wiredInUSA April 2019

Issue No. 94 - April 2019

www.wiredInUSA.com

America’s online magazine for wire and cable

wiredIn USA

Power purchase Page 9

Collaborative education. Page 10

Russian rolling. Page 27

Testing agreement. Page 35

Quick Reliable Service Always there to help

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May 14 – 16, 2019 Atlanta, GA, USA Booth # 1341

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EDITOR

Atlanta, Georgia, is once again home to the largest wire and cable exhibition in the US. In a little over six weeks’ time, Interwire will throw open its doors, hosting exhibitors and visitors alike from around the world. The three day exhibition — running alongside the Wire Association International’s 89 th annual convention — also includes a collection of exhibitors at the International Fastener Manufacturing Exposition. Interwire, running from 13 th to 16 th May, provides an opportunity for face-to-face meetings with the people, technology and topics that affect what companies do in the global market. ‘The future of wires in a connected world’ is the title of the keynote speech from best-selling author Dr Shawn G DuBravac, while additional speakers, conference sessions and workshops are offered in an inspiring new format. Our extensive coverage of Interwire starts on page 38. Feel free to stop by booth 222 to collect aCD copy of wiredInUSA and its sister publications EuroWire and Wire & Cable ASIA.

David Bell Editor

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April 2019 Issue No.94 CONTENTS

06 PAGE

Show Diary 2019

09 PAGE

Making the News Industry news from the USA

26 PAGE

Europe news The latest news from Europe

32 PAGE

Asia & Africa News The latest news from Asia & Africa

38 PAGE

Interwire 2019 and The WAI’s 89 th Annual Convention

82 PAGE

Products, Machines & Technology The latest news from machine industries

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wiredIn USA

© 2019 Intras Limited UK ISSN 2046 - 9497 Publishers of EuroWire and Wire & Cable ASIA magazines

INTRAS OFFICES Europe: 46 Holly Walk, Leamington Spa Warwickshire CV32 4HY, UK

Tel: +44 1926 334137 Fax: +44 1926 314755

Email: read@wiredinusa.com Website: www.wiredinusa.com

USA: Danbury Corporate Center, 107 Mill Plain Road, Danbury, CT 06811, USA Tel: +1 203 794 0444 Email: doug@intras.co.uk

News Editor David Bell david@wiredinusa.com

Features Editor (USA and Europe) Gill Watson Publisher Caroline Sullens

Sales & Marketing (International) Sales Director Jason Smith jason@wiredinusa.com +44 1926 834 684 Accounts Manager Julie Case juliecase@intras.co.uk

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Diary Shows & Events 2019

may 13-16 May 2019 Interwire Trade Exposition Atlanta, Georgia, USA www.wirenet.org

june 13-15 June 2019 Guangzhou Guangzhou, China www.julang.com.cn

june 18-20 June 2019 wire Russia Moscow, Russia www.wire-russia.com

September 18-20 September 2019 wire Southeast Asia Bangkok, Thailand www.wire-southeastasia.com October 1-3 October 2019 wire South America São Paulo, Brazil www.wire-south-america.com

september 29 September - 2 October 2019 IWCS 2019 Cable & Connectivity Symposium Charlotte, North Carolina, USA www.iwcs.org

For more info visit: www.wiredinusa.com/showinfo.php

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Power purchase M A K I N G T H E NEWS

National Grid is to buy a Minneapolis- basedcleanenergyproject developer for $100 million. The deal to acquire Geronimo Energy will bolster National Grid’s renewable profile and was led by the utility’s competitive business unit, National Grid Ventures. Geronimo has developed over 2,200MW of wind and solar energy projects since its founding in 2004. “National Grid is committed to the evolution and decarbonization of our energy system. Renewable power, such as wind and solar generation, is a core component of the future energy system,” said Badar Khan, president of National Grid Ventures. Geronimo’s development portfolio already represents almost 10 percent of all wind generation developed in the American Midwest.

satellite development offices and operational project facilities located throughout the country. “We are very pleased to be joining National Grid, a leader in the industry that shares our corporate values and community focus,” said Blake Nixon, CEO of Geronimo Energy. “With National Grid’s expertise and capital strength, Geronimo will be able to better deliver … effective renewable energy solutions for our customers.” National Grid is also progressing with an agreement to acquire a 51 percent share in 378MW of solar and wind generation projects developed by Geronimo (in operation and under construction) for $125 million. National Grid Ventures operates in competitive markets outside National Grid’s core regulated units in the US and UK.

