COMMUNICATION FACILITIES GUIDELINES
FOR EDUCATIONAL AND
ADMINISTRATIVE BUILDINGS
Rev. 4/18/2008
Miami Dade College
SECTION 17
COMMUNICATION FACILITY GUIDLINES FOR EDUCATIONAL
AND ADMINISTRATIVE BUILDINGS
INTRODUCTION
17.1 GENERAL
1.1 Responsibility
1.2 References
1.3 Structured Cabling System
Outside Plant or backbone cabling system
Building Entrance/Entrance Facilities (EF)
Communication Rooms
Main Communications Room (MCR)
Main Distribution Facilities (MDF)
Intermediate Distribution Facilities (IDF)
Vertical and horizontal risers
Cable pathways
17.2 OUTSIDE CABLE PLANT
2.1 Outside Conduits
2.2 Maintenance Holes and Handholds
17.3 BUILDING ENTRANCE FACILITY
3.1 Entrance room
3.2 Redundant building entrance
17.4 COMMUNICATIONS ROOMS
4.1 Location and room use
4.1.1 Main Campus Communications Room (MCR)
4.1.2 Main Building Distribution Facility (MDF)
4.1.3 Intermediate Distribution Facility (IDF)
4.2 Common Conditions in all rooms
4.2.1 Room locations
4.2.2 Walls/paint/doors
4.2.3 Ceilings
4.2.4 Electrical
4.2.5 Equipment
4.2.6 Grounding
4.2.7 Lighting
4.2.8 Air Conditioning
4.2.9 Fire Stopping
4.3 Fire Protection
17.5 CABLE PATHWAYS AND CONDUITS
5.1 Ladder rack and cable trays
5.2 Conduits
5.3 Cable Routing
17.6 Communications Building Power Distribution
June 2, 2005
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SECTION 17
MIAMI DADE COLLEGE
COMMUNICATION FACILITIES GUIDELINES FOR EDUCATIONAL AND
ADMINISTRATIVE BUILDINGS
INTRODUCTION
MDC Campus communication environments shall be built with ample
consideration given to the integrated Internet-Enabled Systems –
voice, network, power, security, and energy management systems. Power
and redundancy are key issues related to a high-availability “never
down” communications system.
Building a modern campus network
environment also includes operational and safety components that even
go beyond the IT department’s responsibilities. This includes areas
such as security, energy management, and call centers.
Miami Dade College’s Information Technology Department has developed
this document in accordance with industry standards. This section is a
statement reflecting how the college defines the physical facilities
required for the provision of communications systems for new buildings
and major renovations to existing buildings. These specifications take
into account the size and utilization of communications rooms, size of
conduits, cable distance limitations, vertical and horizontal cabling
requirements for the area or building, Voice-Over Internet Protocol,
classroom attendance readers and the future growth for these areas.
The
following
are
guidelines
for
the
physical
infrastructure
requirements necessary for a modern campus communications network.
1.0 GENERAL
1.1 RESPONSIBILITY- It is the responsibility of the project
architect and engineer to include in the design and construction
documents, for new and renovation projects, the latest national
and local standards for communication facilities.
It is critical to the operations of an Internet-enabled
communication system that factors such as: connectivity to
existing outside conduit bank and cable runs within regulation
distances to network-enabled devices be taken into consideration
at the beginning of the design phase. Other design criteria that
need to be taken into consideration are: avoiding placing water
and drain pipes in close proximity to technology rooms; careful
creation of staircases and vaulted open foyers that facilitate
wire pathways to intended Intermediate Distribution Facility
(IDF) rooms; ceilings spaces must be sized to accommodate cable
trays, heating and air conditioning ducts, and water pipes.
1.2 REFERENCES- In addition to the specifications included
herewith the architect and engineer is encouraged to refer to the
following publications for guidance during the design of the
communications infrastructure:
ADA - Americans with Disabilities Act
AIA – American Institute of Architects
ANSI – American National Standards Institute
BICSI - Building Industry Consulting Service International
EIA/TIA - Electronic Industries Association/Telecommunications
Industry Association-Telecommunications Wiring Standards.
NEC - NFPA National Electric Code
OSHA – Occupational Safety and Health Administration
State of Florida Building Code - Requirements for Educational
Facilities
MIAMI
DADE
COLLEGE
-Information
Technology
DepartmentStructured Cabling Guidelines.
