Structured Cabling for New Construction in Fast-Growing Western US Markets

Phoenix, Las Vegas, Henderson, Sacramento, and the Inland Empire are experiencing some of the fastest commercial and industrial construction growth in the United States. New construction presents the ideal opportunity to build best-in-class network infrastructure from the ground up — but only if IT is included in planning before drywall goes up.

Why Involve IT Before Construction Begins

One of the most expensive mistakes in commercial construction is treating structured cabling as an afterthought: - Conduit is cheap before walls are closed; fishing cable through finished walls costs 3–5x more - The number of cable pathways in the ceiling plan must be coordinated with mechanical, electrical, and plumbing trades - Telecommunications room locations require coordination with building HVAC — a TR with no cooling in Phoenix fails in weeks - Early IT planning allows the right number of drops to be installed — retrofitting overlooked locations costs $500–1,000 per drop after construction

Coordinating with General Contractors

Summit DNC works directly with GCs on active construction projects: - We receive and review architectural and MEP (mechanical, electrical, plumbing) drawings to plan conduit routing - We coordinate conduit pull boxes with the electrical contractor - We attend coordination meetings to ensure telecommunications rooms are sized and HVAC-equipped correctly - We provide a cable schedule for GC review before installation begins

New Construction Standards for Fast-Growing Markets

In Phoenix, Las Vegas, and Sacramento new commercial construction, our baseline recommendations: - Cat6A throughout for all horizontal cable runs (supports 10GbE to the desktop now; ready for 25GbE) - Fiber optic backbone between floors and buildings (single-mode OS2 for future-proofing) - One spare 1-inch conduit for every 10 Cat6A conduits (for future fiber, additional cable capacity) - 20% spare ports at every IDF panel (the tenant will always need more drops than planned) - HVAC unit in every IDF sized for full switch/patch panel load plus 25% headroom

Telecommunications Room Design

A properly designed TR supports decades of tenant changes and technology upgrades: - Minimum 100 sq ft for a small IDF (7-foot mounting wall), 200 sq ft for a mid-size MDF - Raised access flooring optional but recommended for MDF in larger buildings - 60-amp 120V minimum circuit in every IDF, 100+ amp in MDF - Grounding bus bar bonded to building ground ring per TIA-607 - Telephone backboard (3/4" plywood) on at least two walls for patch panel mounting

Pathway and Spaces Design

TIA-569 defines the pathway and spaces requirements for commercial buildings: - Cable trays at 10–12 inches above finished ceiling height for clear cable management - No cable tray runs over transformers, motors, or HVAC compressors - Minimum 3-inch conduit sleeves at every wall penetration - Cable tray turns with large radii to prevent fiber bending below minimum bend radius

Summit DNC partners with general contractors, developers, and building owners on new construction projects throughout California, Nevada, and Arizona. Contact us early in the design phase for maximum value.