Geronimo’s team will continue to be headquartered in Minneapolis, with

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President Laura L Douglas, PhD, of Bristol Community College, and, Neil Brown business development manager at JDR.

Collaborative education

Bristol Community College, of New Bedford, Massachusetts, and JDR Cables, part of the TFKable Group, are collaborating in a workforce training scheme. Bristol Collegepresident Laura LDouglas, PhD, and JDR’s business development manager, Neil Brown, have signed an agreement to provide technical training for New England’s emerging offshore wind industry. “This exciting partnership … demonstrates Bristol’s commitment to the training and development of high-paying careers in the offshore wind industry,” said Ms Douglas. “It also ensures that the college will be able to support the region’s emerging offshore industry sector with highly skilled workers, innovative training programs, and the shared useof specialized facilitieswell into the future.”

workforce who will be at the forefront of delivering offshore wind energy,” said David Nemetz, director at JDR. The British consul general to New England, Harriet Cross, who also attended the signing, added: “Thisagreement is justoneexampleof the opportunities for collaboration between UK and US organizations to support the emerging offshore wind market in the United States.” “Well-trained technicians are an integral part of theoffshoreconstruction team. Conducting the delicate operations associated with fiber optics, and the precision needed for electrical termination, are challenging in the most benign conditions,” said Neil Brown. “When you combine this with thedemanding offshore environment, the requirement to have competent, experienced and dedicated technicians is critical to the success of the entire wind farm installation.”

“This collaboration is a critical step, not only for JDR’s strategy but for the future local

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Chicago wind power

The company behind a proposed underground transmission line to carry electricity from Iowa to Chicago’s Direct Connect Development Company network has said that the $2.5 billion project could be operational in 2024 if regulators approve it. The project, known as the SOO Green HVDC link, is said to have three major investors — Copenhagen Infrastructure Partners, Jingoli Power and Siemens Financial Services.

in land that runs along existing Canadian Pacific railroad tracks, so reducing disruption to landowners. A similar proposal from a different company for an overhead transmission line, the Rock Island Clean Line between northwest Iowa and Illinois, was withdrawn in 2016 after landowners raised concerns. The proposed line, first announced in 2017, would run from Mason City, Iowa, to Plano, Illinois.

The proposal is to bury the transmission line

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Research collaboration

Xtera ® has transmitted 74.38Tb per second over a transatlantic distance using single mode fiber. The experiment, carried out in collaboration with University College London (UCL), used a hybrid distributed-Raman/EDFA amplifier with 91nm bandwidth, an adaptation of the technology currently deployed in Xtera’s subsea repeaters. The result was described as “record breaking”, demonstrating spectral efficiency of 6.86b/s/Hz over 6,300km across the C and L bands.

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High-speed crossing

The MAREA transatlantic subsea cable, a joint venture between Facebook and Microsoft, has achieved a data transfer speed of 26.2Tb per second on a pair of its fiber optic cables during an experiment. A press release in March said that the experiment yielded a 20 percent increase in the theoretical maximum — it was previously thought that the maximum transfer rate per fiber pair was 20Tb per second.

In 2016, Facebook and Microsoft joined forces to build and deploy the MAREA cable, believed to be the highest-capacity undersea cable to date. The cable stretches from Virginia Beach to Bilbao, Spain, and originally hadadesign capacity of 160Tb per second, with each of the line’s eight fiber optic pairs capable of 20Tb. A recent experiment using 16 QAM modulation produced the data transfer rate of 26.2Tb per second on one of the fiber pairs.

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Fiber companies get connected

Swiss cabling specialist R&M has acquired Optimum Fiberoptics Inc, a US fiber optic cable and connectivity specialist based in Maryland. Founded in 1997, Optimum is a manufacturer and supplier of fiber management products for the commercial, industrial and governmental markets, with strong customer relationships in Washington DC and the mid-Atlantic states.

“Optimum is an excellent addition to our current activities, based out of our North American headquarters in the Silicon Valley, and will enable us to accelerate our ambitious growth strategy,” said Markus Huber, executive vice president, R&M North America. More investments will follow over the next 24 months to further strengthen R&M’s presence in the North American market.

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Wind prediction

In collaboration with DeepMind, its UK- based artificial intelligence (AI) subsidiary, Google has developeda system topredict wind power output 36 hours ahead of actual generation. Google said that these predictions can boost the value of wind energy and strengthen the business case for wind power, thus driving the adoption of carbon-free energy on electricity grids worldwide.