1.3 STRUCTURED CABLING SYSTEM – The Structured Cabling System
used by MDC is composed of five subsystems:
 Outside plant or backbone cabling system
 Building entrance/Entrance facilities (EF)
 Communication Rooms
Main Communications Room (MCR)
Main Distribution Facilities (MDF)
Intermediate Distribution Facilities (IDF)
 Vertical and horizontal risers
 Cable pathways
2.0 OUTSIDE CABLE PLANT
The relationship of the outside cable plant, its location and
capacity must be taken in to account when developing the site plan
for new buildings.
In renovations, its current location must be
addressed from the standpoint of current and future capacity and
ability to provide adequate service to the new educational spaces.
2.1 OUTSIDE CONDUITS
2.1.1 New buildings shall have two conduit paths entering
the building at two separate and distinct locations.
Please consult the Information Technology Department
to discuss these entrance pathways.
2.1.2 Number of conduits - 4-8 conduits connecting existing
campus buildings.
2.1.3 The minimum number of conduits connecting the
building MDF to the campus MCR shall be at least four
four-inch (4-4”) conduits.
Note: More entrance
conduits might be needed depending on the size and
utilization of the building. It is essential for the
future growth of the campus and growth within the new
buildings that the number of the conduits brought to
the new building reflects the potential growth to the
area as well as redundant entrances.
2.1.4 Types of cables that are transported in the conduits
- copper and fiber.
2.1.5 Specifics for the conduit bank
A. The top of the conduit bank must be buried below
the ground surface at a depth specified by local
code.
B. The fiber and copper cable communications conduit
banks must be separated from other services as
required by EIA/TIA and local code.
C. Conduits shall be encased in concrete when:
 Minimum conduit depth cannot be attained
 Conduits pass under roads, driveways, or
railroad tracks
 Bend points might be subject to movement
D. Underground conduits shall be installed in such a
way that a slope exists leading away from the
building to allow drainage and prevent the
accumulation of water within the conduits.
E. A detectable warning tape (containing metallic
tracings) shall be placed 18 inches above all
duct banks.
2.2
MAINTENANCE HOLES - A maintenance hole is required at
specific distances in order to pull and splice cables in an
underground, concealed manner.
2.2.1 Maintenance holes are required when:
A. The conduit section length exceeds 500 ft.
B. Wherever a cable splice will be required as
Indicated by NTS.
C. When bends exceed a total of 180 degrees or two
Bends of 90º.
2.2.2 Maintenance holes must be sized according to the
College’s specifications for each project.
It is
the responsibility of the Information Technology
Department to provide this information.
2.2.3 Concrete used for maintenance holes shall be of at
least 3500 sq lb/in strength. All maintenance holes
will be properly grounded as required by EIA/TIA
and NEC.
2.2.4 Equipment:
A. Corrosion resistant pulling irons, cable racks,
and maintenance hole ladders shall be included in
the
installation
of
the
maintenance
hole.
B. All maintenance holes shall be equipped with a
round ring and cover, clearly labeled "TELECOM",
"TELEPHONE" or COMMUNICATIONS only.
2.2.5 Conduits entering a maintenance hole will do so only
through the maintenance hole walls designed for
conduit penetration. Under no circumstances shall
the structural integrity of the maintenance hole be
compromised.
2.2.6 Conduits being added are to start at the bottom and
be added in ascending order so to accommodate
future
expansion
of
duct-banks
and
guarantee
maximum utilization of the maintenance hole.
2.2.7 Maintenance holes and hand holes will be installed
such that no additional bends are added to the
conduit path in order to enter the maintenance hole
or hand holes.
2.2.8 Maintenance holes and hand holes shall be installed
flush with the ground/floor.
2.2.9 Where distances between maintenance holes exceeds 200
feet or there are more than two 90 degree bends in
the conduit run, a 4' x 4' x 4' pull box must be
used.
2.2.10 The number of conduits going in and out of the pull
box shall maximum not exceed eight.
2.2.11 HAND HOLES are not an acceptable alternative to
maintenance holes described in this section. Hand
holes can only be used in place of maintenance
holes after consultation with, and written approval
from the Information Technology Department.
3.0 BUILDING ENTRANCE FACILITY
A building entrance is the point at which the outside backbone
cables enter the building.
3.1 Entrance Room
3.1.1. Location –In accordance with NEC Article 800
Section 800-50 exception No.3 the entrance or
outside building cables shall be terminated and
protected on a listed primary protector within 50
ft. of entering the building. This room shall meet
NEC Article Section 800-50 exception No. 3 for an
Entrance room. It is from this room that feeder
cables will be run to the Main Communication Room.
