EoW July 2014

Unsurprisingly, this issue of EuroWire is littered with news from companies enjoying success from the recent wire 2014 in Düsseldorf, and of new technologies and machines launched during the week-long exhibition. Whilst success at the show can initially be judged by the number of both exhibitors and visitors, it is rewarding to see the interest turning into rm orders (see pages 16, 19, 23 and 26). Similarly refreshing is the fact that thiswasmirrored across the Atlantic with the recent staging of Wire Expo in Indianapolis (see page 14). It appears that con dence in the industry is returning worldwide. This can again be re ected in the quarterly report from Leoni. The German business recorded its highest ever sales in a quarter in the rst three months of this year (full story on page 20). Advancements in the production of bre optic cables have also been made by teams from Rosendahl and Nextrom (page 34), while Belden has introduced a new cable to the market, designed speci cally for the passenger railway market (the full story is on page 35). Research and development teams have been kept busy with Dätwyler introducing its ‘dual-mode’ cables for voice and data transmission (see page 33), and sta from Rosendahl and Nextrom working together to bring about what they describe as a ‘ground-breaking’ moment in the production of bre optic cables (page 34). Russian steelmaker OAO Severstal, the second largest in its country, is alsoweighing up its options in the USA and is currently considering a bid from US Steel Corp for plants in Dearborn, Michigan, and Columbus, Mississippi. The full story is in our Transatlantic Cable section on page 28. Orders are firmed up as confidence rises

* US$33 purchase only Front cover: PAVE Automation Ltd See page 72 for further details

E DITOR : .......................................David Bell F EATURES E DITOR (USA) : .........Dorothy Fabian E DITORIAL ASSISTANT :.................Christian Bradley D ESIGN /P RODUCTION :................Julie Tomlin P RODUCTION :..............................Lisa Wright S ALES & M ARKETING : ................Jason Smith ( I NTERNATIONAL ) UK & ROW sales

Giuliana Benedetto Italian speaking sales Hendrike Morriss German speaking sales Linda Li Chinese speaking sales

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8

Diary of events

9

Corporate News

27

Transatlantic Cable

9

30

Technology N ews

72

Editorial Index

72

Advertisers’ Index

30

Copyright - ???????????

Market News

Deutsch Inhalt 41

Neuigkeiten

48 72

Ηο

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Inserentenverzeichnis

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July 2014

Technical Articles

Next Issue

37 The e ects of heat treatment on the properties of extension springs

By Mark Hayes, Technical Advisor to the Institute of Spring Technology, She eld, UK

Features On • wire China show issue • wire India show issue

43 Die Auswirkungen der

Wärmebehandlung auf die Eigenschaften der Zugfedern Von Mark Hayes, technischer Berater des Institute of Spring Technology, She eld, UK

50

GettingTechnical Improved coilability and corrosion resistance of critical spring applications with Bezinal ® XC and Bezinal ® XP coated wire Subscribe Now! Visit us online at: www.read-eurowire.com

,

Spring

Technology



,

 

56 Les e ets du traitement

thermique sur les propriétés des ressorts d’extension par Mark Hayes, Directeur Technique de l’Institut de la Technologie des Ressorts, She eld, Royaume-Unix

62 Gli e etti del trattamento termico sulle proprietà delle molle di estensione

a cura di Mark Hayes, consulente tecnico dell’Institute of Spring Technology, She eld, Regno Unito

68 Efectos del tratamiento térmico en las propiedades de los resortes de extensión

Por Mark Hayes, Asesor Técnico del Institute of Spring Technology de She eld, Reino Unido

Indice Español

Sommaire Français 54

Indice Italiano 60

66 72

Nouvelles du Marché Index des Annonceurs

Notizie del Mercato

Noticias de Mercado Indice de Anunciadores

72

72

Indice degli Inserzionisti

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July 2014

dates for your diary . . .

wire China 2014 24–27 September: wire China – trade exhibition Shanghai, china Organisers : SecrI and messe Düsseldorf (Shanghai) co Ltd Fax : +86 216 169 8301

2014

October

21–25 October: EuroBLECH – trade exhibition – Hanover, Germany Organisers : mack Brooks exhibitions Ltd Fax : +44 1727 814 401 Email : info@euroblech.com Website : www.euroblech.com 28–30 October: wire India – trade exhibition – mumbai, India Organisers : messe Düsseldorf India pvt Ltd Fax : +91 112 697 1746 Email : info@wire-india.com Website : www.wire-india.com

Email : shanghai@mdc.com.cn Website : www.wirechina.net

November

9–12 November: IWCS – technical symposium – rhode Island, uSA Organisers : IWCS Tel : +1 717 993 9500 Email : phudak@iwcs.org Website : www.iwcs.org

2015 January

10-13 January: Wire & Cable Arabia – trade exhibition – Dubai, uAe Organisers : Al Fajer Fax : +971 4340 3608 Email : jeen@alfajer.net Website : www.wirecablearabia.com April 28-30 April: Interwire - trade exhibition – Atlanta, Georgia, uSA Organisers : Wire Association International Tel : +1 203 453 2777 Email : info@wirenet.org Website : www.wirenet.org June 8-11 June: wire Russia – trade exhibition – moscow, russia Organisers : messe Düsseldorf GmbH, VNIIKp Fax : +49 211 45 60 7740 Email : info@messe-duesseldorf.de Website : www.wire-russia.com