“Over the past decade, wind farms have become an important source of carbon-free electricity, as the cost of turbines has plummeted and adoption has surged,” wrote Sims Witherspoon, program manager at DeepMind, and Will Fadrhonc, carbon-free energy program lead at Google, in a company blog post, continuing: “However, the variable nature of wind itself makes it an unpredictable energy source — less useful than one that can reliably deliver power at a set time.”

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Renewable contracts

An upsurge of activity in the renewables marketbroughtnewbusinesstotheSparrows Group cable and pipe lay solutions (CPLS) division, doubling its business during 2018. This included the delivery of its largest renewables project to date, providing equipment and personnel to handle the nearshore, export and inter-array cables for the Hornsea One offshore wind farm. Working closely with VBMS, a team from CPLS installed and operated two 10Te cable tensioners and one 15Te tensioner, to transfer three 245kV export cables from the vessel NDurance to the landfall location. Bespoke track pads were used to ensure cable clamping limits were maintained for the duration of the pull, and Sparrows provided sea fastenings packages for the equipment.

Sparrows also supported DEME Offshore with the installation of the three export cables offshore between the reactive compensation station (RCS) and the three substations, using a 36Te four-track tensioner - the longest AC offshore wind export cable system ever to have been installed. The equipment was integrated into the Connector cable lay vessel’s lay spread system and used for spooling and laying of over 300km of cable. Other contracts have included a linear cable engine and operators on board the Edda Freya for inter-array cable installations on behalf of DeepOcean.

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A new market report on the future of the global aerospace wiring harness market estimates it will be worth $847 million by 2024. The major growth drivers will be increasing commercial aircraft, helicopters, general and military aircraft deliveries and increasing electrification in newer aircraft. Within this market, wiring harnesses use XL ETFE, TKT, PTFE, PI and others as insulation material. Lucintel researchers forecast that XL ETFE will remain the largest segment, and it is also expected to see the highest growth over the forecast period due to its light weight and heat-resistance advantages. North America is expected to remain the dominant market region, due to the presence of leadingaircraft OEMs. TheAsia-Pacificarea is expected towitness the highest growth over the forecast period, due to the development of new aircraft and a significant increase in aircraft deliveries. An emerging trend, with a direct impact on the dynamics of the aerospace wiring harness industry, will be the development of lightweight and high heat-resistant wires. Lucintel has analyzed the global aerospace wiring harness market by aircraft type, application type, insulation material, market type, by ampacity, and region. Details and downloads of its report, “Growthopportunities in theglobal aerospacewiring harnessmarket 2018-2023: trends, forecast, and opportunity analysis”, are available on the company’s website.

High-flying harness forecast

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The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) has published its WC 76-2018 standard for controlled impedance shielded twisted pairs in internal electrical cable. It allows users to specify various numbers of shielded pairs with an impedance requirement and then tailor the materials tomeet specific endapplications. The cables are intended for electrical equipment for defense, aerospace and high-performance applications. “Original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) have, for years, needed to write their own documents to allow them to purchase controlled impedance pairs for their specific application,” said Kevin Coderre, technical director,MarmonAerospaceand Defense, and chair of the NEMA aerospace technical committee. “This document will become very popular as it allows OEMs to easily specify various combinations of shielded pairs and insulation materials to meet specific end applications.” NEMA WC 76-2018 is available, free, as an electronic download from the NEMA website.

New standard

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Photo by Jason Leung on Unsplash

Subsea summer school

The OSA Foundation (OSAF), established by the Optical Society (OSA) in 2002, has announced its inaugural subsea optical fiber communications international summer school, to be held in Finland. The program, created by OSAF and Google, highlights the expanding field of subsea optical fiber communications for early stage researchers, engineers and PhD or Master’s degree students. Attendees will go through a comprehensive process to build a modern global communication network, with a focus on submarine system design, submarine powering, cable technology, planning, marine operations and maintenance. “We want to encourage the best and brightest scientists and engineers to consider subsea communications as a

profession,” said Valey Kamalov, network engineer at Google and chair of the school program committee. Among other application materials, candidates are asked to submit two statements, of 250 words each, describing why they would like to attend the school, and how their current work relates to subsea optical fiber communications. The school program will include speakers from a range of companies including Google, Facebook, Subcom, Alcatel Submarine Networks and NEC. The summer school is supported by SubOptic, the global trade association for the submarine cable community, with sponsors including Ciena and Nokia.

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CommScope’s duplex LC fiber optic adapters

Portfolio license granted

CommScope

has

granted license

AFL

recognition of the value of our portfolio for companies that are making or selling duplex LC adapters.” CommScope’s duplex LC fiber optic adapters can increase the density of fiber optic connections. The benefit of these adaptors is that the duplex adapter has the same footprint as a simplex SC fiber optic adapter and therefore can double the density of fiber optic connections in the same or existing footprint as an SC adapter. As a small form factor connector used in optical transceivers, duplex LC adapters connect active equipment in central offices, buildings, data centers and cell sites.

