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Wire & Cable ASIA – January/February 2012
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Braiding, knitting,
weaving
and
welding
The more intricate the product, the more highly
specialised the apparatus of its manufacture. Braiding,
knitting, and weaving machinery must accommodate
a wide variety of feedstocks – ie ferrous metal, flexible
brass wire, galvanised wire – and often must work the
materials together in patterns that lend new meaning to
the machinist’s term “arbitrary combination.”
The wire mill must also have capability for processing
an order for high-tensile double-width woven wire mesh
– for, say, a pasture enclosure – that imposes strength
and handling challenges beyond the ordinary.
At the same time, the machinery and equipment must
meet “ordinary” standards as to speed, economy,
and convenience in use and maintenance.
The companies whose products and services are
reviewed here are equally responsive to both sets of
requirements.
They are aware that a snapped wire at any
stage of a run of braided, knitted, or woven product
will likely entail a heavier penalty than elsewhere
in the mill.