8

July 2014

Imagecourtesyofwww.bigstockphoto.com“Lujiazhui–centreofShanghaishowing theShanghaiTower”byZhudifeng

Corporatenews

▲ ▲ The system Bombardier has installed from Spectrum Technologies

Full steam ahead for Spectrum Spectrum Technologies PLC, the

and which greatly facilitates both the manufacture and the maintenance of the cars. Spectrum Technologies CEO, Dr Peter Dickinson, said: “This is a pivotal contract for the company. Since start-up we have taken UV laser wire marking technology and developed it in to the international aerospace industry standard for wire identification. We are now the market leader for the supply of specialist wire processing equipment to aerospace manufacturers all around the world, exporting more than 95 per cent of sales annually. “It has been clear to us for some time that the rail sector could also benefit significantly from the transfer of our innovative technology from the aerospace sector. Bombardier is a global leader in rail technology; this contract is a major breakthrough and opens up a whole new arena for us. “It could similarly lead to this technology becoming the industry standard across the international rail sector, and significantly expands our potential markets.”

electrical systems. The first rail cars are due to enter service in 2017. wire identification in the rail industry is to use pre-marked ‘heat shrink’ plastic sleeves, which are placed over the wire ends. However, this adds significant weight and cost to the harnesses. BART is committed to sustainability and the new cars are required to be as light as possible to maximise energy efficiency, and consequently direct wire marking technology is specified. Nova wire marking systems use the UV laser wire marking technology developed by Spectrum Technologies for the aerospace industry to mark the required ID codes directly onto the surface of the wire insulation. The UV laser reacts with the insulation material to produce a permanent, high quality, non-damaging mark. Bombardier’s decision to utilise Spectrum’s laser marking on the BART project means the wires can be identified along their whole length with high quality permanent identity codes that are resistant to wear The traditional method of

???????????????????????????????????? Spectrum will supply Bombardier with a Nova™ 860 high-speed UV laser wire mark, measure and cut system. The equipment was due to be installed in the manufacturing plant in Huehuetoca, Mexico, before the end of April 2014. The Nova system will be used in the initial stages of production of the electrical wiring and inter-connect systems (EWIS) for installation in new rail cars for the Bay Area Rapid Transit (BART) New Train Car Project in San Francisco, California. At over 40 years old, BART’s current fleet of trains is the oldest in the USA and due for replacement. BART awarded the new train car project to Bombardier in 2012. Bombardier will deliver 775 new cars, requiring around 4,000 miles of wire to be processed for the UK-based manufacturer of specialist laser wire processing equipment for the aerospace and electronics industries, has been selected by Bombardier Transportation to supply a high performance wire processing system for use in the manufacture of the rail cars for a major new North American project.

SpectrumTechnologies plc – UK Website : www.spectrumtech.com

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July 2014

July 2014

News Corporate

Istanbul – where two continents meet La Farga is supplying the cables for the railway electrification of the Marmaray project, a new 76km rail link between Halkali and Gebze (Turkey). Part of the new rail link is above ground, while the other part consists of tunnels underneath the Istanbul Strait. This revolutionary railway project is already up and running.

to cross the Istanbul Strait (the immersed tube tunnel technique) was developed in the late 19 th century. The wish to construct a public rail link from west to east in Istanbul and under the Istanbul Strait was gathering momentum in the early 1980s. During this period various technical and demographic feasibility studies of the project were carried out. In 1999 the project began to take shape from a financial perspective and the entire process is now up and running; the underwater tunnel has been inaugurated and is operational. Currently, a journey from Halkali to Gebze takes approximately three hours, including the ferry crossing from Sirkeci to Haydarpasa. With the new Marmaray railway, the journey time will be one hour and forty-five minutes. The railway is currently used by 10,000 passengers and this number is expected to rise to 75,000 with the new project. La Farga Lacambra and La Farga Rod – Spain Website : www.lafarga.es What a show! Eurolls will remember wire 2014 in Düsseldorf for quite some time. This is not only due to the number of contacts and visitors, for the high interest for the machinery that was on the floor and the number of quotations requested, but mainly for the number of contracts that were closed during the show. Top seller award goes to the three-draft cold rolling line NLGH, of which two pieces were sold at the exhibition. One line with a slightly smaller configuration (two drafts due to minimum wire diameter to be produced) will go to Central Africa, a first for Eurolls Machinery Division. Another line will go to the Caribbean, in this case with the same configuration as was at the exhibition, with production of 3.4mm ribbed wire at 18m/second. A third line, with the full three-draft configuration, is on its way to North Africa, in this case strengthening the existing bond with a very good client. As usual a big response came from cassette users and would-be users. Eurolls SpA – Italy Website : www.eurolls.com