Telecommunications to CommScope’s portfolio of patents for duplex LC fiber optic adapters. The license provides rights to US patents and foreign counterparts, and is the second license granted by CommScope for its duplex LC adapter patent portfolio. “CommScope has an industry standard licenseavailable toour duplex LCadapter portfolio, and is offering preferred licenses for a limited number of companies that are first to license,” said Marc Bolick, senior vice president, CommScope Technologies LLC. “AFL’s agreement to take a license to CommScope’s duplex LC adapter portfolio provides

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EUROPE NEWS

wiredInUSA - April 2019

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Image: Danieli

Russian rolling

Danieli is to supply two of its H3 (High productivity, High quality, High efficiency) rollingmills to Russia. Themills will be installed and put into operation during 2020. Abinsk Electric Steel Works Ltd ordered a 600,000 tons per year H3 wire rod line to be installed at Abinsk, in the Krasnodar region. The new mill will produce welding wire and CHQ grades, wire rod coils and micro- alloyed rebar for construction applications. Novorossiysk Rolling Plant LLC ordered a 500,000 tons per year H3 wire rod mill to be installed at Novorossiysk, also in the Krasnodar region. The mill will roll 150x150 billets into 5.5mm to 16mm diameter wire rod and deformed wire rod, in coils weighing up to 2.1 tons.

per second, and consist of an ESS energy- saving system, cantilever-type and SHS housingless stands, and fast-finishing blocks. The Danieli structure control system includes a water-cooling line suitable for wire rod quenching and controlled cooling, while the oil-film bearing loop-laying head, rotary reforming tube and easy-down system guarantee an ideal coil pattern. Danieli H3 mills are usually supplied with Danieli Centro combustion reheating furnaces, equipped with ultra-low NOx emission, flat MAB flameless burners. Danieli Automation provides process control, power and instrumentation for in- line tracking and product monitoring, and the HiLine optical system for rolling guide set-up, and for rolls and finishing blocks alignment.

Depending on customer requirements, Danieli H3 mills can operate at over 100m

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Coming to a screen near you

Historic results

R&M’s 2018 results revealed the “best sales figures in the company’s history”. Over the year R&M sales increased by 14.2 percent, compared to 2017, reaching over $264 million worldwide. “The key factor was the very positive market dynamism, particularly in the market segments [of] data center and public networks. The strong surge in sales was supported by a number of major projects, particularly in the Middle East,” reported CEO Michel Riva. All sales regions posted positive results. Sales in the Middle East increased by over 35 percent, with high double-digit growth rates in North and South America. “The investments made over the last three years in these two regions are paying off,” commented Riva, adding: “Further investments are planned for the coming years.” R&M also invested in projects to secure sustainable growth. The company took over Transportkabel DIXI in the Czech Republic to extend the value-added chain and offer proprietary cables. During the summer, R&M opened a new, advanced plant in India to produce fiber optic products for the Asian market.

Cimteq’s CEO, Ali Shehab

Cimteq will host its first webinar on Industry 4.0/smart factory on Wednesday 8 th May. Personally hosted by Cimteq’s CEO, Ali Shehab, the webinar will explore how best to implement smart assets in a factory – not only by adapting working practices but also by adapting mindsets in communication, continuous improvement and collaboration. Mr Shehab was a key force behind the development of Cimteq’s CableBuilder, with the ambition of freeing cable design engineers from the tedium of repetitive daily tasks and allowing them to get back to creative thought. The Industry 4.0 webinar will provide a taster of the themes Ali will revisit during his participation in the technical program at Interwire 2019. The 20 minute webinar presentation will explore how big data, digital twinning and the Internet of Things are impacting on cable production, and how automation and communication can be used to reduce cost, improve speed and add value. The session will end with a question and answer session.

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Tanks for the upgrade

Russian results

Image: army-technology.com

Photo by Caleb Gregory on Unsplash

BAE Systems has selected Habia Cable to support the Swedish army’s CV90 infantry fighting vehicle upgrade program, scheduled for completion in 2020. Habia Cable will supply cable harnesses from its Lubieszyn-based factory in Poland. The modernization program will increase the vehicle’s lifespan and strengthen the Swedish army’s capability to combat future threats. Work, which is already underway, includes upgrades to the vehicle’s survivability and combat system performance, as well as the turret system where Habia Cable’s products will be utilized. “This is a very prominent upgrade program for the Swedish army, and we are pleased to have Habia Cable on board supporting the project,” said Stefan Löfström, regional director for BAE Systems’ weapon systems Sweden business, with responsibility for updating the CV90 turret. Habia Cable already supplies cable components for the Bofors 57 mark 3 naval gun – produced in Karlskoga, Sweden.

