No doubt that it is overkill, particularly due to the extremely high expense, but they do help a lot on large jobs. The added rear space allows for large numbers of cables where the blocks just on regular legs don't afford as much clearance. They also make for a much neater and more organized installation than lines drawn on plywood.
Just consider these things to be the 110 equivalent of colored backboards for 66 blocks.
I think Lucent made them too, but not positive.
Actually, you are correct Tony. It was first made by Western Electric, then AT&T then Lucent, then Avaya, and presently by Commscope/Systimax.
