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OUTSIDE PLANT PROTECTION CONCEPT

In telecommunication, the term outside plant has the following meanings:

 In civilian telecommunications, outside plant refers to all of the physical cabling and supporting
infrastructure (such as conduit, cabinets, tower or poles), and any associated hardware (such
as repeaters) located between a demarcation point in a switching facility and a demarcation point
in another switching center or customer premises.

The CATV industry divides its fixed assets between head end or inside plant, and outside plant. The
electrical power industry also uses the term outside plant to refer to electric power distribution system.

Network connections between devices such as computers, printers, and phones require a physical
infrastructure to carry and process signals. Typically, this infrastructure will consist of:

 Cables from wall outlets and jacks run to a communications closets, sometimes referred to as
station cable.
 Cables connecting one communications closet to another, sometimes referred to as riser cable.
 Racks containing telecommunications hardware, such as switches, routers, and repeaters.
 Cables connecting one building to another.
 Exterior communications cabinets containing hardware outside of buildings.
 Radio transceivers used inside or outside buildings, such as wireless access points, and hardware
associated with them, such as antennas and towers.

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Outside plant cabling, whether copper or fiber, is generally installed as aerial cable between
poles, in an underground conduit system, or by direct burial. Hardware associated with the outside
plant must be either protected from the elements (for example, distribution frames are generally
protected by a street side cabinet) or constructed with materials suitable for exposure to the
elements. Installation of the outside plant elements often require construction of significant physical
infrastructure, such as underground vaults. In older large installations, cabling is sometimes
protected by air pressure systems designed to prevent water infiltration. While this is not a modern
approach, the cost of replacement of the older cabling with sealed cabling is often prohibitively
expensive. The cabling used in the outside plant must also be protected from electrical disturbances
caused by lightning or voltage surges due to electrical shorts or induction.

PROTECTING EQUIPMENT IN THE OUTSIDE PLANT

The environment can play a large role in the quality and lifespan of equipment used in the
outside plant. It is critical that environmental testing criteria as well as design and performance
requirements be defined for this type of equipment.
There are generally four operating environments or classes covering all outside plant (OSP)
applications, including wireless facilities.

 Class 1: Equipment in a Controlled Environment

 Class 2: Protected Equipment in Outside Environments
 Class 3: Protected Equipment in Severe Outside Environments
 Class 4: Products in an Unprotected Environment
Electronic equipment located in one or more of these environmental class locations is
designed to withstand various environmental operating conditions resulting from climatic
conditions that may include rain, snow, sleet, high winds, ice, salt spray, and sand storms. Since
outside temperatures can possibly range from −40 °C (−40 °F) to 46 °C (115 °F), with varying
degrees of solar loading, along with humidity levels ranging from below 10% up to 100%,
significant environmental stresses within the enclosure or facility can be produced.

 Environmental criteria such as operating temperatures, humidity, particulate

contamination, pollution exposure, and heat dissipation
 Mechanical criteria such as structural requirements, packaging, susceptibility to vibration,
earthquake, and handling
 Electrical protection and safety including protection from lightning surges, AC power
induction and faults, and Electromagnetic Interference (EMI), and DC power influences

Hand holes and other below-ground splice vaults

Hand holes and other below-ground splice vaults house telecommunications components
used in an Outside Plant (OSP) environment.

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Hand holes are plastic or polymer concrete structures set below ground with their lids
flush to the surrounding soil, turf, footpath, or road surface. They can be used to house and
protect copper, coaxial, and optical fiber telephone cable splices and distribution elements.
They safeguard and provide convenient access to cable termination and branch points,
provide flexibility and access for installation operations (e.g., pulling or blowing cables),
provide mechanical and environmental protection for splices, allow access for craftsperson
work activities, and discourage access by unauthorized persons.
Hand holes and other below-ground splice vaults are deployed in a variety of
environments. The major distinctions in these environments focus on the strength and
frequency of vehicular and foot traffic loading. There are four basic application
environments

CORROSION RESISTANCE
Corrosion in outside plant telecommunications network components is caused by
exposure to the effects of temperature, humidity, electrical power, and contaminants.
Corrosion resistance criteria for these network components are based on the
environments to which they are exposed.
Outside plant environments can be above-ground, underground, buried, or underwater.