Russian aluminum producer Rusal has announced its results for the year ended 31 st December 2018. The 2018 aluminum market was seriously affected by the Office of Foreign Assets Control (OFAC) sanctions and imposed import duties. However, Rusal’s revenue increased by 3.1 percent to $10,280 million, compared to $9,969 million in 2017. This was partially due to the growth in the London Metal Exchange (LME) aluminum price, which increased by 7.2 percent to $2,110 per tonne as compared to $1,968 per tonne between the comparable periods. The price increase helped offset a 7.2 percent decrease in primary aluminum and alloy sales volume. Rusal’s net profit of $1.698 billion in 2018 compared to $1.222 billion in 2017.

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Making changes

Smart systems

Photo by Daria Nepriakhina on Unsplash

Photo by freestocks.org on Unsplash

Citing a weaker market and persistent problemsat itsplant inMerida,Mexico, Leoni AG has reported significant organizational changes. The company will no longer maintain its prior stated financial projections for sales of €5.2 billion for 2019, and plans a cut of up to 2,000 non-production employees worldwide. Other personnel-related measures include a group-wide hiring freeze and a freeze on salary increases for non-tariff employees and managers. The largest single problem was related to the company’s plant in Merida, opened two years ago, that has experienced persistent “ramp-up” problems, and where high personnel and freight costs have impacted on earnings by around €50 million. Other wiring systems plants in Hermosillo and Durango did not achieve “anticipated performance improvements”, but the Merida plant was the source of the biggest loss. In a press release in February, Leoni AGCEO Aldo Kamper said: “The problems extend beyond Mexico as the market, especially in China, remains challenging, and some OEMs have cut back on expected orders for the coming months.”

Southwire

has

commissioned

a

manufacturing system (MES) from Advaris. Guy Brassard, chief information officer at Southwire Carollton, commented: “In Advaris we have found a reliable partner … with a high level of competence specific to our industry.” Brassard continued: “Advaris MES is the control center of the factory. It enables us to identify deviations, shortages, and disruptions in the production process at an early stage. The intelligent system support enables our employees to react promptly and to make the correct decision. In conjunction with the company-wide SAP system, Advaris MES is one of the functional elements in Southwire’s Industry 4.0 smart factory strategy.” Southwire has praised the high level of flexibility of the MES: “The system could be adapted to the existing structures at Southwire; on this basis, we were able to make positive changes to our business processes,” including detailed production scheduling with the continuing optimization of the sequenceof productionorders shown on touchscreen terminals in the production hall. execution

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Clean power deal

Going underground

Image: edie.net

The German energy transition plan, known as Energiewende, has set a target for 80 percent of the country’s annual electricity needs to be met by renewable energy by 2050. This requires Germany’s transmission service operators, such as Amprion, to upgrade their HV power transmission networks. Nexans will supply the cables to allow Amprion to take its overhead lines underground at sensitive sections of the route. Amprion operates a transmission grid of about 11,000km across an area from Lower Saxony down to the Alps, with the majority comprising overhead lines. Nexans was involved in Amprion’s pilot partial undergrounding project at Raesfield, and is now supplying 31.8km of 400kV cable for a major project at Legden on the route between Wesel and Meppen. The 5.2km Legden route comprises 2.1km of tunnel and 3.1km of pipes. Nexans is supplying the cable for one double circuit with a 2,500mm 2 copper cross-section. The tunnel section of cable will feature an HFFR sheath. Cable delivery is scheduled for July 2022, with installation completed in 2023.

Northumbrian Water has signed a ten-year power purchase agreement (PPA) with Ørsted, the first deal of its type in the UK to secure procurement from an offshore wind farm. The Race Bank wind farm was commissioned in 2018, and is capable of generating 573MW. The water firm signed the PPA as an expansion of an existing renewable electricity supply agreement between the companies. The corporate PPA will deliver approximately 100GWh per year from Race Bank, amounting to 1TWh across the agreed term. The deal commenced in March 2019. Northumbrian Water has plans to install battery storage systems made from end-of- life electric vehicle (EV) batteries at several of its water treatment works. As part of the agreement, Ørsted will use balancing services to ensure wind-sourced electricity can be delivered to the water firm under an existing supply agreement. Ørsted’s head of corporate PPAs, Alana Kühne, commented: “Northumbrian Water shares our ambitions towards a greener future.”

