Twice approved is better: igus control cables with a guarantee for e-chain and cable tray

Tested, certified, safe: with the UL-approved chainflex series CF150.UL and CF160.UL customers only need just one cable for the e-chain and the cable tray

June 29, 2022 – igus, a world leader in moving cable management, has developed two new UL-MTW/TC-ER-certified control cable series that have been UL tested and certified for use in North American markets.

From the energy chain directly to the cable tray: in Europe the standard certifications and practices for install are very different for companies in the USA and companies that supply to the USA. However, this is no longer a problem with the new UL-MTW/TC-ER-certified control cable series CF150.UL and CF160.UL from igus.

Machine Tool Wire (MTW) cables are specified for use in industrial plants and can be installed directly on the cable tray thanks to the Tray cable for Exposed Runs (TC-ER) approval, which places particular requirements on materials and design.

With the “UL listed” seal, the two chainflex series are the only control cables approved for the e-chain and cable tray. This way, users receive cables that function safely and are designed for continuous motion – with a service life guarantee up to 48 months or 10 million strokes.

Whether permanently installed in a cable tray or used in the energy chain – a control cable must withstand a wide variety of loads. If a cable fails, production often comes to a standstill. For a fail-safe supply, the motion plastics specialist igus has developed two control cable series that withstand continuous movements and can be used in the e-chain and the cable tray. Both feature an outer jacket specially approved for use as MTW/TC-ER cables, which has been optimized for movement based on a long series of tests involving over 26 million cycles.

This oil-resistant, highly abrasion-resistant PVC jacket, designed for continuous movement, also meets the demanding tray cable test with the corresponding FT4, FT1, and VW1 fire regulations. The cables are available both with shield (CF160.UL) and without (CF150.UL). In addition, they have a bend radius of only 7.5 x d in the e-chain and are suitable for unsupported travels and up to 50 meters in gliding applications. Typical applications include storage and retrieval units, processing/packaging machines, or indoor cranes.

More safety thanks to a certified guarantee promise

Due to the possibility of laying the cable directly after the energy chain on the cable tray, junction boxes behind the e-chain, complex enclosures, and double stock-keeping of different cable types for the chain area and tray area are no longer necessary. This makes using the cables in different systems easy and reduces downtime by avoiding cable types without chain qualification.

In addition, igus gives customers a guarantee promise.

“With our CF150.UL and CF160.UL control cables, we are also fully committed to a service life guarantee,” explains Rainer Rössel, Vice President and Head of the chainflex Cables Business Unit at igus. “We have developed two unique series suitable for use in e-chains as well as in cable trays – and additionally give our customers tested and certified safety.”

For this purpose, both cable series were tested under real application scenarios in the world’s largest in-house laboratory for moving applications in the industry.

“Thanks to over 30 years of experience and numerous tests, we can make reliable and guaranteed statements regarding the service life of our cables and give our customers a guarantee of up to 48 months or 10 million double strokes on our cables with a clear conscience. We were the first German company to have this promise validated”, adds Rainer Rössel.

Based on the test results, customers can quickly calculate the service life of the cables using an online tool for greater reliability and planning security.

Learn more about the UL-certified control cable series here.

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