-VSD12. Ultimately,
it is necessary that the selected
identifiers are unique, clear,
and meaningful.
Operations flow and safety dictate
unique design considerations.
Many in the ICT industry
are considering how the
fourth industrial revolution
(Industry 4.0) will reshape
businesses, careers,
and the world. This shift
is driving significant change
in every sector of industry,
worldwide. The truly
“Intelligent Building”
will use not only IP devices
and their data for enhancing
efficiencies, safety, and
user experience for building
services (i.e., lighting,
HVAC, security, access
control), but it is also
standardizing on IP as the
preferred platform for
production operations.