What Makes Superior Essex Category 6A Cables Sustainable?

Data infrastructure continues to expand to meet the demands of modern workflows. More than ever, you need all sorts of communications devices in your built environment to facilitate a reliable network. As we develop this infrastructure, we must be responsible with the materials we choose and holistically mindful of their impact.

Superior Essex Communications is normalizing sustainable practices and products in the communications industry. Its newest line of Category 6A cables, 10Gain XP and 10Gain XP+, provide optimum performance with lessened impacts on people and the planet. These cables were designed for modern Power-over-Ethernet smart, sustainable building systems and have third-party environmental certifications signifying their reduced impacts, specifically surrounding carbon.

Cables Manufactured with Sustainability in Mind

From start to finish, Superior Essex manufactures its Cat 6A cables with sustainable practices. After Life Cycle Assessments of its products, the company identified that its copper sourcing could negatively impact people and environments from where it purchases this material. In response, Superior Essex partnered with The Copper Mark, a social and environmental assurance system that assesses the human rights, labor conditions, community and governance of copper mines, smelters and refiners.

The Cat 6A cables are produced in a Zero Waste to Landfill manufacturing facility in Hoisington, Kansas. Thanks to the material reclamation procedures and passionate employees who work diligently to divert waste, the facility has held this certification since 2014.

Superior Essex has worked closely with its suppliers to collect compositional chemistry data to understand the risk of hazardous chemicals inside its products. The manufacturer produced Health Product Declarations for its 10Gain Category 6A products, and received Red List Free Declare labels from the International Living Future Institute, denoting that the low-smoke zero-halogen and fluorinated ethylene propylene jacketed versions of this product are Red List free.

Designed for Sustainable Buildings

Building developers and facilities managers recognize the need for sustainable materials in their projects. However, they don’t want to sacrifice performance. The design of the Category 6A cables lends itself to network efficiency and sustainability. The 10Gain cables have a smaller outside diameter (OD) than any Category 6 or 6A cable Superior Essex has produced before. This means less cabling material in the building. Additionally, the 10Gain XP and XP+ cables boast Environmental Product Declarations and Health Product Declarations, allowing these products to contribute to green-building certifications.

Through all the optimization of its manufacturing practices so far, Superior Essex has achieved third-party verification by GreenCircle Certified that it reduced the embodied carbon of its 10Gain XP and XP+ Category 6A cables by 10%, making them a sustainable and convenient choice for projects with Zero Carbon goals. On top of that, Superior Essex is able to offset 150% of the remaining impacts through their Zero Carbon Program, the first cabling manufacturer to offer carbon-negative communication cables in the market.

These cables also have industry-leading headroom that prevents alien crosstalk and improves performance. End users who seek the best IT networks can also ensure they’re reducing their impact on the environment and people with the Category 6A cables from Superior Essex.

To learn more about how you can install these sustainably manufactured cables in your building, contact your local Accu-Tech representative.