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ASIA & AFRICA NEWS

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Dr Abdulrahman Jassim Al Hammadi, MD of ADVETI

Education collaboration

Emirates Steel, a subsidiary of the general holding corporation SENAAT, has signed a memorandum of understanding (MoU) with the Abu Dhabi Vocational Education and Training Institute (ADVETI). The MoU establishes a framework for cooperation and collaboration, with the aim of enhancing the education services available in Abu Dhabi in line with Abu Dhabi 2030 Vision. Commenting on the signing of the MoU, Eng Saeed Ghumran Al Remeithi, CEO of Emirates Steel, said: “Emirates Steel is committed to developing the next generation of Emirati industry leaders. Through this agreement with ADVETI we look forward to establishing a long-term partnership, based upon areas of mutual interest, and contributing to the creation of innovative training programs that prepare talented UAE nationals for a wide variety of positions within the UAE’s growing industrial sector.”

Jasem Al Khateri, vice president of human capital and services at Emirates Steel, said: “Human capital development is a key focus for us at Emirates Steel, andwe look forward to working closely with ADVETI. Whether it is providing our employees with opportunities to further develop their skills and expertise, or contributing to the education of students interested in science, technology, engineering or mathematics, we are dedicated to providing UAE nationals with rewarding career opportunities at Emirates Steel.” Dr Abdulrahman Jassim Al Hammadi, MD of ADVETI, said: “By working closely with leading industrial partners, like Emirates Steel, we look forward to continuing to contribute to the growth of our nation by providing a well-trained and capable vocational workforce.”

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EHV for Brazil

Fastener inquiry

South Korean cable manufacturer LS Cable and System Ltd has signed a contract for a 100km-longextra-high voltagepower cable for Brazil’s power grid operator, ISA CTEEP. Under the contract, LS Cable will supply 100km of underground and underwater cables for Santa Catarina Island, located off the southern coast of Brazil. Over 60 percent of Brazil’s power supply is hydroelectricity, and the government is seeking other sources, such as wind and solar energy, for more stable generation.

On 4 th March 2019, South Africa notified the World Trade Organization’s committee on safeguards that it has initiated a safeguard investigation on iron and steel threaded fasteners. A safeguard investigation seeks to determine whether increased imports of a product are causing, or threatening to cause, serious injury to a domestic industry. During a safeguard investigation, importers, exporters and other interested parties may present evidence and views, or respond to the presentations of other parties. A WTO member may take a safeguard action, such as temporarily restricting imports of a product, only if the increased imports of the product are found to be causing, or threatening to cause, serious injury.

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Cables are ABC

Testing agreement

Photo by Ildefonso Polo on Unsplash

Photo by Andrew Barrett on Unsplash

UL and Saudi Telecom Company (STC) have announced a memorandum of understanding (MoU) to establish a testing facility in Saudi Arabia. The new center of excellence will be housed inside STC’s laboratories and will offer testing for FTTH products. UL’s wire and cable division signed the MoU with STC at theMobileWorld Congress 2019, held in Barcelona, Spain. The collaboration is aimed at ensuring a robust network for telecom operators in Saudi Arabia and the GCC countries. With support from UL’s engineering capability, the new facility will help all critical stakeholders along the global supplychain todesign,manufacture, specify and procure compliant products.

Peshawar Electric Supply Company (Pesco) is replacing old electricity cables with aerial bundled cables (ABC) in and around Peshawar, Pakistan. Pesco and the National Transmission and Dispatch Company (NTDC) have begun the replacement of all obsolete electric supply cables with ABC and expect to complete the Peshawar area shortly. This was confirmed at a recent meeting to discuss problems and issues in electricity supply in different areas of Khyber Pakhtunkhwa, co-presided over by the chief minister Mahmood Khan with federal minister Umar Ayub Khan. The meeting was attended by federal minster Murad Saeed, finance minister KP Taimur Salim Jahgra, senator Fida Hussain, chief executives of PESCO, TESCO, MD NTDC, and the various companies’ heads of construction departments.

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Rebar acquisition

Phase 5 in sight

Photo by Guilherme Cunha on Unsplash

Image: DEWA

Dubai Electricity and Water Authority (DEWA) has issueda request for qualification to build and operate the 900MW fifth phase of the Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park. The phase will use photovoltaic solar panels and will be commissioned in stages, beginning in the second quarter of 2021. DEWA said the move supports the Dubai Clean Energy Strategy 2050 to provide 75 percent of Dubai’s total power output from clean energy. The Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum Solar Park is expected to generate 5,000MW by 2030.