A second option exists in that the outside plant
cables can be transported through the building, in
a straight run, encased in a conduit.
It is our preference that these outside cables
terminate within our main communication room
3.1.2 Size – This room should be sized to reflect the
amount of outside cabling that will be terminated
within these walls.
The architect will seek this
information from the MDC District IT Department.
The cables will be terminated on protectors mounted
on one wall. Service from these protectors to the
Main Communication Room will be provided via
conduits or cable trays.
3.1.3 Grounding- Access shall be made available to the
main or independent telecommunications grounding
system specified by ANSI/TIA/EIA-607.
3.1.4 Lighting – Shall be a minimum of 50-foot candles
measured 3 ft. above the finished floor.
3.1.5 Air conditioning – The entrance facility room
requires building air if it serves as a Main
Distribution Room.
3.1.6 Electrical - A minimum of two dedicated 15A, 110V AC
duplex electrical outlets.
3.2 Redundant Building Entrances – New building projects may
require
redundant building entrance pathways for
the fiber cables.
This redundant path must be
totally separate from existing pathways and use a
conduit bank coming from a different direction.
Information regarding redundant pathway options may
be gotten from the District Information Technology
Department.
4.0 COMMUNICATIONS ROOMS (CR)
MDC has three different classifications for a communications room,
each is designed to meet a specific campus requirement.
One of
the elements that all of these rooms have in common is that they
only house equipment directly related to the network and
telecommunications systems and its environmental support systems.
4.1
Location, room use and size
4.1.1 Main Campus Communications Room (MCR)-This room is
the demarcation point for all outside services coming
into the campus. It will contain PBX equipment,
rectifiers, routers, hubs etc. (See Section 4.2 for
room
details).
There
is
one
Main
Campus
Communications Room on each campus. This room is
established on all MDC campuses.
Room size is a
minimum of 900 square feet but can be larger
depending on the equipment that will be housed here.
4.1.2 Main Building Distribution Facility (MDF) - Each
building has a main communications/distribution room
in which all of the network and telecommunications
equipment that services the occupants of the building
is
located.
This
room
will
contain
voice
(backboards,
riser
cables)
and
network-enabled
systems (routers, hubs, and switches), fiber, coaxial
connections and UPS’s. (See Section 4.2 for room
details). The MDF serving the interior dimension of
the building must be at least 150 -175 feet.
4.1.3 Intermediate Distribution Facility (IDF) – Each IDF
contains
voice
and
network
equipment
used
to
distribute the backbone’s capacity to individual
station jacks. IDF rooms can not be further than 90
meters (295ft.) in actual cable length from the
farthest wall jack on each floor to the IDF patch
panel.
The minimum IDF room size is a 100 square
feet using a 10ft X 10ft footprint.
In special-use buildings (as defined by IT), the
equipment room floor space shall be based on the
known number of work stations (not on usable floor
area). This standard can be found in EIA/TIA-569
table 8.2-2.
4.2 Condition’s common to all three types of communications rooms.
When selecting the equipment room site it is desirable to
locate the equipment rooms close to the main backbone pathway.
Avoid locations that are restricted by building components
that limit expansion such as elevators: utility chases,
outside walls, stairwells or other fixed building walls.
Special attention for distance separation between rooms shall
be given to electrical power supply, transformers, motors and
generators, x-ray equipment, radio, or radar transmitters, and
induction sealing devices. Water and chiller lines cannot be
run through the communications rooms.
4.2.1 Location of rooms - IDF rooms MUST stack one on top
of the other. Avoidance of 90º turns is critical in
the conduit path.
4.2.2 Walls/paint/doors
A) Floors, walls and ceiling shall be treated to
eliminate dust. Finishes shall be light in color.
B) A minimum of one wall should be covered with
rigidly fixed (3/4 trade size) A-C plywood void
free, 8 ft. high, capable of supporting attached
equipment.
C) Plywood should be fire rated and covered with two
coats of medium gray paint.
D) The access door shall be a minimum of 36 in. wide
and 80 in. high and shall be fitted with a lock
and current security access panel.
4.2.3 Ceilings –The minimum ceiling height is 9 feet above
the finished floor. There should be no false
ceilings.
Exception –Rooms that are plenum rated.
This type of room requires a dropped ceiling and that
dropped ceiling will be no lower then 9 feet.
4.2.4 Electrical
A) A minimum of four dedicated 15A, 110V AC duplex
electrical outlets, each on separate circuits, from
the dedicated building communications panel shall
be provided for equipment power. The final number
of duplex circuits will be determined by the number
of equipment racks in each room.
