Importance of Optic Cable Jackets
Optic cable jacket plays a crucial role in fibre optic cables. Every communications project, from wireless backhaul to DAS installations, relies on them. Understanding their types and features helps in selecting the right one.
Optic cable jacket colours
Jacket colours make identifying fibre optic cables easy. A yellow jacket signals a single-mode cable, while an orange one indicates multimode use.
The rise of 10-Gigabit Ethernet and 50-micron laser-optimized multimode cables created a need for clearer differentiation. This led to new colour standards.
New Colour Standards
Lucent Technologies introduced the aqua jacket to set its 10Gb/s laser-optimized 50-micron fibre apart from older multimode cables. Competitors quickly adopted this system, but not all manufacturers followed suit.
As a result, some 50-micron multimode cables also use aqua jackets, creating confusion. The jacket alone does not always indicate a cable’s exact performance.
Cable jacket Industry Standards and Fire Resistance
The TIA-598-C standard applies to intra-building fibre optic cables. It also distinguishes different levels of fire resistance through jacket colours.
Outdoor cables do not follow this standard. Most use a black carbon component in their jackets for UV and weather protection.
TIA-598-C only applies to cables containing a single fibre type. Cables with multiple fibre types require printed identification on the jacket.
Conclusion
Choosing the right fibre optic cable requires basic knowledge and research. Identifying jacket colours and understanding standards help ensure you get the correct product for the job.
If you have any queries, you can always contact FibreSales.
