TIA is accredited by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) to develop voluntary industry standards for a wide variety of telecommunications products. TIA's Standards and Technology Department is composed of five divisions which sponsor more than 70 standards-setting formulating groups. We will review the standard from User Premises Equipment, Network Equipment group, including:

TIA/EIA-568-B Series, Commercial Building Telecommunications Cabling Standard
TIA/EIA-569-A, Commercial Building Standards for Telecommunications Pathways and Spaces
TIA/EIA-569-A-6, Commercial Building Standards for Telecommunications Pathways and Spaces for Multi-Tenant Buildings
TIA/EIA-606, Administration Standard for the Telecommunications Infrastructure of Commercial Buildings
TIA/EIA-570, Residential Telecommunications Cabling Standard

TR-42 - User Premises Telecommunications Infrastructure

The TR-42 Engineering Committee is responsible for commercial, industrial and residential cabling standards including telecommunications infrastructure administration, pathways and spaces, and copper and optical fiber systems requirements. These standards include information and requirements necessary for implementing telecommunications infrastructure.

TR-42.1 - Commercial Building Cabling

The TR-42.1 Commercial Building Cabling Subcommittee develops and maintains telecommunications cabling standards for commercial buildings. This Subcommittee specifies cabling system topology, architecture, design, installation, testing and performance requirements for commercial buildings, and campuses. The telecommunications cabling specified is intended as an open system designed to support a wide variety of voice, data, video, building control and other low voltage, power limited applications.
Where applicable, TR-42.1 integrates systems requirements and recommendations generated by other TIA Sub-committees into its standards, and provides joint approval with TR-42.4, TR-42.7 or TR-42.8 on any TIA publication that is intended to add to or modify cabling system requirements specified in standards developed by TR-42.1.

TR-42.2 - Residential Telecommunications Infrastructure

The TR-42.2 Subcommittee develops and maintains telecommunications infrastructure standards for single and multi-tenant residential buildings, home offices, and campuses. These standards include cabling system topology, pathways and spaces, design, installation, testing and performance requirements. The telecommunications cabling specified is intended as an open system designed to support a wide variety of voice, data, video, home automation and other low voltage power-limited applications.

TR-42.3 - Commercial Building Telecommunications Pathways and Spaces

The TR-42.3 Subcommittee develops and maintains standards for telecommunications pathways and spaces into which cabling and equipment are placed within a commercial building.

TR-42.4 - Customer-owned Outside Plant Telecommunications Infrastructure

The TR-42.4 Subcommittee develops and maintains standards for customer-owned outside plant facilities in a campus environment. This includes information transport media (e.g., copper, optical fiber), protection, and physical plant (e.g., conduit, direct buried, aerial, and utility tunnel systems).

TR-42.5 - Telecommunications Infrastructure Terms and Symbols

The TR-42.5 Subcommittee develops and maintains the master glossary of terms and symbols including acronyms, abbreviations and units of measurement for all standards developed in TR-42, as well as in TR-41.5 and TR-41.7.2. The membership of TR-42.5 is derived largely from the committees it serves. It is a central point for resolving differences among committees in meaning or usage of telecommunications terms.

TR-42.6 - Telecommunications Infrastructure and Equipment Administration

The TR-42.6 Subcommittee develops and maintains standards for telecommunications administration. These standards include requirements for alphanumeric identification, labeling, color-coding and record-keeping for the telecommunications infrastructure consisting of cabling, pathways and spaces, firestopping, and grounding and bonding. In addition, these standards provide guidance for the administration of equipment assets.

TR-42.7 - Telecommunications Copper Cabling Systems

The TR-42.7 Copper Cabling Systems Subcommittee develops and maintains generic standards primarily for balanced twisted-pair cabling systems. These standards cover balanced twisted-pair cable and associated connecting hardware specifications, including test procedures, performance requirements, and test instrument requirements. The sub-committee uses theoretical models and controlled experimentation to validate link and channel specifications using the component requirements. These specifications are used by TR-42.1, TR-42.2, and TR-42.4 in the development of standards for commercial, industrial, residential, and campus telecommunications cabling.

TR-42.7.1 - Copper Connecting Hardware

The TR-42.7.1 Working Group develops performance specifications, qualification procedures, and test methods for copper twisted-pair connecting hardware (including modular patch cords). This group's work is incorporated into standards and bulletins produced by TR-42.1, TR-42.2, and TR-42.7.

TR-42.7.2 - Copper Cable

The TR-42.7.2 Working Group develops performance specifications, qualification procedures, and test methods for copper twisted-pair cable. This group's work is incorporated into standards and bulletins produced by TR-42.1, TR-42.2, and TR-42.7.

TR-42.8 - Telecommunications Optical Fiber Cabling Systems

The TR-42.8 Subcommittee develops and maintains telecommunications optical fiber cabling standards for user-premises networks used in commercial, residential, industrial, and customer-owned outside plant applications. Optical fiber cabling includes components such as cable, connectors, splices, connecting hardware, and cable assemblies. Optical fiber cabling standards include specifications of open systems designed to support voice, data, video, and building control applications. TR-42.8 provides component and system requirements and recommendations on optical fiber cabling to other standards organizations for integration into their standards.

TR-42.9 - Industrial Telecommunications Infrastructure

The TR-42.9 Industrial Telecommunications Infrastructure Subcommittee develops and maintains standards for telecommunications infrastructure in industrial buildings, structures and campuses that are beyond the scope of the commercial building standards. Industrial buildings, structures and campuses can be large, dusty, corrosive, and can contain explosive and severe environmental conditions such as extreme temperature, EMI/RFI, and hazardous gasses. The standards developed by this Subcommittee address both occupied work areas and remotely controlled equipment.
The telecommunications cabling specified is intended as an open system designed to support a wide variety of voice, data, video, building controls, industrial controls and other low voltage, power limited applications. The standard addresses special needs for design, materials, processes and installation practices.
Where practicable, the standards developed by this Subcommittee will harmonize and incorporate requirements of standards developed and approved by TR-42 Subcommittees and Working Groups through normative reference.