It is important to note that M.I.C.E. standard is used to rate the environment, not the product. The result of a M.I.C.E. evaluation is used as a benchmark to compare product specifications to. Each product used in the system design should at least be equal to or exceed the M.I.C.E. evaluation for that space. M.I.C.E diagramming allows the design to balance component costs with mitigation costs in order to build a robust yet cost-effective system. M.I.C.E. describes the real world environment star-like network, it shows the “home-run” topology. Notice how a single cable can traverse multiple areas, each with a different M.I.C.E. rating. If a network is installed with this type of a star network, each cable will have to withstand the highest environmental severity of all the environment presence in a factory. Replacing these cable runs, when needed, can be costly and cumbersome with extended downtime, due to the nature of the star network.