The rail link between Halkali (European side) and Gebze (Asian side) is evidence of a firm commitment to providing the country with an improved rail network, making it more accessible through new, innovative, modern and fast rail infrastructures. This is a large-scale project, perhaps one of the largest in terms of railway transport infrastructures. There is approximately 76km of new rail tracks, including a 1.4km long immersed tube tunnel at a depth of 56m. The project also consists of three new underground stations and the improvement and refurbishment of 27 existing stations. The maximum operational speed of the train is 100km/hour, while the time between trains is estimated at 120-600 seconds, which requires a fleet of 440 new trains. For the last two years, Deora Wires and Machines Pvt Ltd has been manufacturing aluminium clad steel wires and has seen an impressive amount of orders from both India and around the world. The company, which uses European machinery, promises high quality products and is able to offer a bespoke service to customers. The company also caters for aluminium tubes for fibre cables and aluminium clad Invar wires. Established in 1973 by Mr Vimal Deora, the company has spent 40 years delivering innovative systems in heavy machinery that have redefined the industry. The company is part of the $30 million Deora Group of Industries, a diversified organisation. This is a new avenue in the sector of electrification and there is huge potential in this segment. Aluminium clad steel is a high strength steel wire with a thick aluminium coating and consists of a central steel core with a layer of high conductivity aluminium extruded over it.

▲ ▲ An artist’s impression of the tunnels underneath the Istanbul Strait

La Farga is one of the key suppliers in this huge railway project, unique in the world, entrusted with the task of carrying out the railway electrification of the 76km of rail tracks. Since 2013 it has been supplying the project with high-performance copper contact wire and bronze cables. The notion of constructing a railway tunnel under the Istanbul Strait was first raised in 1860. At this time the idea was to construct a floating tunnel supported on pillars constructed on the seabed. As the years went by the project was perfected. The aluminium layer forms a seamless metallurgical tie with the steel wire to guarantee permanent bonding during rewinding and stranding. The aluminium layer thickness is at least ten per cent of the wire radius and approximately 25 per cent of the cross-sectional area. Conductivity is proportional to the aluminium layer thickness – with conductivities ranging from 20 to 40 per cent of the IACS. Aluminium clad steel cable is well known for its combination of corrosion resistance, high strength and superior electrical conductivity. These properties make it an excellent choice either as overhead static wire (ground wire, “OPGW”). It can also be used as core in ACSR conductors. For high frequency applications where the “skin effect” is an important factor, for example lighting faults, the conductivity of ACS approaches 100 per cent of aluminium because the highest electrical current density is connected on the external part. DeoraWires andMachines Pvt Ltd – India Website : www.deoragroup.com The technique used in the Marmaray Project

Aluminium clad steel wire from India

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July 2014

News Corporate

SAMP’s cutting edge Chameleon

By means of this system, the materials flowing from various extruders are all managed by a single device, which conveys them in the right direction depending on the type of cable to be produced. A simple gesture is enough to control the final melt flow directions. the production of perfectly homogeneous cables, since all the insulation materials are obtained by working at the same temperature and the same pressure level. Moreover, the same distributor is used when producing striped and non-striped cables, so that no extra device is needed. Chameleon technology is suitable for all SAMP extrusion heads, including the more sophisticated like the TX6V, which is equipped with the “0-scrap” quick change colour system for the cable stripe, and the TX6V2, where the “0-scrap” system can be applied both to the stripe and the insulation. All parameters can be easily managed via the SAMP Supervision and Control Unit. Chameleon technology allows

In a constant effort to provide cost-effective solutions and innovations to the cable industry, SAMP continuously invests in research and development. The latest and most important innovation is the Chameleon technology, a breakthrough solution for cable type changeover without production stop and speed limitations. Like a chameleon with the ability to change colour fast and frequently, the new solution offers flexibility, efficiency and reliability throughout the extrusion process. Traditionally, when changing a cable type, and going from a striped cable to a non-striped one, the procedure to be followed is rather long and includes a number of steps:

This rough outline describes what takes place in the majority of the cases. SAMP has intentionally avoided to mention any other unconventional, home-made attempt to avoid production stop, since these cannot guarantee product homogeneity and therefore do not meet the market requirements. The process described leads to a production slowdown and delays can even amount to several hours in case of CV lines. In order to maximise efficiency and eliminate non-productive time, SAMP has recently developed Chameleon. ▲ ▲ Chameleon technology allows production of perfectly homogeneous cables

1. Stop the production line 2. Cool down the machinery 3. Open the extrusion head

4. Replace the distributor or ring that creates the stripe on the cable with a similar device allowing the application of a single layer without stripe

5. Reheat the machinery 6. Start the production

SAMP – Italy Website : www.sampsistemi.com

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July 2014

News Corporate

A made to measure approach

processes our technical team can quickly validate and deliver a tape to fit the bill. Made to Measure tapes will give our customers a fast track to their testing and qualification and an accelerated speed to market. The more traditional R&D approach will still be valid for true innovation projects – where a more complex or totally new solution is required.” Scapa’s full range of cable protection solutions includes dielectric, semi-conducting, bituminised, fire retardant and water blocking tapes and yarns, as well as self-amalgamating tapes, resins, putties and impregnated paper components. Scapa UK Ltd – UK Website : www.scapa.com Peru copper mining set to increase Five major copper mines, with an estimated investment of $13 billion, are expected to begin production in Peru before 2016, increasing the country’s output to 2.8 million tonnes.

