This book provides a complete guide to the design, procurement, installation and testing procedures for local area networks (LANs) using both copper and optical fibre cable technology. International, European and American LAN and premises cabling standards are explained and compared including the latest Category 5, Category 6 and Category 7 proposals. The latest standards in testing, electromagnetic compatibility (EMC) compliance and fire safety are also covered in detail. By describing the theory as well as the practical issues involved, this book is an unrivalled source of information for those who need to understand, at a time of very rapid change, the complexities of today's office-based LANs. British courses such as City and Guilds course 3466, Copper and Optical Communications C & G courses in Telecommunications and Electronics Engineering 2720, 2760 and 3478 NVQ and SNVQ courses on copper and fibre communications technology, levels one to five Future qualifications to be developed by the European Institute of Telecommunications Engineering and the European Intelligent buildings group American Certified Electronics Technician, Certified Fiber Optics Installer, Certified Network Systems Technician and Telecommunications Electronics Technician courses BICSI courses such as RCDD where the book's coverage of European and international standards is very useful BTEC and BSc courses on electronic and communications engineering In addition it is a valuable resource for IT managers, consultants, cable installation engineers and system designers who need to understand the technology and physics behind the subject and the huge range of standards that apply to cable engineering.