TE Connectivity Building Information Modeling objects ease data center network, LAN design

TE Connectivity (TE) has released Building Information Modeling (BIM) objects for some of its most popular copper and fiber enterprise network offerings. The BIM objects simplify the design of new data center networks and local area networks, the company asserts.

A BIM is a digital representation of the physical and functional characteristics of a facility that automates compatibility and error checks. Use of such models can help network planners create easier, faster, and more accurate designs and specifications for both physical form and fit and technical specification validations.

BIM objects reflect the physical dimensions of an object and provide metadata that cannot be displayed graphically (such as performance category, wiring pattern, weight, heat output, voltage draw, etc.) that are integral to an accurate design and specification, TE says.

The U.S. General Services Administration (GSA) has mandated that all U.S. government projects (prospectus-level) be designed in BIM. Meanwhile, more than 35% of non-government network architectural design projects use some form of the strategy in North America as well, TE says.

The new BIM objects relate to five of what TE says are its most popular product families. They include the FiberGuide fiber raceway, RMG and WMG fiber enclosures, TrueNet fiber panel (TFP), Quareo chassis and blades, and copper-based products such as Category 5e, 6, and 6A patch panels and blocks; mounting systems; racks; and cable management systems.

TE says it plans to add new modules to its BIM object library in the future. The BIM objects are available in the company’s Autodesk Seek library.

“By investing in BIM objects, TE is making its products easier to design into projects with a high degree of accuracy,” said Gene Malone, global product manager at TE Connectivity. “Our BIM objects will help simplify and automate the design process for architects, engineers, and contractors, ensuring that the design works in all aspects before construction even begins.”

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