Launched at wire 2014 in Düsseldorf, Scapa is continuing the promotion of its bespoke approach to product development for its cable manufacturing customers.

There

are

three

ways

to

buy

cable-wrapping tapes from Scapa:

• Core range – choose one of the proven cable tapes from one of the most extensive ranges in the industry • Made to measure – if one of the standard products doesn’t match the application requirements, within the portfolio of cloths, coatings, powders and processes, they can produce something that does and quickly • Innovation projects – if a more advanced solution or a new way of doing things is needed for the next generation of cable protection, engineers and R&D team can work in partnership to deliver the answer “For over 100 years now Scapa has worked as a reference partner to most of the world’s largest and most respected cable companies,” said Jeff Tate, global market manager for cable tapes and materials.

▲ ▲ Take advantage of the bespoke service from Scapa

“Throughout this period we have been committed to tailor-made research and development and have formulated quite a number of bespoke tapes for our customers. “What we are looking at now is augmenting this traditional R&D approach with a faster track process called Made to Measure. “For new cable designs customers know roughly what they want or just require a slight modification to a tape in our core range, a different thickness or an enhanced swell speed perhaps. “Within our current portfolio of cloths, coatings, super absorbent powders and

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News Corporate

MTO® cables used in Kosovo open cast mine

35kV. For this installation, 30kV rubber hose cables have been supplied with a diameter of 70mm, a reel of 3m inner diameter and 8.5m in length. The cables operate up to a speed of 9m/min. RoHS compliant, Tratos MTO® cables have been built to adhere to worldwide standards including AS/NZS, VDE, BS, UL, CSA, MSHA and OSHA. Extremely rugged, they are suitable for a variety of applications in drilling and underground environments, including open-pit mining, tunnelling and mineshafts, as well as loading and unloading trains and ships. Tratos – UK Website : www.tratos.co.uk

European supplied Tenova Takraf, a manufacturer of heavy surface mining and transportation equipment, with Tratos MTO® ES3 cable for use in an open-cast mining site in Kosovo. Tratos manufactured and delivered two lengths of 2100m MTO® Console-cable reel for use on excavators, for which the company is renowned. Manufactured to withstand the kind of extreme conditions common in mining applications, Tratos MTO® cables are resistant to extreme temperatures, sunlight, water, chemicals, oil and abrasion and are available in voltages ranging from 600V up to cable manufacturer Tratos has

Graphene sandwich Researchers at a UK and US university have discovered that creating a graphene/copper/graphene sandwich strongly enhances the heat conducting properties of copper, a discovery that may help in the downscaling of electronics. The work was led by Alexander Balandin, a professor of electrical engineering at the Bourns College of Engineering at the University of California, USA, with Konstantin Novoselov, a professor of physics at the University of Manchester in the UK. Professors Balandin and Novoselov are corresponding authors for the paper just published in the journal Nano Letters. Prof Novoselov shared the 2010 Nobel prize in physics with Andre Geim for their discovery of graphene. In recent experiments, the researchers found that adding a one-atom thick layer of graphene on each side of a copper film increased heat-conducting properties up to 24 per cent. Whether the heat conducting properties of copper improves by layering it with graphene is an important question because copper is the material used for semiconductor interconnects in modern computer chips. Copper replaced aluminium because of its better electrical conductivity. Downscaling the size of transistors and interconnects and increasing the number of transistors on computer chips has put an enormous strain on copper’s interconnect performance, to the point where there is little room for further improvement. For that reason there is a strong motivation to develop hybrid interconnect structures that can better conduct electrical current and heat. Bourns College of Engineering – USA Website : www.engr.ucr.edu

Video’s step-by-step instruction

▲ ▲ A screen shot from the newly released video

Haefely Hipotronics, a full-line manufacturer of high voltage test equipment and measurement instrumentation, has launched a new EMC testing “how-to” video – featuring the AXOS series of expandable conducted immunity test systems. The video takes viewers behind-the-scenes with a Haefely industry expert to demonstrate a live surge combination wave test in standard and pre-compliance modes of operation. In addition to training users on how to safely set up and operate the AXOS8, the “how-to” video reviews its complete range of capabilities – including surge combination wave, ring wave, EFT/burst, telecom wave, AC/DC voltage dips and interrupts and pulsed magnetic field.

The video is now available on the company’s website and YouTube channel.

The series: • gives intuitive, step-by-step instruction on operation • answers commonly asked questions • explains best practices and techniques to users Haefely Hipotronics – Switzerland Website : www.haefely.com

University of Manchester – UK Website : www.manchester.ac.uk

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News Corporate

Expo excellence! Representatives from 36 states and 22 countries shared networking activities, panel and roundtable discussions, and on the exhibition floor at Wire Expo staged at the Indiana Convention Center, Indianapolis, USA, at the start of May.

