Grounding and bonding may be the most important element in protection when planning, designing, and installing telecommunications systems as it facilitates the protection of people and equipment. Unfortunately, even companies whose entire business relies on their telecommunications systems don't follow this simple practice.

Grounding and bonding are not the same things. Most people simply don't understand the differences between the two as they have been used almost interchangeably as being the same thing for such a long time.

Even many telecommunications installers will confuse and misuse the accurate meanings between the two words, which should identify completely separate protection functions.

The definition of grounding is the act of creating a connection between the electrical circuit and the conducting body that serves as an earth. So regardless of whether the connection was made intentionally or accidentally, grounding provides the pathway to conduct electrical energy to the earth, which can prevent heating or explosion.

In comparison, bonding is the usually permanent connection of metallic parts that may form an electrically conductive pathway. This ensures the electrical flow is continuous.

When considering the application of bonding when related to a communications system, bonding is intended to eliminate any potential static discharge between equipment.

The majority of installers will be using bonding to join the metallic parts of a telecommunications system and then bond the whole to the grounding used for the building. This means they do not install a grounding system, believing falsely that the grounding used for the building structure is sufficient to provide earthling for any electrical discharge and thus declaring the installation safe.

Creating a bonding system that bonds to the building's grounding system means, that the safety of the telecommunications system is reliant on a grounding system linked to the building instead of an individual grounding to an earth related purely to the telecommunications equipment and systems.

Avoiding potential damage to expensive equipment and prevention of hazards should be a primary concern for any company whose business relies heavily on the successful and ongoing functioning of a telecommunications system.

Many business owners assume that the simple installation of primary surge protection is sufficient to protect electrical equipment and telecommunication systems from over-voltage.

Bonding is a separate protection issue from power surge protection, offering a much higher level of safety and protection against equipment damage and degradation.

To accurately determine what needs to be bonded, consider that any metallic component attached to the data communications infrastructure needs to be bonded. This consideration does not just include the hardware, but should encompass items such as the racks, cable trays, enclosures and other pertinent equipment as well.

Yet the cost involved with creating and installing an effective bonding system is often the main deterrent in refusing to install such an important protective measure. Many business owners may not initially accept the logic behind spending money on a need they can't identify

Considering the enormous damage and losses to profitability that may be caused by downtime or equipment failure, the option of installing such simple protective measures should be considered a wise investment.