Above-ground plant
Above-ground plant includes all the telecommunications equipment physically located
on or above the ground. This includes enclosures such as huts, cabinets, and pedestals,
and the equipment mounted therein. It also includes pole-mounted equipment and
cases, and pole-line hardware.
Above-ground plant can be exposed to extreme temperatures, and to humidity that
varies with the seasons and with daily temperature changes. When humidity condenses
on the surfaces of outdoor apparatus or equipment, the corrosively of the moisture layer
can be increased by industrial pollutants that render the condensate moisture corrosive.
In sea coastal areas, wind-borne, salt-laden water droplets can deposit on exposed
components.
Near large cultivated areas, where fertilizers are applied by airplanes, the wind may carry
nitrates, phosphates, and ammonium compounds to settle on metallic components of
the above-ground telephone plant. Similarly, in residential areas, lawn fertilizers and
herbicides can cause corrosion. In regions with snow, the salts used to melt snow and
ice on roadways can accelerate corrosion. Under extreme conditions, pedestals and
cabinets may be flooded with water that contains mud and corrosive salts. Corrosion of
these flooded components may be accelerated by the presence of dc voltages used to
power the networks. Secretions from insects can also accelerate corrosion. Finally,
chewing by rodents may expose metallic components, normally protected by a polymer
or paint coating, to a corrosive environment.

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Underground plant
Underground plant includes all the telecommunications equipment installed in
underground structures such as utility holes, Controlled Environment Vaults (CEVs),
and ducts, along with associated hardware. Underground plant can be exposed to waters
containing water-soluble salts of the native soil. Utility holes often show evidence of
corrosion of support hardware and bonding ribbons that is caused by sulfate-reducing
bacteria. The environment in utility holes and ducts can be made corrosive by man-
made chemicals such as industrial effluent, fertilizers, and de-icing salts. Protective
plastic coatings and cable jackets can rapidly deteriorate from leaking steam pipes
present in many urban areas and from gasoline leaking from underground storage tanks.

Buried plant
Buried plant consists of telecommunications equipment such as cables, splice closures,
lower parts of pedestals, and grounding systems directly buried in the soil. Buried plant
can be exposed to the same corrosive environment as underground plant. In addition,
attack by gophers can expose underlying components to corrosion attack.

Underwater plant
Underwater plant includes all telecommunications equipment located beneath the
surface of a body of water. This includes cables and repeaters. The water can range
from relatively pure, to brackish, to badly contaminated with industrial effluent.

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WHAT IS GROUNDING AND BONDING FOR

TELECOMMUNICATION SYSTEMS?

Why do we need grounding and bonding for telecommunication systems?

With the increasing demand for computer network installations, telecommunications grounding and
bonding has become a growing opportunity for electrical contractors. Although similar grounding
principles apply, understanding the telecommunications terminology and special considerations has
been a challenge.

As with traditional electrical grounding, telecommunications networks and equipment should be

grounded to the electrical service. However, simply grounding to structural steel isn’t enough when
tackling telecommunications systems. The sensitivity of the electronic equipment requires that the
telecommunications cabling and power be effectively equalized to prevent loops or transients that
can damage the equipment. This means designing a complete grounding and bonding system that
goes beyond the basic "green-wire" methodology.

What is grounding?
“A conducting connection, whether intentional or unintentional, between electrical circuits or
equipment and the earth, or some conducting body that serves in place of the earth".”
Electrical systems and communication cabling systems that are required to be grounded must be
connected to the earth. The grounding mechanism must provide a reliable means to safely conduct
the voltages imposed by lightning, line surges, or unintentional contact with high voltage lines or
equipment to ground.

What is bonding?