Organised by the Wire Association International, the event hosted more than 1,600 participants, including crossover atten- dance from the co-located AISTech 2014 trade show, which filled the adjacent B-D Halls at the centre. “The Operations Summit and Wire Expo turned out to be a big success as many positive comments were received about having the show in Indianapolis, with the hotels in close proximity to the convention centre, great opening reception

▲ ▲ Dane G Armendariz, right, receives the 2014 Donnellan Memorial Award from Andy Talbot, who will be first vice president of the Wire Association’s executive committee next year

at Lucas Oil Stadium, and many sessions on pertinent production solutions,” saidWAI president Bill Avise, of Leggett & Platt Inc. “Several exhibitors told me that they felt positive about the activity in their booth, along with many members saying that the production oriented sessions were very informative and well attended.” • a keynote presentation by speaker Dr Phillip Cornwell, of Rose-Hulman Institute of Technology, entitled: “The Technical Professional of 2020,” who explained how students are being groomed to prepare them for a future in engineering • visitor flow from the AISTech 2014 show and a ‘Metallurgy of Wire Rod’ joint conference session with WAI • conference sessions revolving around the ‘operational excellence’ theme, including ferrous and non-ferrous equipment forums; a continuous improvement case study; a mobile classroom to General Cable; a machinery roundtable; and safety forum • exhibits frommore than 207 wire and cable makers and suppliers Other popular activities were the production solutions demonstrations on wire breaks, dies, and lubricants; and presentation of WAI’s highest honours – the Mordica Memorial and Donnellan Memorial Awards – to Professor Motoo Asakawa, of Waseda University, Japan, and Dane G Armendariz, of Chemetall, respectively. Conference highlights included:

The following sponsors supported the summit: Platinum level : Wire & Plastic Machinery Corp. Gold level : Leggett & Platt Inc and Southwire Co.

Silver level : Carris Reels, Frigeco USA, Inc, Fort Wayne Wire Die Inc, Gem Gravure Co Inc, Lloyd & Bouvier, The MGS Group, Nexans, Niehoff Endex, Sampsistemi, Sikora International Corp, Steel Technologies LLC, andWindak Group. Bronze level : BASF, Caballé, Chemson, ExxonMobil Chemical, Radyne, and RichardsApex, Sonoco; as well as support from Baum’s Castorine, Commission Brokers, and Leoni.

Wire Association International – USA Website : www.wirenet.org

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News Corporate

New products for wire and cable portfolio

and Irogran® A 92 P 4637UV. These new UV-stabilised developments offer outstanding performance and physical properties in this growing market segment and give operators the safety they need from materials employed in extreme environmental conditions. A third group of new products has been developed in reaction to the trend for harder, higher flame retardant solutions for industrial applications where safety is a priority. The products, Irogran® A 89 P 5028DP and Irogran® A 89 P 5012DP, offer excellent hydrolysis and microbial resistance, and close the gap between the existing Shore A 85 and Shore A 95 products available in the Huntsman Irogran® portfolio. The new materials offer high flame retardancy without compromising physical or functional properties. Suitable for technical extrusion and injection moulding applications, Irogran® A 89 P 5028DP is a harder version of Irogran® A 85 P 4380 – a well-established brand in the cable industry. The new grade offers extrusion and dimension stability. Additionally it meets UL 94 V0 standards. Huntsman International LLC – USA Website : www.huntsman.com In particular, the wire for steel wire-made fibres is the result of an accurate selection of the best raw material coming from European steel mills. The wire drawing is made by new generation Tecnofil in-house developed machinery. Plants have a no-skid system, in order to assure the higher reliability of the product

Huntsman, and developer of polyurethane, has launched a number of new thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPU) for the wire and cable industry. The new products, all available under the Irogran® TPU brand, complement Huntsman’s existing wire and cable portfolio, and enhance the company’s offering in three fields: standard ether solutions; UV stabilised TPUs for offshore applications; and high flame retardant grades aligned to clear market demand for higher safety solutions. Each new TPU grade was developed following careful market evaluation and extensive discussions with Huntsman’s customers, and each offers performance and processing properties for the application it was designed for. Two new high performance ether grades – Irogran® A 80 P 5039 and Irogran® A 95 P 5044 – have been created. Irogran® A 80 P 5039 gives customers a solution for applications where softer grades are needed for high flexibility cables. Irogran® A 95 P 5044 is a harder solution that gives wire and cable manufacturers the chance to reduce wall thickness and achieve cost efficiencies, without losing any of the benefits typically associated with TPUs. a manufacturer Tecnofil specialises in low and medium carbon steel wire production and in the design and realisation of machinery for wire and wireband production. Tecnofil wire is widely used in different areas such as industry, bookbinding, agriculture and buildings. In this last sector, the company is one of the main suppliers of wire for steel fibres.

Both materials are particularly well suited for cable jacketing for sensor cables across the wire and cable market. In offshore applications, cable solutions need to offer high UV stability; a requirement Huntsman has responded to by producing Irogran® A 85 P 4394UV ▲ ▲ New polyurethanes will be used in the production of wind turbines heat variations and therefore improve concrete adherence to armour during aging Tecnofil has special lines for the production of wire for steel fibres from 0.6mm diameter to 1mm, in accordance with the following regulations: UNI 11037 for reinforced concrete conglomerate steel fibres and UNI 11039-1, for reinforced concrete with steel fibres.

