Opening a new office is a big project, and there are many things to think about when creating a new space. Networking installation is one area I recommend you do not skimp on when building your new office space.
The design of a quality network supports your daily business activities and helps your people be productive every day while avoiding unnecessary downtime due to technical problems. In contrast, a poorly designed office network can result in slow network speeds, security vulnerabilities, and constant technical issues that hinder the growth and success of your business.
If you’re opening a small office or a large office space, use this checklist to help you set up all necessary components required to create a dependable/network ready solution for your business.
Understanding Your Office Network Requirements
Having a clear understanding of your business requirements is essential before you begin your networking installation. Each office is unique, which must be reflected in the design of your network.
When planning your office, you should take into consideration how many people will be employed, how many devices will connect to the network, and what daily tasks will occur. For example, if the office relies heavily on utilisation of cloud-based applications, video conferencing, or transferring large amounts of data, then your network size and performance will need to accommodate those types of uses. Therefore, your network should also anticipate future growth so that changes to the network won’t need to occur within a short time frame.
By adequately planning and designing your network at this stage, you can avoid performance-related problems later on in the process.
Planning the Network Layout
An excellent network setup for your office environment will begin with an effective layout plan. You will want to determine how you will arrange your workstation layout, conference room, printer locations, the location of server equipment and Wireless Access Points (WAPs). In addition, you will want to identify a secure area for your server racks or network racks.
Your server rack or network rack area should be well-ventilated, free from dust and contain only authorised personnel with access to it. A proper layout plan will help to reduce the amount of cabling you have to deal with within your office space while providing increased network performance throughout the office.
Structured Cabling: The Foundation of Office Networking
Any business office that employs structured cabling has a strong foundation for their computer networks; structured cabling is defined as being an orderly method of installing the types of network cables needed to connect various devices throughout a workspace.
High quality ethernet cables; specifically Cat6 and Cat6A are recommended for today’s business offices. Higher quality cables mean higher transmission speeds and less chance of problems associated with long cable lengths.
Also included in a structured cabling installation are patch panels, racks for network devices (e.g., switches, routers), and a method to properly manage the cabling (cable management).
Having an organized structured cabling installation provides better overall troubleshooting capabilities, better network operational integrity, and allows for easier upgrading in the future since you will not have to redo the entire structured cabling system to accommodate new equipment.
LAN Installation for Stable Connectivity
Having a dependable local area network (LAN) installation is important for office desktops, printers, and internal systems. While Wi-Fi provides convenience for mobile devices or when needing to connect to an internet network, wired connections (via LAN cables) provide better speed and stability for critical tasks.
A proper LAN connection needs to be installed for every workstation after having been tested as operational. Additionally, there must be enough LAN switch ports available now (for all devices), as well as to accommodate later expansion, thus future-proofing the office’s infrastructure.
In many professional office environments, managed switches are the preferred choice due to their greater control and monitoring capabilities. Overall, a quality LAN installation helps facilitate communication and maintain consistent and optimum performance of tools/technology for employees during an entire business day.
Choosing the Right Internet Connection
Internet connectivity is the main source of business activity in today’s offices. When finding a commercial-grade internet service, you should look for an Internet service provider (ISP) that can provide you a consistent speed & quality of service. Your business should choose a bandwidth package that exceeds your present needs and then establish a backup internet connection that can keep you working during times of downtime. Automatic failover systems allow your business to switch between connections seamlessly so that your productivity is not interrupted.
Network Security and Firewall Setup
Security is an important portion of the overall installation plan of the networking systems in an office because an office environment deals with sensitive data, and cyber threats can target unsecured networks.
The foundation for a sound office network should consist of a high-quality enterprise router, firewall protection and the ability to implement secure access controls. Employees working from home should also have access to secure remote connection through a Virtual Private Network (VPN). Separate your public guest Wi-Fi network from your private office network.
By maintaining proper security, the office network protects its assets (data, systems and the business’s reputation).
Wi-Fi Coverage and Performance
The performance of Wi-Fi impacts directly on productivity within business settings and therefore, a single router will often not suffice for a typical office environment.
In addition to the placement of enterprise-grade access points based on both the size and layout of your office, using separate Wi-Fi networks for employees and guests helps to ensure the security and operational performance of the wireless system as a whole.
When a Wi-Fi system is installed with a professional plan to ensure that connectivity is maintained at a high level throughout the entire office space, this will provide a stable wireless environment for use by all employees and visitors to the workplace.
Servers, Storage, and Cloud Integration
Depending on your requirements, you will need to set up on-premise servers, network-attached storage, or/cloud solutions. To connect these systems, establish high-speed LAN connections for secure connections and rapid access to the data.
Server areas should include sufficient cooling; adequate power back-up; and be accessible only to authorized personnel. Conduct regular backups of your data, and synchronize with the cloud to avoid losing precious data.
Power Backup for Network Equipment
Network devices must function even during power outages, so it’s essential that all routers, switches, firewalls, and servers have an uninterruptible power supply (UPS) installed as a backup to keep them operational during a power failure.
In addition to keeping your equipment powered during outages, surge protection is crucial to protecting your equipment against voltage fluctuations. The reliability of your backup power supply will help prevent network failures from occurring unexpectedly and help prevent loss of data through corruption.
Testing and Network Documentation
Before activating the office network, you must perform extensive verification testing (testing the LAN points, internet speed, Wi-Fi coverage, firewall settings and backup connections).
You must maintain documentation for the office network, including all IP addresses, connected devices, cable installation paths and passwords. This is especially helpful in the future for upgrades, troubleshooting or repairs.
Ongoing Maintenance and Support
Networking is an ongoing process, and it is important to stay on top of your network maintenance to maintain optimal performance as your company grows. To avoid wasting time and money on unnecessary downtime and maintain a longer lifespan for your network equipment, a majority of offices choose to enter into Annual Maintenance Contracts for their networking needs (i.e., Monitoring, Upgrades, Troubleshooting).
Performing preventive maintenance will eliminate delays and will allow for the maximum life cycle of network hardware.
Final Words
Successful offices have good structured wiring, and good structured wiring is part of the overall network installation. Structured wiring is used for structured cabling and for establishing LANs (Local Area Networks) in all types of businesses.
Setting up strong structured cabling, LANs, security, and internet before your office opens will minimize problems down the road. That same cabling and LAN will also support all of your future technology needs.
When structured cabling and LANs are installed correctly, they become a dependable foundation that grows alongside your office. At Martech Computers, we design and install structured cabling and network solutions built to last, so your business can expand with confidence. Contact Martech Computers today to get your office’s network set up right from day one.