B) Convenience duplex outlets shall be placed at 6 ft.
intervals around the parameter walls, at a height
of 6 in. above the floor.
C) If generator power is available; consideration
shall be given to automatic switchover of power.
If an emergency power source is available in the
building, it is desirable that at least one of the
duplex outlets be so supplied.
D) Building UPS in a separate room shall be required
in new buildings
4.2.5 Equipment - The communication rooms are centralized
spaces for the telecommunications and the district
wide area network equipment that serves occupants of
the building. These rooms house only equipment and
services for the telecommunications and network
equipment
A) PBX
(this
is
located
only
in
the
main
communications room)
B) Network switches, router, and hubs
C) Air
exchange
equipment
or
stand
alone
air
conditioning units
D) Rectifier
E) Main backbone distribution equipment from outside
sources such as: BellSouth, ATT etc.
F) Racks and wire managers.
4.2.6
Grounding and bonding. Racks and equipment shall have
a grounding source according to EIA/TIA -569.
4.2.7 Lighting
A) Lighting shall be a minimum of 50-foot candles
measured 3 ft. above the finished floor.
B) Coordinate
closely
with
the
front
of
rack
placements.
C) Locate light fixtures a minimum of 2.6 m (8.5ft)
above the finished floor.
Exception - Light
fixtures may have to be higher in some cases when
ladder racks span the room.
D) Emergency lighting is required.
Place emergency
lighting to ensure that the loss of power to
normal lights will not hamper an emergency exit
from the CR.
E) Power for lighting should not come from the power
panel inside the CM.
4.2.8
Air Conditioning - All of these rooms require
continuous and dedicated air conditioning 24 hours a
day, seven days a week. The HVAC system shall
maintain temperature 64-75, (18 C to 24C) degrees
Fahrenheit with 30% - 55% relative humidity. Heat
dissipation shall be based on 750 – 5000 Btu per hour
per cabinet.
4.2.9 Fire Stopping - Section 10 of EIA/TIA-569 contains
fire
stopping,
miscellaneous
pathways,
and
telecommunications recommendations of separation from
less than 480V power lines.
Further information of
entrance rooms can be found in EIA/TIA-569 and the
BICSI
Telecommunications
Distribution
Methods
Manuals.
4.2.10 The following list of equipment shall not be in this
room:
 Batteries needed to support the Main
Communication Room equipment
 Electrical power
 Transformers
 Motors and generators.
 Small UPS- UPS’s over 30KVA MUST be housed in a
separate room
4.3
4.4
Fire Protection
4.3.1 If sprinklers heads are provided, install wire cages
to prevent accidental operation.
Confer with NTS
on the requirements for this item.
4.3.2 “Dry pipe” sprinkler systems are allowed.
Additional information regarding MDC required specifications
can be found in the MDC STRUCTURED CABLING - Engineering
Guidelines.
This can be procured from the District IT
department.
5.0 CABLE PATHWAYS AND CONDUITS
Specific requirements that establish the cable pathways and
cabling conduits for each project shall be coordinated with the
MDC Information Technology Project Manager at the onset of the
design phase for major renovations and new construction projects.
The architect and engineer for these is cautioned that the
Education Specification’s Program for the project should include
communication requirements, but may not be all-inclusive regarding
communication facilities. Therefore, the architect and engineer
should work closely with the building occupant and the MDC
Information Technology Project Manager to minimize the need for
revisions and changes after the completion of the design phase.
5.1 Ladder racks and cable trays – Cable trays and ladder racks
shall be installed in order to transport all cables through
out the building.
Cable tray specifications can be found in
the MDC STRUCTURED CABLING - Engineering Guidelines, available
through District IT.
5.1.1
The IT Project Manager, prior to installation of
the cabling, shall approve all cable routes.
5.1.2
Cable
Trays
are
rigid
structures
for
the
containment of communications cables. These trays
shall be installed and grounded in accordance with
the National Electric Code.
5.1.3
Cable trays shall be installed above false ceilings
and run down hallways and corridors providing a
pathway
for
communication
cables
from
the
information
outlets
to
the
respective
communications closets.
5.1.4
Cable tray installation must be coordinated with
all of other trades so that they are not obstructed
by other equipment, i.e. air conditioning ducts,
electrical conduit etc.
5.1.5
5.1.6
5.1.7
Cable trays must be easily accessible for the
installation of cables and future changes to the
communication systems.