Wire used across many industries

and guarantee a perfect diameter calibration and a surface finishing with no scratches. The wire is then packed in different types of packaging: spools or spiders with adjustable weights, from 200kg to 1,400kg, in order to efficiently respond to customer needs. During the whole production process, quality control verifies the correspondence of features and completes the related test certificates, in accordance with regulation EN 10204:2004 – 3.1. Tecnofil – Italy Website : www.tecnofil.net

The material is employed to strengthen reinforced concrete in infrastructure construction, such as bridges, arcades or streets. Effectively, thanks to its features, the fibre made with Tecnofil wire can guarantee the best concrete performance. The main advantages in choosing Tecnofil are:

• •

ductility increase

working increase

load

resistance

• traction resistance increase • impact and wear resistance increase • increase in ability to absorb

▲ ▲ A selection of the wire on offer from Tecnofil

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July 2014

News Corporate

Taking the strain at the top at Sikora

You have been working for Sikora for two years now and involved with the wire and cable and hose and tube industries for the first time. What experiences have you gained? “I have learned that we are acting in two completely independently operating niche markets where everyone knows everyone and that there is a good network of communication. “These industries demand very high quality products. At the same time, great

Founded in 1979, Sikora International is the US subsidiary of Sikora AG and has been under the careful stewardship of John Dognazzi, who took over as president from Jeff Swinchatt last November. Since 1999 the company has been located in Peachtree City, Georgia, USA, and has grown over time to support the markets in North America, Canada, Mexico and South America. Quality and value feature heavily for the company, and in an interview Mr Dognazzi gave an insight into the running of the American subsidiary.

highest quality from Sikora. Moreover, there is always a professional service team close at hand when the customer needs assistance. This is what I am working for.” What developments do you see for the future? “I have already spoken about Sikora’s research and development team that does a great job. At K2013 in Düsseldorf, Germany, we presented our latest innovation, the Purity Scanner. This system will be of great interest for the high voltage cable and plastic industry. It allows the detection of impurities on the surface and inside a pellet and its sorting. I can well imagine that a completely new market segment arises from this product, which in addition to the established markets ‘wire and cable’ and ‘hose and tube’ will contribute to the success of the company.” Sikora AG – Germany Website : www.sikora.net

enthused by the well-organised company and the high quality level at which the

devices are manufactured. I was particularly impressed by the highly committed development team and the service staff. From the very beginning, I felt in good hands.” Is there something that you will do completely differently compared to your predecessor? “I thank Jeff for the great training in the last years. My understanding is that customer satisfaction has the highest priority. This satisfaction is not only related to the technology, but

value has always been placed on cost-effective production and highest productivity. Sikora offers a variety of interesting products for these industries, especially for quality assurance at the production of medium, high and extra-high voltage cables, automotive wires, data cables and at the very sophisticated production of optical fibres. Sikora has an excellent reputation, which made it easy for me to join the company.” Are there any special events that have remained in your memory?

▲ ▲ John Dognazzi, the pres- ident of Sikora Intern- ational

especially to the service that a company offers. Actually, on the bottom line, Sikora has the best cost to value ratio. The customer can expect a product of

“Certainly, I always remember my visit to the headquarters in Bremen at the beginning of my work at Sikora. I was

A new look, new customers and a new era

This year was the tenth time that Windak exhibited at wire in Düsseldorf – and the company also celebrated its 20 th anniversary at the show. To help the celebration go with a swing, Windak launched its new corporate identity and website, and the Quickpack QP3-H coiler. The feedback and number of visitors to the automatic packaging machinery company’s stand led to a positive attitude throughout the week, and it is expecting to receive four new orders. The new coiler targets products from 2mm to 12mm in diameter, and coil lengths from 5m to 100m per package. The output is up to eight coils per minute, depending on type of cable and winding length. Almost all movements in this fast single-head machine are controlled by servos with very few mechanical setting changes for different packages. Coils can be bound, shrink-filmed or put in boxes, all in one complete solution.

Windak OÜ – Estonia Website : www.windakgroup.com

▲ ▲ The Windak staff on the stand in Düsseldorf

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Linear technology in action

New web platform

quick clamping system that develops high retaining forces on plain shafts. It is independent of the direction of rotation, vibration-proof and maintenance-free. Short change-over times are ensured by one-hand operation. This property also applies to the Uhing U-Clip that securely fastens coils, rollers or cover parts on plain shafts. Timing belt drives featuring high thrust forces, robustness and long service life complete the Uhing range of linear technology products. These guide systems have bases made of rigid and torsion-resistant aluminium sections. Attachments can be mounted and T-slotted nuts inserted into the slots of the base profile. The Uhing linear technology products not only convince by their function but also by their design. The product video available on the Uhing website clearly demonstrates this. Joachim Uhing & Co KG – Germany Website : www.uhing.com

The RG rolling ring drive is possibly the most famous Uhing invention.