The NEC article 100 and 250-70 defines bonding as:

“The permanent joining of the metallic conducting parts of equipment and conductor enclosures to
assure and electrically conductive path between them that will ensure electrical continuity and have
sufficient capacity to safely conduct any foreign current likely to be imposed to ground.”
Bonding is required because electrically conductive materials such as structural steel, metal cable
trays, and metallic supporting structures may become energized in the event of making contact with:
lightning, line surges, or unintentional contact with high voltage lines.

The practice of creating effective bonding is to create a reliable path for such fault currents to the
electrical system ground. Effective bonding practices help to equalize potential caused by either
lightning and electrical system faults that would otherwise damage equipment and harm individuals.

The NEC requires that metal raceways, cable trays, racks, enclosures, or metal cable armoring must
be effectively bonded to ensure the capacity to conduct any fault current to ground.

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The NEC Article 250-96 states:

“Metal raceways, cable trays, cable armor, cable sheath, enclosures, frames, fittings, and other metal
noncurrent carrying parts that are able to serve as grounding conductors, with or without the use of
supplementary equipment grounding conductors, shall be effectively bonded where necessary to
ensure electrical continuity and the capacity to conduct safely any fault currents likely to be imposed
on them. Any nonconductive paint, enamel, or similar coating shall be removed at threads, contact
points, and contact surfaces or be connected by means of fittings designed so as to make such
removal unnecessary.”

ELECTRICAL EXPOSURE

Communication cables have exposure to electrical currents. The NEC Article 800-2 defines a
communication cable as “exposed” when

“The cable or circuit is in such a position that, in case of failure of supports or insulation, contact
with another cable or circuit may result.”
All communication cables are considered exposed to electrical current because of where these cables
are installed in a building or in a campus configuration. Communication cables are installed in very
close proximity to electrical conductors on walls and above ceilings.

The degree of expose is also determined by where the cable is installed. Exposure can be defined in
the following two areas:

 Outside building exposure

 Inside building exposure

1. Outside Building Exposure

All copper communication cables, or any dielectric cables that have a conductive element, are
conductors of electrical energy. When these types of cables are run between buildings, they are
electrically exposed to lightning. These cables would carry a lightning strike along the cable and into
any cables that are connected to these cables.

2. Inside Building Exposure

Communication cables are exposed to electrical hazards inside a building. Copper communication
cables are installed in the same vicinity as electrical power conductors. These is the possibility of
accidental contact with power conductors, which would cause power fault induction.

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ANCHORS AND GUY WIRE ASSEMBLY

A guy-wire, guy-line, or guy-rope, also known as simply a guy, is a tensioned cable designed
to add stability to a free-standing structure. They are used commonly in ship masts, radio masts, wind
turbines, utility poles, fire service extension ladders used in church raises and tents. A thin vertical
mast supported by guy wires is called a guyed mast. Structures that support antennas are frequently of
a lattice construction and are called "towers". One end of the guy is attached to the structure, and the
other is anchored to the ground at some distance from the mast or tower base. The tension in the
diagonal guy-wire, combined with the compression and buckling strength of the structure, allows the
structure to withstand lateral loads such as wind or the weight of cantilevered structures. They are
installed radially, usually at equal angles about the structure, in trios and quads. As the tower leans a
bit due to the wind force, the increased guy tension is resolved into a compression force in the tower
or mast and a lateral force that resists the wind load.
Conductive guy cables for radio antenna masts may disturb the radiation pattern of the
antenna, so their electrical characteristics must be included in the design.

UTILITY POLE GUY-WIRE

Utility poles are buried in the ground and have sufficient strength to stand on their own; guys
are only needed on some poles to support unbalanced lateral loads due to the utility wires attached to
them or to resist ground movement. Guys are particularly needed on dead-end(anchor) poles, where
a long straight section of wire line ends, or angles off in another direction. To protect the public against
faults that might allow the cable to become electrified, utility guy cables usually either have a
ceramic strain insulator ("Johnny ball"), or a fiberglass guy strain insulator inserted near the top, to
ensure that any dangerous voltages do not reach the lower end of the wire accessible to the public.
The lower end where the cable enters the ground is often encased in a length of yellow plastic reflector
to make it more visible, so that people or vehicles do not run into it.

