Networking Infrastructure - Design, Installation & Data Communications

Growth in Data Communications

The area of Data Communications is changing at a phenomenal rate. End user applications constantly demand greater bandwidth. The structured integration of the latest technology to provide faster and more reliable communication has never been more important.

We at AME understand that businesses, particularly in the small to medium sector, are putting more and more of their critical business systems on networks. The rapid rise of e-commerce, initially e-mail and Internet access and now online trading, has added a new dimension and must be integral to a company's network strategy.

Delivering Business Benefits

By networking your computer systems it allows you easy access to hardware and software with higher security of data throughout your company. Networks also allow you to work more efficiently with ease and speed. With an AME network we supply and carry out cabling work and set up the computer systems to your specified requirements.  AME solutions support all Microsoft operating systems. These can easily be integrated for your business whatever the capacity.

A Solution For All

Big or small, no matter what size your business, we are certain we can provide you with a network solution to meet your needs. Now with a wide range of networking products and solutions AME are the one stop answer to networking.

Structured Cabling - Voice and Data Cabling

Quality Cabling Installations

We provide quality cable installations, installed, terminated and tested by our own trained staff.

Our long association with the industry has seen many changes in standards and technology, as a result we are able to support any existing cable installation as well as being able to offer the most up to date cable solutions.

Quality cabling installations, combined with our ability to install network hardware from some of the worlds leading manufacturers will guarantee the most progressive Network solution available.

Integrated Cabling Systems

AME offer an extensive range of cabling installations allowing your computer and telephone systems to be easily integrated. The type of cabling that we support and install are Category 5 & 6, Coaxial and Fibre Optics, depending on your requirements.

We can enhance your current network or set up a new cabling structure throughout your business premises. AME can also offer pre-made and customised cables of many lengths and sizes.

Whether you are looking to implement an entirely new data centre or are looking for a single small business server, AME can design and implement your chosen solution.

For larger organisations we can also assist in all aspects of your data centres. From server and rack installation, including airflow optimisation, through to perimeter security solutions, clustered server solutions and thin client technology, whatever your requirement we have a solution for you.

• Microsoft based server systems consultancy, integration and support
• Security Solutions
• Resilience and High Availability Solutions
• Rack and Power Solutions
• Consultancy and installation for CAT5, CAT6 and fibre optic cabling

• Inter office connectivity (VPN, leased line, ISDN, dial up)
• Application serving (Citrix metaframe, terminal server)
• VOIP solutions
• WAN bandwidth management

Wireless Networking

Wireless, or Wi-Fi, is a way of connecting your electronic equipment be - it PDA, laptop, desktop, printer, etc - to another piece of electronic equipment. Usually this means connecting your PC to a network or internet connection so that you can use the internet without having to use a network cable or dial-up adapter.

A wireless connection is made using radio waves. The benefits are that you don't need to buy lots of cables and run them through your house, plus you can browse your home network or the internet from anywhere within range of your wireless access point.

Any suitable device that you want to connect will need a Wi-Fi card, just as getting sound from your PC needs a sound card. This card may be built-in or something you connect to a USB port or plug into a card socket. The Wi-Fi card converts the digital information you want to send into an electrical signal; the transmitter sends that to the antenna which converts it into radio waves in an area of the radio spectrum that you don't need a licence to use. At the other end, another Wi-Fi card converts the radio signal back to electricity and digital information. The signal includes an address so the right device gets the information, but as any Wi-Fi device can receive the signal it can be made secure by encrypting it.

Why go wireless?
Apart from the obvious benefit of having no cables, by connecting your devices together you can share hardware such as printers and DVD drives, you can communicate between machines, share files or run multiplayer games, and share resources such as a broadband internet connection.

Different types of Wi-Fi: HomeRF, IEEE802.11 and Bluetooth
There are three main types of wireless technology suitable for home use. They all use radio waves, although each one is designed for different uses. HomeRF is useful for low-end use, for people who aren't going to transfer much data. It's cheaper than the alternatives, but the bandwidth is limited to around 1.2Mbs. The HomeRF 2.0 standard ups the speed to 10Mbs, but manufacturer take-up is low. Bluetooth is designed to work over short distance, up to a maximum of around nine metres; this makes it useful for PDAs, mobile phones and other small devices. Again, this is designed for small amounts of data. Bluetooth supports around 1Mbps data transfer. The 802.11 protocols are much more meaty with faster transfer rates and greater ranges. These Wi-Fi devices are most suitable for networking homes and businesses, and these are what we will be looking at on this site.

802.11 Wi-Fi uses two areas of the spectrum; the 802.11b and 802.11g standards both use the 2.4GHz area and give you 11 or 54Mbps respectively. However, 802.11b has been upgraded to 22Mbps and 44Mbps, and 802.11g looks like it may get a speed boost up to 100Mbps. The 802.11a standard runs at 54Mbps but uses the 5.4GHz area of the spectrum which means that the radio waves only go half as far (approximately 45 metres rather than 90 metres). These standards are set by the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE). There are also other standards which govern different aspects of the wireless standard; for example, 'h' deals with authentication and 'i' for security. You may think that you need the faster connection but even an 11Mbps connection is 20 times faster than many broadband connections, so it may be worth opting for cheaper 802.11b Wi-Fi if you will just be using your connection for browsing the internet.

The 2.4Ghz range is also used by DECT phones, garage door openers and Bluetooth, so to prevent interference the signal spreads out across the available radio waves and hops from one frequency to another in a regular pattern that only the receiver is expecting. But if you do encounter interference try switching channels.

Keeping your connection secure
As any Wi-Fi enabled device within range can receive the information being transmitted wirelessly it is wise to encrypt your data using WEP (Wired Equivalent Privacy). This is not as secure as a physical cable but it is fairly robust. The WEP method uses a shared, secret key and utilises 128-bit encryption — the standard encryption used for secure transactions on the web. There is also a newer protocol, WPA (Wi-Fi Protected Access). Most Wi-Fi products come with simple instructions on how to set your security parameters.

Please contact AME on 01392 824 022 for further information on how we can provide network solutions for your business.