A minimum of 3 in. clear vertical space must be
available between the top of the ceiling tiles and
the bottom of the cable tray. A minimum of 12 in of
clear horizontal space on each side of the cable
tray shall be available. Also, minimum of 6 in of
clearance shall be available between the top of the
cable tray and any other utilities.
Under no circumstances, shall any other utilities
pass within the distances as specified in BISCI or
EAI guidelines.
5.2 Conduits
5.2.1
Communication’s rooms contain the vertical cable
riser space. Conduits and/or sleeves shall be used
to interconnect communications rooms. The open ends
of conduits and/or sleeves must be located a
maximum of 3 in. from the wall and extend a minimum
of 1 in. above the finished floor.
5.2.2
All vertical risers shall rise straight up through
the building.
5.2.3
5.2.4
5.2.5
5.2.6
5.2.7
5.2.8
If fixed ceilings are installed and cable trays
cannot be used, the conduit from information
outlets must be "homerun" to the respective
telecommunications room.
A pull box shall be installed in sections of
conduit longer than 100 ft., containing more than
two 90 degree bends or if there is a reverse bend
in the run.
All conduits must have a fish tape or pull cord
installed end-to-end.
Wall and room conduits:
 A 3/4 inch EMT conduit shall be installed from
each information outlet electrical box and
"stubbed" up above the ceiling level pointing to
the nearest respective cable tray.
 The open ends of all conduits and/or sleeves
regardless of size must be equipped with bushings
and must be readily accessible and not concealed
within walls.
The inside radius of a bend in conduit shall be at
least 6 times the internal diameter. When the
conduit size is greater than 2 in. the inside
radius shall be at least 10 times the internal
diameter of the conduit.
Minimum requirements for installed conduit, such as
support, end protection and continuity, are found
in the appropriate national and local electrical
codes.
5.3 Cable Routing
5.3.1
All horizontal cables, regardless of media type,
shall
not
exceed
90
m
(295
ft)
from
the
telecommunications outlets in the work area to the
horizontal cross connect.
5.3.2
Horizontal cables shall be routed to each work area
unless otherwise specified and as shown on project
drawings.
5.3.3
Horizontal pathways shall be installed or selected
such that the minimum bend radius of horizontal
cables is kept within manufacturer specifications
both during and after installation.
5.3.4
Communications
pathways,
spaces
and
metallic
cables, which run parallel with electric power or
lighting, which is less than or equal to 480 Vrms,
shall be installed with a minimum clearance of 12
inches.
5.3.5
The installation of telecommunications cabling
shall maintain a minimum clearance of 3 m (10 ft)
from power cables in excess of 480 Vrms.
5.3.6
Horizontal pathways should avoid being parallel to
sources electromagnetic interference when ever
possible. Crossing perpendicular is preferred.
5.3.7
For voice or data applications, 4-pair UTP or fiber
optic cables shall be run using a star topology
from the communications room/closet serving that
zone to every individual information outlet.
5.3.8
Continuous conduit runs installed by the General
Contractor should not exceed 30.5 m (100 ft) or
contain no more than two (2) 90-degree bends
without utilizing appropriately sized pull boxes.
5.3.9
All
horizontal
pathways
shall
be
designed,
installed and grounded to meet applicable local and
national building and electrical codes.
5.3.10 The number of horizontal cables placed in a cable
pathway shall be limited to a number of cables that
will not cause a geometric shape change of the
cables and not exceed 60% fill ratio.
5.3.12 Minimum pathway capacity shall not exceed a 60%
fill.
5.3.13 The maximum cable bend radii shall not exceed
manufacturer’s specifications.
5.3.14 In spaces with UTP cable terminations, the maximum
bend radius for 4-pair cable shall not exceed four
times the outside diameter of the cable and ten
times for multi-pair cable.
This shall be done
unless this violates manufacturer specifications.
5.3.15 During the actual installation, bend radius on 4pair cable shall not exceed eight times the outside
diameter of the cable and ten times for multi-pair
cable. This shall be done unless this violates
manufacturer specifications.
5.3.16
To avoid electromagnetic interference, all cable
pathways must provide clearances of at least:
 Four (4) feet from large motors or transformers.
 One (1) foot from conduit and cables used for
electrical power distribution.
 Five (5) inches from fluorescent lighting.
 Pathways
should
cross
perpendicular
to
fluorescent lighting and electrical power cables
or conduits.
6.0 Communications Building Power Distribution –
Discussions
shall
take
place
with
the
Information
Technology
Department regarding the installation of a building UPS to supply back
up power to All new IDF’s within the building.