Here's another one that was finished up last week. Small business networking, phones and conference room.

• Wired 22 CAT6 Ethernet jacks (concrete building so all in surface mount conduit and junction boxes)
• Small wall mount Chatsworth rack with APC UPS
• Cisco 1841 Router
• Cisco 2960 24-port Switch
• Cisco 1140 AP running in autonomous mode
• Cisco 7945 Phones
• 55" Samsung LED in Conf Room with Mac Mini, Apple TV & webcam for Skype
• Four Sonos Play:5

Neat office!  The company developes kids apps for mobile devices so the entire office is kind of whimsical.  A big part of the office floor is covered with artificial grass:  http://www.istorytimeapp.com/

I was doing wiring & conduit work the same time the painters were trying to paint so it was a big hassle.  A lot of the conduit got painted before I even pulled the wires because the painters were following right behind trying to finish.

Nice install. And a huge improvement over what they had.

so snap shelves fit in a MA rack? does that rack slide out?

Thank you.  I enjoy small jobs like this and they're a nice change from the larger projects.  The client was really pleased with the end result.



Most rack mount parts are interchangable between manufacturers with the exception of accessories like doors and some of the cooling/power options that are designed for specific racks.

I generally use a mix of Middle Atlantic, Panduit, Leviton, Chatsworth and SnapAV to fit the requirements and budget of each job.  Things like shelves, drawers, lace bars, and vent/blank panels will all be interchangable between different racks.

The rack is an inexpensive CFR series that's basically just a metal frame that sits in the cabinet.  It's a newer product that I've just started using in the last 6 months and it's a good low-cost alternative to the SRSR and SRS racks that I've been using in the past.

www.middleatlantic.com/enclosure/sa/cfr.htm

Great work SBS, but that's not an SFR rack, the SFR is the inexpensive wall mount rack. Looks like a CFR to me? 

[Link: middleatlantic.com]

I use MA rack's with snap parts all the time. Works to meet budget tight projects where you need a more specific size or style of rack that Snap doesn't carry.

Plus the CFR is as light as you're gonna get making it the best choice for something that gets pulled out. I keep meaning to go pick up a small mover cart to pull my racks out and onto.

Thanks for the correction.  I typed the wrong thing, but had the proper link (but for some reason it wasn't working either?)  I edited the post with the right information.

I'd used mostly SRSR racks for this type of install before, but it was at the suggestion from several here on RC to try the CRF.  I've used it 5-6 times now in the last several months and really like them.

I was worried a fully loaded rack might be too cumbersome for one person to move around, but with only 14U there's only so much you can cram into them and weight hasn't been much of a problem.

how do you guys justify to a customer the importance of a rack even a smaller one like that in a cbainet. i just did a small job w a ton of CRAP in a cabinet. its too tough and tedious to mess with. i try to have a rack but doesnt always work?

just had a media room that was going to b a slim 5, now its gonna be a omni

We tell customers that a rack is required not only for service, but for ventilation. We explain that the initial installation will take less time and wire, which will almost pay the price of the rack. If it's a new project with a new custom cabinet, they may also save on self material and labor to drill shelf peg holes.

We also install ventilation fans (in a cabinet like SB's normally we'll use passive ingress with a CAB-COOL for exhaust). Racks provide better airflow, again we will use less labor to modify wood shelves for airflow, and the airflow will be better with a rack, resulting in better long term reliability (another cost savings).

We also let them know any future service will be less time consuming and less money.

The rack cant be an option. It has to be a required accessory. You know that it takes you twice as long to load and wire up a cabinet vs a rack so either you charge then a grand more in labor (and charge double for every service call forever) or sell them a rack.

 Yup - money can be spent on my time or better hardware, which would you like?

Especially in small cabinets! Dealing with 6 foot cables because you have to pull out each piece of equipment and put back in indvidually then magically stuff it all behind the equipment and hope to gawd you can make it look some what reasonable, then prey you don't have to pull one thing back out due to a connection coming lose. All these things cost more money because the time i takes, longer cables, quicker equipment failure. 

We usually have success on selling a rack by also explaining there is cost in using a cabinet as the cabinet maker is not making shelves for free. You want a cabinet? There are additional cost in the cabinet as well from the cabinet maker. Shave that costs off and apply to the right solution, a rack. Its no more expensive in the long run.

Like stamp said....we just include them....it is easier on us and the client....easier to service

my clients are tough to pass a rack on them. i usually do a ma slim 5 21-29space for i dont know maybe $700. they look at the bottom line and say, ill put that towards something else. this one guy didnt want to that rack so know im oding an ugly omni 18/21 space pre made.

sometimes rack can take double the time making it look nice too. lacing the gear up w shelves and the interrconnects making it look sexy.....thats a def day. cabinets dont take a day? i dont think?

That sexy rack is what should give them the piece of mind that they hired the right guy. Its above and beyond what most companies do. It is worth the time and energy to start pushing them. This is not to say every client will get a rack. You must try.

I'm bidding a ob where the only thing the client wants to purchase himself is the racks. Crazy I know but he owns an IT company so what the heck. I still get to spec and charge for my design.

When you show them the $700 price and they say they'll put that towards something else, just say "Perfect! That should be enough to cover the extra labor and materials it will take to install the system without an optimum storage cabinet." 

No, it won't be an extra $700, but I could see an extra 200-400 depending on the installation, plus extra for longer cables. Take a look at Snap's rack solutions for budget jobs. Use rackmount style gear to save on shelves.

Yes, completely dressing up a rack for show pictures is one thing, but just neatly wiring for serviceability can be down in less time, ESPECIALLY if you have to pull anything back out to check anything.