Cabling & Network · Durham Region
Cable testing and certification — proof, not promises
This is an add-on service, and plenty of jobs don't need it. Every install we do is labelled and continuity tested as standard. Certification goes further: it measures whether a run actually meets its category across every pair, and produces a document that says so.
At a glance
- Add-on service — quoted separately
- Cat5e / Cat6 / Cat6a certification
- Fiber insertion loss & OTDR
- Fault location on existing runs
When you need this — and when you don't
Straight answer first: if you're running a normal office at Gigabit on newly installed Cat6, you probably don't need certification. The labelling and continuity testing included with every install we do already proves each run is wired correctly end to end, and that's enough.
Certification earns its cost in four situations: a manufacturer warranty depends on it, a landlord or consultant is requiring it in writing, you're taking over cabling somebody else installed and don't trust it, or you're pushing an existing cable plant to 2.5G or 10G and need to know what it will actually carry. If none of those apply to your job, we'll tell you so rather than sell it to you.
"It works" and "it passes" are different things
A run can carry traffic today and still be out of spec — excess crosstalk, a split pair, a marginal return loss. It will pass a cheap continuity tester and fail under load or at higher speeds. That's the run that causes the intermittent fault nobody can reproduce.
Certification testing measures the parameters that actually define the category, at every frequency in the band, on every pair. The output is pass or fail against the standard, with the margins shown.
Testing cabling you didn't install
We're regularly asked to certify cabling installed by somebody else — before a lease is signed, after a contractor has left, or when a network has an intermittent problem nobody can pin down. We'll test it, tell you what passes, and give you a list of what needs re-terminating.
What's included
What you get
- Copper certification — Full category test on every pair with margins reported.
- Fiber testing — Insertion loss on every strand, OTDR traces where useful.
- Fault location — Distance-to-fault so a repair is targeted, not exploratory.
- Re-termination — Failures corrected and re-tested as part of the job.
- Label schedule — Runs identified and labelled if they aren't already.
- Written report — Results supplied in a format you can hand to a landlord or auditor.
How it runs
The process, start to finish
Every job follows the same shape, so you always know where you are in it.
Scope
How many runs, what category, and whether they're currently labelled.
Identify & label
Runs toned and traced where the existing labelling is missing or wrong.
Test
Each run certified to category. Fiber strands tested for loss.
Report failures
You get a clear list of what passed, what failed and why.
Remediate
Failures re-terminated and re-tested — usually the fix is at the termination.
Deliver results
Final report and label schedule handed over.
Want this scoped for your site?
Tell us the building and what you're trying to achieve. We'll tell you what it takes — and whether you actually need it.
Common questions
Before you call
Isn't testing included when you install cabling?
Labelling both ends and continuity/wire-map testing every run is included on every install — that's part of doing the job properly, not an extra. Certification is a different test with different equipment, and it's quoted separately because most jobs don't need it.
Why would I pay to test cabling that already works?
Because 'works' and 'meets spec' aren't the same. Marginal runs are the source of most intermittent network faults, and they only show up under load. That said, if your network is healthy and nothing is requiring the paperwork, this is money you don't need to spend.
Do you test cabling other companies installed?
Yes, frequently. It's common before signing a lease, after taking over a site, or when chasing a fault nobody can reproduce.
What do I actually receive?
A pass/fail result per run with the measured margins, a list of any failures and their cause, and a label schedule tying it all back to the physical ports.
What if a lot of runs fail?
Most failures are at the termination and are fixed by re-terminating — which we include. If a run is physically damaged in the wall, we'll tell you and quote to re-pull just that one.
Related