Why Businesses Should Consider Fibre Optic Cables Over Copper Wiring
Upgrading your IT infrastructure is a necessary expense if you want to keep up with evolving technologies. One often under looked but absolutely vital component is the wiring you choose. Business connectivity is fundamental to everything you do, so having the right wiring in place will greatly influence your operations.
At CAB IT, we provide businesses with dedicated IT support to help your business thrive. In this article, we’ll explore the ins and outs of fibre optics versus copper cabling – helping you decide which is best for your business needs.
If you want to upgrade your IT infrastructure and get support today, get in touch.
What is a Fibre Optic Cable?
Fibre optics are high-network cables that use light-based technology to provide rapid and reliable data transfer. They’re typically made of thin glass or plastic strands known as optical fibres, and are one of the most powerful forms of network cabling available.
Fibre optics offer many advantages for your business, but are well known for their higher upfront cost when compared to copper cabling. Finding out the advantages of each option will put you in the best position to make a strategic decision for your business’ IT infrastructure.
Fibre Optics vs Copper Wiring: What’s the Difference?
While the primary differentiator between copper cabling and fibre optics is the cost, there are also several other factors that feed into their use cases. Ahead, we’ll give a blow-by-blow of common IT and business needs, showing how each solution matches up.
Cost-Effectiveness
Copper wiring is generally cheaper to produce and install when compared to fibre optic cables. On the other hand, while fibre optics are more expensive to produce and install, their long-term performance and scalability often justify the investment.
Bandwith and Range
The slower data transfer speeds and shorter range for copper wiring mean even high-speed options like Cat6a only extend up to around 100 metres. Meanwhile, fibre optics can transmit data over several kilometres without any loss.
Power Over Ethernet (POE)
One place where copper wiring wins over fibre optics is through its POE capability. Copper cabling supports this technology, allowing both power and data transmission through a single cable. This makes it ideal for applications like cameras and IoT devices.
Fibre optics does not support this technology, so a separate power source would be required.
Susceptibility to Interference
Copper wiring requires shielding as it is vulnerable to electromagnetic interference (EMI) from electrical devices, which significantly degrades signal quality. On the other hand, fibre optics are immune to this interference, making it an ideal choice for dense IT environments.
Durability and Flexibility
If you’re looking for a robust option, then copper cabling is generally both more durable and flexible than fibre optics. However, it is prone to corroding over time, especially in moist environments. Fibre optics are much more prone to breaking due to their fragility, but when handled and installed correctly they offer lasting benefits alongside greater resistance to environmental factors.
Installation and Maintenance
Simpler to install, splice, and repair, copper cabling lets you carry out maintenance with less specialised equipment. Fibre optics are much more complex, requiring specialist tools and expertise to maintain. However, their long-lasting nature means fibre optics won’t require as much attention, reducing overall maintenance requirements over time.
Common Uses for Fibre Optics and Copper Wiring
These advantages all lend to specific use cases for fibre optics and copper cabling.
Copper is ideal for office networks and telephone systems, especially for shorter distances and smaller bandwidth requirements.
For long distance communications, high-bandwidth applications, modern IT systems, and your critical infrastructure, fibre optics is the way to go.
The Key Advantages of Fibre Optics
That can be a lot to unpack, so we’ve also provided the key advantages of fibre optics for your business:
- Higher Bandwidth – faster data transmission with greater capacity
- Longer Distances – carry signals over further distances with minimal loss
- Thin & Lightweight – compact and space-efficient for easy installation
- Superior Capacity – more fibres can fit into a single cable, increasing the rate of data transfer
- Low Interference – highly resistant to interference, ensuring reliable signals
- High Security – difficult to tap, making it ideal for sensitive data
- Durable & Flexible – more resilient to environmental factors like moisture and corrosion
As a whole, the IT industry is moving away from copper cabling and towards faster solutions like fibre optics. These can give you a whole host of advantages, enabling your data infrastructure to take advantage of the technologies of the future.
Find out more about the advantages of fibre optic cabling for your business >
Cost Implications and Long-Term Benefits
Fibre optics have a higher initial cost than copper cables, being more expensive to produce and install. This is largely due to the complex production process, specialised tools, and expertise involved with the installation.
However, despite these upfront costs, you’ll find that fibre optics offer great long-term savings. For example, their high quality reduces the need for future upgrades, lowering the potential costs of maintenance. At the same time, fibre optics are a scalable solution which supports future expansion – enabling business growth with minimal need for additional network infrastructure.
As a reliable form of cabling, fibre optics offer reduced downtime – meaning fewer disruptions, higher productivity, and better time and money returns on your investment. Furthermore, their quality leads to increased business efficiency through high-speed data transmission, enabling faster operations and improving your performance.
Better ways of working and data handling mean a more cost-effective business that’s easy to manage. So even if the initial cost is higher, you’ll likely save much more in the long run.
Future-Proofing Your Business Network for AI
As AI grows in power exponentially, so too does its data requirements. You need systems that can keep up if you want to integrate this lucrative technology with your business operations.
High-performance networks with fibre optics enable faster data processing and analysis, which is crucial for AI algorithms to handle large volumes of data efficiently. Due to its high capacity for data transfer, fibre optics also enables scalability, providing robust infrastructure to meet growing data needs.
When it comes to AI, fibre optics offer several other key benefits, which include:
- Enhanced reliability through consistent data connections
- Support for real-time insights and rapid decision-making
- Increased data security for compliance
If you’re looking to take advantage of the strengths of AI and ensure your business is ready for the future, then fibre optics is the choice for you.
Upgrade Your Network Infrastructure with CAB IT
If you’re looking to upgrade your network infrastructure, there’s no better time than now. Technology is always advancing, and your existing cables might not be able to handle the heat. At CAB IT, we can advise you towards the best solution, helping you through a streamlined installation and providing comprehensive IT support services to greater enhance your business connectivity.
For top quality IT services in Bristol, get in touch today!
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