Cabling serves as the foundation for IT infrastructure. And due to the explosion of connected devices and an increasing need for bandwidth, cabling continues to be one of the fastest-growing work categories on Field Nation.

In a recent poll conducted by Field Nation, an overwhelming 95% of respondents recognized the growth potential in this category, reporting a strong demand for projects such as:

• Retail equipment installations, including cash wraps and point-of-sale systems, plus cabling
• Network and wireless equipment installations plus cabling
• Copper or fiber structured cabling for retail stores, large warehouses, and distribution centers

The downside to this growing demand is that there’s too much work and not enough workers. In another poll conducted by Field Nation, respondents identified the ongoing talent shortage as the top issue inhibiting their growth. 

Companies we’re talking with tell us their third parties are struggling to find skilled cabling techs, creating delays and missed deadlines. These same companies are also telling us that even with a looming recession, projects are still happening. 

Experienced cabling techs are coming to marketplaces like Field Nation

While skilled cabling talent is in short supply industry-wide, there’s good news for service leaders: workers are leaving full-time employment and choosing the flexibility and autonomy of independent contracting.

Over half of technicians on the Field Nation marketplace have 15+ years of IT field service experience in types of work, including cabling. In fact, the number of skilled cabling techs on Field Nation has increased 354% since 2015.

Recognizing that skilled cabling techs are in high demand, we’ve made it easier than ever for companies like yours to bring your projects and rollouts to Field Nation with complete confidence the work will be completed successfully. 

What kinds of skilled cabling work can companies bring to Field Nation?

Advanced low-voltage cabling work

• Site remodels
• Demarcation extensions
• Cable certifications
• Multi-skill cabling jobs (e.g. combination of running, terminating, testing, and/or certifying)

Network equipment installation + cabling work

• Retail store network refreshes
• Network equipment rack & stack
• Switch installations
• Intra-room cabling
• Office building demarcation extensions

Wireless equipment installation + cabling work

• Retail store wireless access point (WAP) refreshes
• Wireless access point installations
• Cabling to wireless routers
• Office building WAP relocations

Point-of-sale (POS) installation + cabling work

• Retail store multi-lane receipt printer upgrades
• Quick-serve restaurant (QSR) POS work
• Grocery store, QSR and retail self-checkout (SCO) installations

Structured cabling work

• New construction, retrofit, and build remodel cabling
• Inter-room and intra-floor cabling in large buildings or campuses
• Installation of fiber and copper cabling
• Patch cable management in the horizontal distribution area (HDA), intermediate distribution area (IDA), main distribution area (MDA), zone distribution area (ZDA), network closet, or telecommunications closet
• Troubleshooting and testing and/or replacing bad circuits in the backbone, vertical, or horizontal cabling

Cabling site survey work

• Documenting current patch panel port assignments
• Mapping legacy cables and identifying spaces or routes for new runs
• Photographing existing equipment positioning and cable ports with and without terminations
• Identifying rack space availability for new equipment and confirming space for cable management

Fiber cabling work

• Fiber cable pulling
• Fiber troubleshooting and testing
• Fiber splicing
• Fiber patch cable management
• Demarcation extension