Cat5e Cabling Cost

What is it going to cost for a Cat5 installation?

Our project team is often asked how much Cat5e cabling costs when it is installed. What does the installation of the Cat5e project as a whole cost, and how much does it average out to be per outlet or point? 

One thing to note is the general term used by most customers is a Cat5 installation. However, the specification for the cable is the Cat5e or Cat5 enhanced. The older cat5 version is no longer manufactured or installed. 

Cat5e cabling costs as a general guideline are approximately thirty-five to fifty pounds per outlet. 

However, the following information will show how the cost will vary, depending on several factors. All projects are different. Therefore, so is every quote. They have a host of factors that can influence cost and prices in general.

The focus is always on ensuring that all you need is included in the quote. The thing you want to avoid is unknown surprise costs or hidden elements

In addition, it enables you to plan your cat5e cabling cost and installation timelines. Finally, you should be able to compare the quotation to every other quotation. It’s hard to compare if everything is not included in all quotations

Common factors that can impact the total value and price per point of Cat5e cabling

1. The total number of cables placed inside the site

2. Design elements of the overall cat5e cabling layout
3. The length between the cables to the main cabinet
4. Whether installation routes easier or difficult
5. The cable outlet density
6. The building construction, i.e is it a factory, residential building, school, etc.
7. Existence of containment or additional containment requirements
8. Requirements for external Cat5e or external containment
9. Ensure CCA or B2CA cable has been allowed for when necessary
10. Is false floor or ceiling present in the building
11. Job planning. Will it be standard working hours, weekends or evenings?
12. Project location
13. Building access, safety constraints
14. Parking, loading, and other considerations 

Cat5 Cabling Cost of installation – Estimated installation costs for network cabling

The total average cost for cabling Cat5e is from Thirty-Five to Fifty Pounds per outlet, which includes the wires, panels, and cat5e modules.

This is focused on a cat5e cable system starting from a minimum of 20 to 24 outlets.

Naturally, some projects have lower prices per outlet, or in some way more than that estimate.

Below are general factors that are part of how this quotation relates to the overall price.

What factors reduce the cost of installing a Cat5e cabling installation?

Take into account the following considerations if you want to compare the price per point for Cat5e cable projects. In general, it enables the offer to be the most competitive and cost-effective.

The total number of cable outlets for Cat5e.

The greater the number of cables within the Cat5e cable layout, the lower the price per point overall. When you add more cable connectors in a building, there are economies of scale. For example, more cables may result in a chance to pull more cables simultaneously.

The facility or building for installation

The newer the building is, the more convenient the service is to be installed. Therefore, the lower the cost. If there are false ceilings and false floors, then the data cabling can be more easily installed. Conversely, it would be more difficult when you have solid ceilings and floors. The overall cost of having the luxury of the open spaces is lower.

The cable density of the Cat5e

The higher the data cabling density, the lower the total average price. Where larger data cabling bundles can be pulled into the same location, installation scale savings take place.

For example. Installing 100 Cat5e cabling outlets into a single open floor office will be significantly lower than installing 100 individual Cat5e cables into 100 apartments

What factors raise the higher cost of a Cat5 installation?

Lack of containment or routes

The false voids found in ceilings and false floors allow the installation to be quicker and smoother and result in the overall costs being lower. 

However, in buildings with no existing routes or containment, you will have to install this in addition. This may be localised containment or a full installation from start to finish. 

This potentially will increase the total installation cost by 50-100%. Of course, depending on the required containment and how much is needed.

Access and Location

Considerations for congestion charges and parking are essential for any Central London projects. This sometimes leads to an extra expense of almost £100 a day. A project outside London will not bear these expenses, which means that the total cost of the central London projects will be higher.

Timetable and hours of work

The need to conduct projects on an out-of-hours schedule will lead to a higher price. Often out of hour installations may improve the pace at which the project is completed because of easy access. However, generally unfavourable work hours raise total costs.

What factors move the cost of cat5e cabling outside of the average range?

Unusual or complex buildings

 Generally, this is buildings requiring complex installation, hard routes or equipment for specific access, resulting in quotas that go beyond the above range. 

Constructions such as:

1. Large Warehouses: High-decked large buildings that need scissor lift access. This of course increases the cabling time and results in additional equipment costs.
2. Care Houses: Typically, these buildings are solid buildings with no visible cabling routes. Therefore, additional containment is needed, or disruptive builders’ work to create routes.
3. Hotels: A large number of cables can be used in a hotel, but are divided into individual outlets scattered through bedrooms and spaces. They typically have high ceilings and are difficult to negotiate even for design and route planning.

Projects with a wide variety of individual outlets

Projects, where most of the layout is served by one Cat5e cable at one location, will result in an above-average cost. These projects may include Wi-Fi access points, CCTV cameras, or the control of door access, all scattered outlets in one overall installation.

A small number of cables required

If only a few outlets are needed for Cat5e cabling, then economies of scale do not reduce the total price per point. A low number of outlets have a higher overall installation cost because labour is a fixed portion of a certain number of outlets.

Cat5e and Cat5e CCA cable fire rating

The British standard published BS6701:2016+ A1:2017 on 30th November 2017; that certain fire-rated qualities must be present in structured cabling materials. Its common practice for some installers to install a lower-priced and lower grade cable to reduce costs. However, if your building is not to regulation it is your company that is liable regardless. This is one area not to try and save installation costs

Additional considerations

Many factors lead, as explained above, to the total cost of your cables. Thus, to meet current technology requirements and any potential requirements, an initial future planning consideration should be studied. Instead of partially cabling 50 outlets for what you require now, look at flood wiring for the future.

The total costs of 100 data points would be significantly less than cabling the floor for 50 points twice

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