WCA January 2011

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Wire drawingmachinery
Wire & Cable ASIA – January/February 2011 53
Rod breakdown lines for aluminium profile wire
In numerous countries around the globe increasing energy demands make overhead transmission lines reach the limit of their
transmission capacity. Reconductering the transmission lines with High Temperature Low Sag (HTLS) conductors can solve
the growing structure and capacity problems of electricity networks. Niehoff now provides conductor manufacturers with rod
breakdown machines designed for the production of Aluminium Conductor Steel Supported/Trapezoidal Wire (ACSS/TW)
conductors. ACSS/TW conductors (manufactured on Niehoff MSM 85 rod breakdown machines) combine the concept of
annealed aluminium wires in a trapezoidal shape stranded around a steel core.
The finished profile can be drawn out of a round inlet material with profile dies (as shown in the diagram). As an example, inlet
material aluminium 1350 (Al 99.5) wire with a diameter of 9.52mm to a finished profile of 13.431mm². To reach a conductivity
of 61.8% IACS (International Annealed Copper Standard) an annealing process is implemented. The electronically controlled
Niehoff MSM 85 with individually driven capstans and the integrated RA 501 continuous annealer can be used for this
application, or existing Niehoff rod breakdown machines can be upgraded.
The MSM machine enables the manufacturer to
draw round and trapezoidal wires of aluminium
and aluminium alloys on the same line. The RA 501
annealer is specially designed for the in-line annealing
of aluminium and aluminium alloy wires. Instead of an
expensive batch type annealer Niehoff offers an in-line
annealing process.
In the MSM 85 machine each drawing capstan is
individually driven by its own AC motor, which allows
a minimised slip operation. As a result working with
different wire elongations for each draft – according
to the material properties and shapes of the wires – is
possible. The MSM line is equipped with energy-saving
AC motors and energy-optimised components.
Maschinenfabrik Niehoff GmbH & Co KG – Germany Fax: +49 9122 977 155
Email: Website:
New combined drawing machine from SAS
SAS manufactures combined lines and pulling benches to draw bars and tubes (coil to bar as well as bar to bar) for ferrous
and non-ferrous products. SAS also produces shears, peeling, chamfering and straightening machines, shot blasting, eddy
current lines and entry/exit line service. Care of the product is taken in every phase: from projecting to construction and
assembling, up to load testing. The lines are equipped with twin cams, hydraulic carriages and hydraulic flying shears,
which make the lines able to work at a very high speed while maximum accuracy is guaranteed, in a working range from
Ø 2mm to 54mm.
The SAS combined drawing machine can be supplied completed with the most advanced accessories in order to obtain a
totally automated line; these accessories include: pay-off group, pre-straightening device, draw bench, chamfering machine,
bundle strapping and weighing and handling. Everything is managed automatically. Reacting to the increased demand for
faster drawing lines, SAS has designed and produced hydraulic flying shears cutting “bushing-to-bushing”.
This kind of cut decreases the specific pressure generated by cutting stress on the material. A better quality of the point is
obtained (nail effect) and the cut is perfectly orthogonal in respect of bar axis. The shearing tool is assembled on a carriage
sliding along on ball guides and powered by a brushless electric motor. An electronic encoder, controlled by the central drive,
powers the motor until the carriage reaches the same speed as the bar; the bar is cut only when the difference between the
two speeds is zero and therefore the differences in lengths are dramatically reduced.
SAS Engineering and Planning Srl – Italy Fax: +39 031 657223
Email: Website:
Niehoff MSM 85 rod breakdown machine with integrated RA 501 continuous annealer ❍ ❍
Drawing shaped aluminium on an MSM 85/RA 501 drawing line ❍ ❍
(die sequences)