Counterfeit Cable

Your Source for Industry News & Insight
VOL. 5 ISSUE 5 SEPT / OCT 2014
Counterfeit Cable:
IN THIS ISSUE
By Bill Slater, International Marketing Manager, Leviton Network Solutions
Leviton Holds Termination Speed
Record using Cat 6 Connectors
and JackRapid Tool
More Widespread Than You Think
The shady-looking character in a trench coat on
a street corner leans toward you and whispers,
“Psst … buddy, wanna buy some cable?”
While this image may be more stereotypical
for selling fake Rolexes, counterfeit cables are a
growing problem in the global marketplace for
networking solutions. It is important to avoid the
traps set by low-end manufacturers and sellers
who present deceptive products. Counterfeit
and non-compliant cable can result in a variety
of risks, including costly repairs, legal issues,
property damage, and even loss of life.
A 2012 independent study of offshoremanufactured cable discovered some
startling results. The tests, commissioned by
the Communications Cable & Connectivity
Association (CCCA), sampled cables from the
inventory of six distributors in North America.
The six chosen brands were considered
“unknown” by most buyers. The tests found that
five of the six samples failed to meet minimum
National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) code
requirements for low flame spread and/or smoke
generation. In addition, four of the five cables
that failed the fire requirements also failed to
meet minimum electrical performance required
by Cat 5e and Cat 6 standards.
continued on pg. 2
Counterfeit Cables:
More Widespread Than You Think
Connections
Tech Tips
News You Can Use
Ask The Experts
UPCOMING EVENTS
SEPTEMBER 28 OCTOBER 2
BICSI Fall Conference & Expo
Anaheim, CA
DECEMBER 9 - 11
National Veterans Small
Business Conference
Atlanta, GA
Leviton Holds Termination Speed Record
using eXtreme® Cat 6 Connectors and JackRapid™ Tool
DECEMBER 9 - 11
AFCEA TechNet Asia-Pacific
Honolulu, HI
In speed tests conducted by Leviton, installers using
Leviton eXtreme Cat 6 connectors and the Fluke
JackRapid Punchdown Tool consistently terminated
cable in under 20 seconds. In fact, the fastest time
came in at 12.21 seconds! We have yet to see any
other connector and tool combination reach those times.
The eXtreme Cat 6 connectors feature Pair Separation
Towers that make it easy to untwist and separate
conductors, while the JackRapid tool dramatically
cuts down on installation time by seating and cutting
all wires at once.
You can see an example termination at
leviton.com/videos: “How to Use the JackRapid Tool.”
LEVITON.COM/CROSSTALK
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Counterfeit Cables: More Widespread Than You Think • continued from pg. 1
These types of failures have huge ramifications when installed in
a commercial building. So if you’re specifying, buying, or installing
cable, it is important to recognize the signs of counterfeit and
non-compliant cable.
Counterfeit Cable
Brand names are important and valued assets of a corporation,
and they communicate to the consumer a level of quality and
expected performance standards. When a low-cost, low-quality
manufacturer tries to use a respected manufacturer’s brand,
they are stealing from both the consumer and the name-brand
manufacturer. We call those goods “counterfeit.” But a variety of
other dishonest or deceptive practices have been detected in
the marketplace.
A cable might be properly identified as coming from a given
manufacturer, but it can be falsely labeled as complying with
industry standards and being certified (e.g., using UL or ETL
marks), giving a deceptive claim as to the cable’s review by a
third-party testing laboratory. These cables are described as
“bearing counterfeit certification,” and put networks at risk by
deceiving an end user as to the verified properties of the cable.
Counterfeit cable may also include misleading or false claims,
such as being “plenum rated”. In 2010, Underwriters Laboratories
(UL) fought back against counterfeiters by requiring holographic
certification labels on cable reels and boxes.
Non-Compliant Cable
Some cables or patch cords may not be falsely labeled, but could
be deceiving nonetheless. If the product does not state that a
given standard is adhered to, but the seller claims or implies
that it does, this can cause additional problems for the end user.
Cables sold for abnormally low prices or by distributors without
a track record with a given brand are suspect. The CCCA
recommends that the best way for end users to protect
themselves is to specify and then validate their cable is from a
well-known supplier with a well-recognized brand. Another CCCA
test found an 85 percent failure rate for Cat 6 patch cords with
unknown brand names, and a zero percent failure rate from
reputable brands.
9
“If the price seems
too good to be true,
it probably is.”
Copper-Clad Aluminum
A particularly dangerous type of non-compliant cable is Copper-Clad
Aluminum (CCA). This cable is sold at very low prices since a large percentage
of the metal is aluminum instead of copper. The problem is the performance
degrades significantly with CCA and therefore does not comply with
industry standards, including UL and TIA. The cable can become brittle and
connections become increasingly unreliable over time. But sellers of CCA
cables are relying on the attractiveness of the low price to dupe buyers into
a path they will later regret.
The bottom line: if the price seems too good to be true, it probably is.
Leviton joins with the many other members of the CCCA in committing
to provide quality solutions. We encourage buyers to be careful and buy
from reliable brands and distributors to assure long-term reliability of their
networks. The CCCA offers a free app to help identify non-compliant and
counterfeit data cable. Visit www.cccassoc.org.
