Network cabling, also called structured cabling, is the one part of an office fit-out you can only install once. It is designed from the floor plan and the headcount at the end of the lease, installed before ceilings close, labelled at both ends, and tested so you receive certification results rather than an assurance.
Why does cabling have to be decided before the fit-out?
Once ceilings are closed and walls are finished, every cabling change is a visible repair. That single fact decides the sequence: outlet positions have to be in the contractor's drawings before they are issued for construction, which means the furniture layout has to be settled before that.
It also decides the specification. Cabling outlives several generations of the equipment plugged into it, so it is specified for the office at the end of the lease rather than the one moving in. The Wi-Fi Alliance sets out what Wi-Fi CERTIFIED 7 adds, and access points are among the devices that push cabling requirements upward.
How many outlets does an office need?
The usual starting point is at least two data points per desk position, plus outlets for every meeting room screen, printer, access point, camera and door controller. Then spares, in the places a desk might later appear.
Cable is inexpensive while the ceiling is open and expensive forever afterwards, which makes generous provisioning the cheapest decision in the project. Our office network setup page covers what sits on top of it, and the CAT6 and CAT6A comparison explains the grade choice.
- Two data points per desk position, plus spares in open areas.
- Outlets for meeting room screens, printers, access points, cameras and door access.
- Cable grade chosen for the length of the lease, not today's equipment.
- Containment and routes agreed with the fit-out contractor in advance.
- Consolidation points where the layout is likely to change.
What does the comms room need?
Every cable terminates somewhere, and that somewhere decides how long the installation lasts. A comms room needs a dedicated power circuit, cooling that runs outside office hours, a lockable door and a rack with room to grow.
The most common failure we are called to is not cabling at all: it is a rack in an unventilated cupboard, installed because the room was chosen after the cabling was planned rather than before. In a Dubai summer that decision has a short and predictable life.
What does certification actually mean?
A cable that carries a signal today is not the same as a cable that meets its standard. Certification testing measures each run against the specification and produces a result per outlet, which is the difference between an installer saying it works and you being able to prove it does.
Ask for the results as a file, not a verbal assurance, and keep them. When a link fails in two years, the original certification tells you whether it ever met spec or has degraded, which decides whether the fix is a repair or a warranty claim.
- Every run tested and certified, with a result per outlet.
- Results handed over as a file you keep.
- Labelling at both ends, matched to a port map.
- A warranty on the installation, stated in writing.
How should cabling be labelled and documented?
Labelling is what separates an installation you can maintain from one an engineer has to trace with a tone generator every time something moves. Every run is labelled at both ends with the same identifier, and that identifier appears on the patch panel, the faceplate and the port map.
The scheme itself matters less than its consistency and its survival. A simple floor-room-number convention works, provided it is applied without exception and recorded in documentation the business holds rather than the installer. Then a change is a lookup rather than an investigation, and the next provider starts from fact. Our office network documentation guide sets out what the record should contain.
- The same identifier at the faceplate, the patch panel and the port map.
- A convention applied without exception, however simple.
- Port map recorded in documentation the business owns.
- Updated whenever a move, add or change happens, as part of the work.
What about warehouses and industrial units?
Industrial spaces need a different design rather than an office design stretched. Distances often exceed what copper carries, which brings fibre between distribution points into the plan. Heat and dust mean enclosures need filtering and rating rather than a standard cabinet.
Racking and metal change where signal goes, so access point positions are surveyed with the racking in place rather than from a plan. Our Wi-Fi installation page covers the wireless side of that.
How Listonics installs cabling
We survey the space, design the outlet plan from your floor plan and headcount, and get it into the fit-out drawings before they are issued. We install, label both ends, terminate into a patch panel, test and certify every run, and hand over the results with a port map.
Work is quoted as a fixed scope after the survey, and Listonics projects run from AED 2,500 to AED 30,000 depending on requirement. Engineers work on site across the UAE. Our structured cabling service page covers the wider scope, and a free site survey is where a quote starts.
Frequently asked questions
A common starting point is two data points per desk position, plus outlets for meeting room screens, printers, access points, cameras and door access, and spares where desks may later appear. Cable is cheap while the ceiling is open, so generous provisioning is the least expensive decision in the project.
CAT6A is the safer choice for a new fit-out because it supports higher speeds over the full channel and copes better with bundled power-over-Ethernet runs to access points and cameras. CAT6 suits small offices with short runs. Recabling later means reopening ceilings, so the upgrade is easiest to justify during fit-out.
It is the test result for each cable run against its standard, produced by a certifying tester. It proves the installation met specification rather than merely carrying a signal today. Keep the file: when a link fails later it tells you whether the cable ever met spec or has degraded.
Most towers require a no-objection certificate from building management before a contractor can open ceilings or run cable, and some buildings have rules about which contractors may work there. Ask building management early, because approvals are a common cause of a fit-out slipping.
It depends on the number of outlets, cable grade, routes and the state of the space. Listonics projects run from AED 2,500 to AED 30,000 depending on requirement, and cabling for a small office sits toward the lower end. A survey produces an itemised, fixed-scope quote you can compare line by line.
Written by Srinivasan Ramachandran, Founder, Listonics · Last reviewed October 7, 2026