What is cable identification?
How every AGL cable is made recognisable — durable tags, route markers and matching as-builts — so the circuit you are about to work on is the circuit you meant.
Cable identification is how each AGL cable is made recognisable: a durable tag carrying the circuit reference at its ends, at joints and wherever it enters a handhole, route markers above ground, and as-built drawings that use the same references.
AGL cables of the same type often run side by side in one handhole or duct, so without identification the wrong cable can be cut, tested or worked on live. A tag is not proof of isolation: confirm the cable against the drawing, then isolate, lock out and prove the circuit dead under your site’s permit-to-work procedure before touching it. Update the record whenever a repair joint or re-route changes the cable.
- Name it. Take each cable and circuit reference from the design.
- Tag the ends. Fit a durable tag at each termination.
- Tag the route. Tag at each joint and where the cable enters every handhole or pit.
- Mark the ground. Fit route markers as the design requires.
- Record it. Show the same references on the as-built drawings.
- Verify before work. Match tag to drawing, then isolate and prove dead.
Frequently Asked Questions
Q1What is cable identification in airfield ground lighting?
Cable identification is how each AGL cable is made recognisable: a durable tag carrying the circuit identity at its ends, at joints and where it passes through handholes, route markers above ground, and as-built drawings that use the same names.
Q2Why must AGL cables be identified?
Cables of the same type often run side by side in one handhole or duct. Without identification, the wrong cable can be cut, spliced, tested or even worked on while live. Clear identity is what lets maintenance isolate and prove dead the circuit they actually intend to.
Q3Where should AGL cable tags be fitted?
At each termination, at each joint, and at every handhole, manhole or pit the cable enters, so it can be recognised wherever it is opened up. Exact positions follow the project specification.
Q4What should a cable tag show?
The circuit or cable reference used on the design and as-built drawings, so the tag, the drawing and the control system all name the circuit the same way. The tag must be durable enough to stay legible for the life of the installation.
Q5Does a cable tag prove the cable is dead?
No. A tag tells you which cable you believe you have. Before work, the circuit must still be isolated, locked out and proved dead under your site's permit-to-work procedure, and the cable confirmed against the drawing.
Q6How is cable identification recorded?
On the as-built drawings, with cable references, routes, handholes and joints marked consistently. Any change made later, such as a repair joint or re-route, is added so the record stays true.
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