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In urban areas where the ground area around the pole is restricted, a variation called a sidewalk guy is
often used. In this type the guy line extends diagonally from the top of the pole to a horizontal spar
brace extending out from the middle of the pole, and from this it continues vertically to the ground.
Thus the bottom part of the guy is vertical and does not obstruct headroom, so a sidewalk can pass
between the pole and the guy.
An alternative to guy-wires sometimes used on dead-end poles is a push-brace pole, a second pole set
at an angle in the ground which butts diagonally against the side of the vertical pole.

ANTENNA MAST GUY-WIRES

Electromagnetic fields from the antennas complicate the design of guys that support mast
antennas. Conductive metal guy-wires whose lengths are near to quarter wavelength multiples of the
transmitted frequency can distort the radiation pattern of the antenna. This also applies to guy wires
of neighboring masts or metal structures situated nearby. To prevent this, each guy wire is divided by
strain insulators into multiple sections, each segment non-resonant at the transmitted wavelength.
Cylindrical or egg-shaped porcelain "Johnny ball" insulators (also called "egg insulators") are usually
used. Non-conductive guys of Kevlar fiber (Phillystran) or extruded fiberglass rod are frequently used
to not disturb the radiation pattern of the antennas. The strength and low stretch properties of Kevlar
fiber approaches that of steel. However, Kevlar is very susceptible to ultraviolet degradation so it is
enclosed in a UV resistant plastic sheath.

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The individual sections of conductive guys can develop large charges of static electricity,
especially on very tall masts. The voltage caused by this static electricity can be several times larger
than that generated by the transmitter. In order to avoid dangerous and unpredictable discharges, the
insulators must be designed to withstand this high voltage, which results at tall masts in over-
dimensioned backstage insulators. At each backstage insulator, a lightning arrestor in the form of an
arc gap is required for the purpose of over-voltage protection in case of lightning strikes. The
insulators and arrestors must be maintained carefully, because an insulator failure can result in a mast
collapse. Egg insulators have the porcelain in compression and if it fails, the end loops of the guy
wires are still intertwined.

ANCHORS
In ground-anchored guys, the structure which attaches the guy-wire to the ground is called
an anchor.[1] The anchor must be adequate to resist the maximum tensile load of the guy wires; both
the dead load of the tension of the wire and the maximum possible live load due to wind. Since the
guy wire exerts its force at an angle, the anchor has both vertical and lateral (horizontal) forces on it.
The anchor relies on the lateral shear strength of the soil to resist the forces from all of the guys
attached to it. Several types of anchor are used:

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Dead man anchors

In this type, a hole is excavated and an object with a large surface area is placed in it with the
guy wire attached, and the hole is backfilled with earth or concrete.[1] In the historical form of dead
man anchor, a log is buried horizontally in a trench with the guy attached perpendicularly to its center.
Modern forms are the plate anchor, in which the guy is attached to a rod with an eyelet extending
from the center of a steel plate buried diagonally, perpendicular to the angle of the guy. In the concrete
anchor, a diagonal rod with an eyelet extending in the guy direction is cemented into a hole filled with
steel reinforced concrete. A sufficiently massive concrete block on the surface of the ground can also
be used as a dead man.
Screw anchors
This type consists of a rod with wide screw blades on the end and an eyelet on the other for the guy
wire. It is screwed deep into the ground, at the same angle as the guy, by a truck-mounted drill machine.
These are commonly used as guy anchors for utility poles since they are quick to install with a truck
mounted hydraulic powered auger drive.
Expanding anchors
A rod with a pivoted blade on the end is driven into the earth.[1] When the guy wire is attached and
tensioned, its force pulls the blade open, "setting" it into the soil. These are often used by the military
for rapid mast installations.
Grouted anchors
These are used in both soil and rock.[1] A hole is drilled at the angle of the guy. A steel anchor rod
with an eye is inserted, and the hole around it is filled with a liquid grout consisting of concrete and
an expansion agent or a structural epoxy. When the grout hardens or expands, the anchor is secure.

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