WAYS TO RECOGNIZE
Counterfeit/ Non-compliant Cables
1 Very low price, well below market norms
2 Low performance materials substituted for jacket and insulation
3 Poor printing and typographical errors
4 Lighter weight: boxes of cable with copper-clad aluminum weigh
considerably less than solid copper cable
5 Private-labeled, unfamiliar brands from offshore manufacturers
6 Supplied only through website or local storefront distributors
7 No information on factory location or country of origin
8 No spec sheet available
9 Use the CCCA CableCheck mobile app or go to cccassoc.org for help
2
LEVITON.COM/CROSSTALK
Leviton Certified Contractor Profile
INDUSTRY
More vendors are offering 42U racks to 48U and 51U
racks and data centers are taking note. These taller racks
currently make up 10% of the market, but that number
is expected to grow to 20%, according to analyst firm
TechNavio. The growth in taller racks is a result of data
center managers consolidating facilities amidst rising
property prices. Standard 42U racks currently make up
60% of the market.
Since 2004 Chapel-Romanoff Technologies (CRT), a division of Quebe Holdings, Inc.,
has specialized in installing low-voltage communication cabling, security, voice, video, and
fiber-optic solutions for clients throughout Ohio. CRT has worked extensively with clientele
across the defense, financial services, data management, biotech, health care, education,
and industrial industries, providing comprehensive communication, electronic safety and
security, monitoring systems, and consulting technology services.
Recently, CRT used Leviton solutions to connect a local horse track and casino’s network
infrastructure. The project took more than 12,000 man hours to complete, and required the
installation of various Leviton fiber and copper connectivity products, including single-mode
and multimode fiber optic pigtails, Cat 6A shielded connectors, and patch panels. For this
project, CRT also installed more than one million feet of Berk-Tek Cat 6A shielded cable.
COMPANY
This summer, Leviton made a donation to the ALS
Association. The donation followed Ice Bucket Challenges
taken by Leviton staff. Every day we are seeing additional
photos and videos of Leviton employees, both nationally
and globally, accepting and executing the challenge.
Numerous individual contributions as well as a corporate
donation have resulted.
We are happy we could help bring awareness to this
dreaded disease and hopefully contribute in some small
part to finding a cure.
Other recent projects include upgrading several schools across western Ohio with Leviton
Cat 6 and Cat 6A solutions. “We choose Leviton because it is the best product available for
a project,” said Dennis Severance, Vice President of Operations. “Leviton manufactures the
best performing Cat 6A solution on the market.”
www.quebe.com/chapel-romanoff-technologies-llc-crt.html
Installing Heat Shrink Splice
Sleeves in Splice Holders
Fusion splicing provides a consistent, low-loss mating of fiber optic strands. While the
process is fairly easy, there are a few guidelines for storing the finished assembly.
Heat shrink splice sleeves have three components:
the outer shrink sleeve, the inner shrink sleeve and
the strengthening rod. As the sleeve is heated and
reduced around the fiber and strengthening rod,
the assembled sleeve becomes oval in shape.
The strengthening rod protects the fiber from stress,
but if splice sleeves are installed either fiber first or
with the fiber and strengthening rod parallel to the
base of the fiber holder, excess stress can be placed
on the fiber holder, splice sleeve, and the fiber itself.
250μm or 900μm fiber
in inner shrink tube
Outer shrink tube
Strengthening rod
SPLICE SLEEVE - END VIEW
PRODUCT
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allows multiple users to share a single,
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Internet connection, creating a private
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environments. For more information,
visit: leviton.com/connectedhome.
The professional-grade,
8-port Gigabit Switch connects
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in remote locations. The switch offers
plug-and-play installation,
a user-friendly design, and can easily accommodate
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visit: leviton.com/connectedhome.
WEB
CORRECT INSERTION
Strengthening rod installed first. If fiber
needs to be removed, force is applied to
strengthening rod, not the fiber.
INCORRECT INSERTION
Fiber first can damage or compress fiber.
If fiber needs to be removed, excessive
force is applied to fiber.
INCORRECT INSERTION
Fiber rotated can damage or compress
fiber. Holder walls are forced out as each
splice sleeve is loaded. If fiber needs to be
removed, excessive force is applied to fiber.
The Network Solutions
Summer/Fall 2014
Product Linecard is
now available online.
You can download it at
leviton.com/ns/litlibrary.
YESTERDAY’S NEWS
1994: IEEE approved 10BASE-F, defining 10mbps
over Ethernet using fiber.
QUESTIONS? COMMENTS? IDEAS?
We want to hear from you!
Email: crosstalk@leviton.com
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Leviton Network Solutions
2222 222nd Street SE
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Customer Name
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VOL. 5 ISSUE
5 SEPT / OCT 2014
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ASK THE EXPERTS
Q: What are “launch cables”?
A:
A launch cable is a jumper cable of known good quality that is attached to a light source on one end and a fiber under test on the other end.
Once calibrated with the light source for output power, it is used for testing optical loss in a fiber optic cable. The launch cable provides an opportunity for the signal to achieve modal equilibrium, eliminating any possibility that fiber anomalies near the light source can affect the test results.
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