The rolling ring drive comes in countless variants and with a great range of accessories. The linear technology video shows the RG in the ‘moving spool’ winder and also with an electronic controller. A feasible accessory for the rolling ring drive is the non-contact FA flange detecting system. It detects the coil width and the type of the coil flange automatically and matches the reversal points of the rolling ring drive accordingly. A laser sensor system checks the winding pattern continuously and triggers the reversal as soon as the material to be wound reaches the maximum height defined in the control software. The linear drive nut RS comes with features and areas of applications as flexible as those of the rolling ring drive. It can be operated even in dirt-laden areas and meets the high requirements of food industries.

An online frequently asked questions and personalised documentary platform has been developed to give better 24/7 support to FIB’s users. ▲ ▲ A screenshot of the new system available from FIB Shared information, tips and tricks, structured documentation and tracking support are part of the system, and a number of additional features are in development. This will help the production and maintenance teams in handling technical documentation, tuning, set-up and coordination.

FIB SA – Belgium Website : www.fib.be

The same also applies to the Easylock

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Expansion planned for 2014

Eure Inox is a privately owned company, based near Milan, Italy, which manufactures both stainless steel wire and bar, producing 15,000-18,000 tonnes per annum, with plans to increase this volume in 2014. There is a significant amount of wire rod/raw material in stock, totalling approximately 10,000 tonnes, which is predominantly of EU origin. This ensures a fully traceable product which, along with specific routes of manufacturing, allows the consistency and quality of the finished product to be of the highest level and suitable for the fasteners and fixing manufacturing industry. It is through the forward thinking of owner Renato Nemfardi that Eure Inox continues to expand and develop, as it is planned to increase the depth of raw material stock to around 15,000 tonnes in 2014, allowing for even greater efficiencies within the manufacturing process. In a world that demands an ever more efficient service, it is utilising these large resources of raw material that allows Eure Inox to offer an almost unique

▲ ▲ The range of wire on offer from Eure Inox

service, whereby for any requirements not available from stock, the manufacturing process for many items is only 7/10 days, through to a few weeks maximum. 2014 is proving to be a “milestone“ year for the company, as in addition to the increased investment in stocks, Eure Inox is currently installing an in-line annealing plant, along with multi-die drawing machinery, which allows for an additional 300 tonnes per month output of wire and drawn products.

316Cu, 316Ti, 321, 410, 416, 420B/C(+), 430/F, 440B, 17-4PH, Duplex, lean Duplex and Super Duplex • Wire rod (HRAP): 5.5mm-30mm diameter • Bright/annealed wire: 0.8mm-20mm diameter • Bright finished/ground bar: 1.5mm-100mm diameter (h6-h11) • Hot rolled bar: 25mm-100mm diameter (k11-k13) • ACD square/hexagon bar: 2mm-50mm A/F (h10-h11) • Re-inforcing bar: 3mm-30mm diameter (BS/EN) Eure Inox Srl – Italy Website : www.eureinox.it

Products include:

• Material grades: 302, 303/Cu(+), 304/L(+), 304Cu, 310, 314, 316/L(+),

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Debut for XMH system OMCG presented the XMH system as a world premiere at wire 2014. The company developed the new work-cell concept for muffler hangers with the goal to provide customers in the automotive industry with a flexible, efficient solution to make hangers in wire and tube, both in carbon steel or stainless steel. The core of the system is based on the appreciated eccentric bending head that provides outstanding bending capabilities and on the M140 end forming unit that has been appreciated through the years for its highest quality forming, re-engineered and integrated in a 12-axis system with additional bending heads and forming units to reduce cost and cycle time with concurrent operations and overtake the bottleneck of sequential operations with traditional CNC bending machines. With the XMH system customers can make the majority of muffler hanger shapes in less than eight or nine seconds (depending on the cell configuration) even in the case of double head. The cell also optimises energy and space occupation, saving about 30 per cent when compared with a traditional system of the same capacity. Some parts also come in couples: together with the main part with the end forming there is a second shorter part, usually bent with the same radius, that needs to be coupled together with the main part. The XMH system can make the two parts in the same cycle time required for the main part, and separates the two parts along the way through the cell. That means that the second part comes out with no additional time. The two parts are processed together from a single blank and separated in a special forming unit developed by OMCG. Change-over of production from one part to another is as simple as in a traditional CNC bending machine and can be virtually nothing if the wire/tube material does not change. Even in the worst case where a complete new setting is required (for example when changing material diameter), the setup can be performed in less than two hours. Consistency and reliability are key points for the automotive industry, and the company has extensively tested its XMH work-cell. Whilst a stand-alone system, XMH can easily be integrated with robotic or secondary operation units from third parties.