Japan’s Godo Steel has acquired 86.96 percent of shares in Asahi Industries, making it a subsidiary of Godo with effect from 25 th March. Godo Steel produces rebar at its Funabashi plant, near Tokyo, and Asahi produces rebar and structural steel at a plant in Saitama, also near Tokyo. The combined production from the two plants will total around 600,000 metric tons per year. The acquisition places Godo Steel among the three rebar producers in the Kanto region with the largest base facilities. The other two are JFE Bars and Shapes, with plants in Kashima and Tobu; and Tokyo Tekko and Itoh Iron and Steel, which has plants at Oyama in Tochigi, north of Tokyo, and Hachinohe in north Japan.

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Heat trace contract

Addressing speed and cost

Image: Wuhu Jiahong

Chinese cable manufacturer Wuhu Jiahong New Material Co Ltd will supply self- regulating heat trace cable to Garinger, a US industrial supply company. A press release said that Wuhu Jiahong will supply 20,000m of self-regulating heat trace cables and 10,000m of constant wattage heating cables annually. The cables will be used for residential and commercial buildings, mainly for pipe freeze protection, in-pipe heat tracing systems, electric floor heating, and roof and gutter de-icing systems, although they can also be used for other sites such as offshore oil platforms. Wuhu Jiahong is currently building a 60,000m 2 factory in Wuhu, scheduled to open in 2020, that will be “equipped with fully automated testing equipment and is expected to multiply the existing production scale by five.” Wuhu Jiahong CEO, Steven Xu, said that the new factory will allow the business to “shift its production line to a new frontier, making it highly digitized and more connected ... [and] provide the company [with] a serious competitive edge over its competitors in the coming years.” Founded in 1993, Wuhu Jiahong’s cables conform to European and North American safety standards.

Image: Michael Ackland

Michael Ackland, the national director of Australia’s fourth largest telecomcompany, Vocus Group, has said: “The quality and price of internet access in Timor-Leste will only improve if the country reduces supply costs by building a submarine fiber optic cable.” He continued that operators in Timor-Leste spend $12 million a year on buying access to the international network via satellite, and that amount is multiplied later in costs for customers who still have slow and unstable service. Internet access in Timor- Leste is among the most expensive in the world. Vocus Group is interested in partnering with Timor-Leste for an eventual connection of the south of the country to the North Western Cable System (NWCS) that passes by the maritime border with Australia, in the Timor Sea.

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Image courtesy of Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Interwire 2019 and The WAI’s 89 th Annual Convention Convention: May 13-16, 2019 | Exhibits: May 14-16, 2019 The largest wire and cable exhibition in the Americas is just over a month away, as Interwire hosts exhibitors and visitors alike from around the world. An eye on the future is called for, with the theme being the ‘Next Generation’ for the exhibition, being staged from 13 th to 16 th May at the Georgia World Congress Center, Atlanta, USA. There is a new conference format that features an impressive line- up of speakers from the industry’s most influential companies. There is change and choice ahead and visitors will be able to see and hear what manufacturers around the world are talking about and doing. Interwire includes the Wire Association International’s 89 th annual convention, a full exposition in Hall A, and a collection of exhibitors at the International Fastener Manufacturing Exposition (IFME). This is the ideal opportunity to come face-to-face with the people, topics and technology that affect what companies do in the global market. The keynote speaker during the show will be the best-selling author and global futurist Dr Shawn G DuBravac. His presentation, entitled ‘The future of wires and cables in a connected world’, is open to all conference registrants. Additional speakers, conference sessions and workshops are offered in an inspiring new format. Exhibiting companies and booth descriptions can be found on the following pages.

WAI’s 89 th Annual Convention: May 13-16. Exhibits: May 14-16. Atlanta, Georgia, USA

Company

Booth Company

Booth

Accuracy Technical Services LLC

1365

Boockmann Engineering GmbH

859 241

Ace Metal Inc

851

Cable Consultants Corp Calmec Precision Limited

ACIMAF

1011, 1013

1549 1140 1323 1700

ADVARIS GmbH

1158

Canterbury/Genca Div Milacron

Aeroel Srl AESA SA

323

Carris Reels Inc Cavallero Plastics

1458

AIM Inc

111

CBC Metals Processing

330

Air Control Industries Inc

1059 1719

Cemanco LC CERSA-MCI Chase/NEPTCO

1503

AITMAC Inc Amacoil Inc

216

812 850

1001

American & Efird, LLC

Chemetall

310

American Kuhne

1357 1065 1608

Cheng I Wire Machinery Co Ltd Chengdu Centran Industrial Co Ltd

1164

Amexstra Inc

501

Appleton Mfg, A Double E Company

Cimteq

1607 1611

Arkema Inc.

