Electrical Surge Protection: August 2021

Friday, August 27, 2021

5G In A Streamlined And Safe Format

There is no doubt that 5G is coming to an area near you. The technology is in such high demand that it has created a “land rush” among major carriers, where the expectation is that those offering 5G will get the majority of the customers from that region. Few new benefits have resonated among customers to the magnitude that 5G has in the last few years, with many people basing their decision to use one carrier over another because they offer 5G speeds. The difference is noticeable, with streaming, downloads and clarity of calls being so dramatically better on 5G networks that it is worth the significant investment that it will take to upgrade existing networks to 5G. This involves the installation of thousands of new pieces of equipment into regions where the public is in close proximity. 5G micro sites (also known as small cell sites) are smaller than 4G and 3G macro sites, but must be far closer together in order to provide adequate coverage. The micro sites involved in these networks must be positioned about one-tenth of a mile from the user in order to maintain functionality, due to the 5G signal degrading far faster than previous versions. This creates a situation where 5G small cell sites must be installed all around people as they go about their lives, on street poles and in building exteriors as well as on rooftops and the sides of buildings in order to create the appropriate proximity that the networks require. This leads toward more creative installations in many different situations, and can add to the risks posed to utility workers or even to the public. Each installation is relatively unique in its setup, with an array of boxes, antennas and wires being externally or internally mounted to a pole or structure. As utility workers need to be able to provide maintenance at the sites themselves or to other equipment in the surrounding area, they need to be able to understand the exact routing of power to these devices in order to assure safety. This is why Raycap’s combination AC disconnect enclosures are so important. Through their integration into a 5G small cell site, they enable quick power cut off to an entire site with just a single breaker. This breaker and metering device are integrated within an enclosure that hides electrical wiring, provides a connectivity junction and surge protection, ultimately creating a far better looking and safer small cell installation. The safety and the security of understanding the standard setup that will cut power off to all devices involved, combined with the far more clean and streamlined look of the site itself, makes the Raycap combination disconnect enclosure an attractive addition to 5G micro site installations. With the rollout of any new technology comes an impact to the public both negative and positive, and through the integration of the compact enclosure housing the AC Combo Disconnect, the visual impact is significantly reduced. There is no getting rid of the infrastructure equipment involved in the process, but now we can hide it while also making it safer.

5G Small Cell Sites That Are Safe And Beautiful

The investment into 5G technology is happening fast among the major carriers, who are each attempting to be the first in a region to offer 5G speeds. In many ways, this is a very important differentiating factor that consumers are basing their cell phone carrier decision upon, deciding to stay with a company or switch to a different one. Once a customer has experienced 5G speeds, they are generally unhappy with the 3G and 4G existing networks, simply because of the improved experience that 5G offers. Streaming video content in 4K is now not only possible, but can be done with minimal buffering. Large file types like 3D renderings can now be transferred to handheld and wireless devices, where in the recent past this would not have been possible. Crystal clear calls and video chat from wireless devices is now standard, thanks to the improved speeds of 5G. With any improvement to a system will also come drawbacks, and within the 5G rollout that drawback is the infrastructure build out involved. 5G micro (small cell) sites in densely populated areas must be positioned close to end-users as well as other sites in order to maintain a network performance. Slower networks could have macro sites positioned upwards of a mile from the user, allowing these sites to be installed with little visual impact on the people using the network. Customers didn’t notice the equipment because it could be far away, but with 5G, specifically 5G mmWave, the equipment needs to be at street level or within visual eyeshot to function. This means that as 5G rolls out into more areas, you are going to notice a new array of enclosures on existing and new poles, and you are going to see them everywhere. For this reason, there has been a push to develop better installations that shroud this telecom infrastructure from view. Through the development of new materials like InvisiWave from Raycap, 5G mmWave and C-band antennas and radios can be positioned behind materials that will obscure them from view and create a better visual experience. While this improvement makes everything more appealing to the eye, it takes another type of advancement to make it safer.

The problem of electrified equipment being positioned around the public, or around utility workers who will need to encounter it daily creates safety issues. The possibility of accidents as a result of a component accidentally being live when workers encounter it grows due to the unique installation setups of each and every site. While there is a certain level of standardization in the equipment involved, the way that equipment is joined to the power supply can vary. Because of this issue, Raycap has created the combination AC disconnect / surge protection enclosures that not only provide a thinner and nicer enclosure for all the equipment, but also provide a single place for the power cut off to the entire site. The power is fed to the enclosure and to a metering device, then through a single cutoff breaker before feeding the equipment involved. This gives utilities the ability to ensure safe working conditions because the power to the entire small cell site can be shut off with a single switch. The combo disconnect enclosure is just ne of Raycap’s innovative developments in support of 5G networks coming to an area near you.