Rosendahl and Nextrom celebrate an ‘intense’ Düsseldorf

▲ ▲ Staff at the Rosendahl and Nextrom stand in Düsseldorf

Success was on the cards at the Rosendahl and Nextrom stand at wire 2014 in Düsseldorf. The companies were delighted with the ‘intense and successful show’, with both celebrating closing deals and the birthdays of colleagues and customers. This was in addition to the new developments that Rosendahl had on display, the RX180 crosshead being among them. This is used for single layer applications with up to two stripes for a maximum outer diameter of 180mm. Two beer taps were installed into the crosshead to ensure the flow of customers to the stand! The highlight for Nextrom was its new high-speed DFT 2500 dual fibre take-up. The automatic changeover at full line speed allows a continuous drawing process and minimises scrap with long fibre lengths. Rosendahl Maschinen – Austria Website : www.rosendahlaustria.com Nextrom OY – Finland Website : www.nextrom.com

OMCG Srl – Italy Website : www.omcg.com

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Decalub green cleaning TecHnOlOgieS FOcuS On: Wire Cleaning ( for plating and high glossy finish )

Wire Rod Lubrication ( for frictionless drawing )

Medal for Ormiston ▲ ▲ Ormiston Wire played a pivotal role in the landscaping at the Olympic Park in London

Rod Dry Preparation ( with no speed limit )

4.75mm 1 x 7 strand steel wire. This strand was considered ideal as it is annealed to make it more malleable, allowing it to be easily bent and fixed into the required shapes depending on the type of tree or the lay of the land surrounding the planting location. The wire required presented an unusual challenge; it needed to be strong enough to provide the necessary support but also discreet so it didn’t distract from the beauty of the trees themselves. With a breaking strength of 650kg, the wire provided more than enough support against the elements in what was a vital growing period for the trees. OrmistonWire – UK Website : www.ormiston-wire.co.uk

Ormiston Wire’s extensive knowledge and experience were applied during the task of landscaping the Olympic Park ahead of the London 2012 Olympic Games. The company manufactured and supplied the wire tree supports necessary to provide stability for 4,000 trees as they developed their roots, contributing to a massive planting programme that played a fundamental part in helping London win the Olympic bid. and experience meant it was granted approved supplier status by the Olympic Delivery authority. Furthermore, its knowledge

DECALUB 31, avenue de Condé 77500 CHELLES, FRANCE E-mail: info@decalub.com Website: www.decalub.com

Ormiston supplied heavily galvanised

Dynamic start to the year

Leoni AG made a dynamic start to the current year. In the first three months of 2014, the company consolidated sales by over six per cent year-on-year to the highest ever quarterly total of €1,020.2m (previous year: €959m). EBIT was up by more than 31 per cent to €50.6m (previous year: €38.5m), underpinned by the larger amount of sales, better capacity utilisation and growth in profitable areas of business. Consolidated net income rose by one third to €31.6m (previous year: €22.6m). To be able to continue to grow and prepare for impending project start-ups, Leoni invested €35.1m in property, plant and equipment as well as intangible assets during the period under report, which was almost eight per cent more than in the first quarter of 2013 (previous year: €25.5m). Among other things, the company set up and expanded wiring systems plants in China, Mexico and Serbia as well as capacity to make automotive and special cables in Eastern Europe. In these locations Leoni also recruited additional employees in the first three months, taking the total number worldwide to 64,071 at the end of March 2014 – 2,480 more people than at the turn of the year (31 st December 2013: 61,591). Leoni employed 4,224 people (31 st December 2013: 4,222) in Germany and the number outside Germany was 59,847 (31 st December 2013: 57,369). Leoni AG – Germany Website : www.leoni.com

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Innovative Metalube’s second Queen’s Award ▲ ▲ The laboratory team at Metalube, from left to right, Lesley Hallam, Chris Nettleship, Kevin Duncan, Ben Clarkson, Naomi Pells, Wayne Thornhill and Beverley Gallifant

Metalube manufactures lubricants and greases mainly for the wire and cable industry. The majority of households will own everyday appliances that use copper wire, lubricated by the company, and its greases protect the overhead power cables that conduct electricity to homes. The experienced exporter employs 31 people and has offices in China, India and Brazil. Metalube Ltd – UK Website : www.metalube.co.uk Border crossing! Plans have been submitted for a 500kV Great Northern transmission line, crossing the Minnesota–Manitoba border, to transport wind power from the USA into Canada for storage. Minnesota Power has submitted its plans to the Minnesota Public Utilities Commission for approval and also applied for a presidential permit from the US department of energy, and estimates the cost of the project to be between $500 million and $650 million. Minnesota Power – USA Website : www.mnpower.com

Specialist manufacturer Metalube has been awarded a highly prestigious Queen’s Award for Enterprise for Innovation 2014. This is the second successive year that it has been honoured with this accolade. Exporting to over 86 countries worldwide, the company won in the International Trade category in 2013. An Innovation Award was made for inventing a synthetic grease – OCG 6000 – to protect overhead electrical conductors. The corrosion-preventing grease can operate at over 200°C with an operational life exceeding 20 years. OCG 6000 extends the lives of conductors and ultimately saves capital investments by delaying future renewal of pylon infrastructure. Chris Nettleship, technical director, said: “This is a great feather in our cap. To win the Queen’s Award once is a major achievement, but to win two years in a row is a superb honour. I am so proud of all our chemists who innovate on a daily basis. It is fantastic that their hard work and technical expertise is now acknowledged by this esteemed recognition.” lubricant

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