555 816 140

Clayton Industries

Asaclean – Sun Plastech Inc

Clifford North America Clinton Instrument Co

431 500 854

ATE Applicazioni Termo Elettroniche Srl

Aversion Technologies, Inc AW Machinery LLC Aztech Lubricants LLC B & Z Galvanized Wire Ind

1656 1623 1363

CM Furnaces Inc

CMEC International Exhibition Ltd

1219, 1319

Commission Brokers Inc

801

242

Condat

1351

Balloffet Die Corp

1702

Confex Technology Ltd Conneaut Industries Inc

717 705

Bartell Machinery Systems/ Ceeco Bartell Products

723

Conoptica A/S

1265

Bechem Lubrication Technology LLC Beijing Orient Pengsheng Tech Co Ltd

1267

Copper-Lines K Sarl

658 759

765 800

CTS – Cincinnati Thermal Spray Inc

Bergandi Machinery Co

Dalian

1711 1101

Beta LaserMike

Die Quip Corp Dino-Lite Scopes

(An NDC Technologies Brand)

1031

755

Blachford Corp

505

Domeks Makine Ltd Sti

1123

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40

Company

Booth Company

Booth

Drawing Technology Inc

217

Häfner & Krullmann GmbH Hangzhou JR Exhibition Co Ltd

570

Dynamex Corp

1807

1309, 1311

E-Beam Services Inc Ebner Furnaces Inc Eddytech Systems Inc

131

Heany Industries Inc

818 719

1507 1706

Heatbath/DuBois Chemicals

H-I-S Coatings

1614

Electron Beam Technologies Inc

212 802 223 301

Honta Inc

811

Enercon Industries Enkotec Co Inc

Houghton International Inc

1509 1241

Howar Equipment Inc

ERA Wire Inc

Huestis Industrial

641

Esteves Group USA Eurobend GmbH EuroWire Magazine

1004 1173

Ideal Welding Systems

1251 1566 1606

iiM AG measurement + engineering

222

InnoVites

EVG Inc

1159 1651 1508

International Wire Group, Inc

341 331 701

Evolution Products

IWM International

Fabritex Inc Facts Inc Fenn LLC Fil-Tec Inc Filtertech Inc

IWMA

230 711

Joe Snee Assoc/PWM

1358 1727

Joe Tools

1301 1150

Jouhsen – Bundgens Inc

232

Kablosan Turkey – FBC Yayincilik Ltd sti

1843

Fine International Corp

233

Kabmak Muh Ve Mak San

831 651 700

Flymca & Flyro FMS USA Inc

1340 1305 1610 1331

Kalmark Intergrated Systems Ltd

Keir Manufacturing Inc

Foerster Instruments Inc Fort Wayne Wire Die Inc Fuhr GmbH & Co Kg Gem Gravure Co Inc George Evans Corp GMP Slovakia sro Granite Falls Furnace Guill Tool & Engineering Co

King Steel Corp Kinrei of America Lämneå Bruk AB

1515

523 522

559 805 810 671

LaserLinc Inc

1835 1151

Leggett & Platt Wire Group

Leoni Wire Inc

451 965

1562 1511

LLFlex

Lloyd & Bouvier Inc

1517

41

wiredInUSA - April 2019

Company

Booth Company

Booth

M & M Industries Co Ltd

151 316

OMSA Srl

1468

M Holland

P & R Specialty Inc

551

Mac Bee Engineering Corporation Madem-Moorecraft Reels USA

1504

P/A Industries

1617 1616 1539 1053

950 459 405 113 823 311 553 231 211

Pan Chemicals Americas

Madison Steel Inc

Paramount Die Co Parkway-Kew Corp

Magnetic Technologies Ltd Magnus Engineered Equipment

Pentre Group Ltd - Hearl Heaton

504 650

Maillefer Extrusion Oy

Phifer Wire Inc

Mathiasen Machinery Inc

1827

Plas-Ties Co

1302

Metal Link Inc

Pratto SA

351 401 210 141 228 450 741

Metal Resource Solutions Inc

Precision Die Technologies Inc

Metal Solutions LLC

Premier Wire Die

Metalloid Corp

PrintSafe

1839

MFL Group

1211 1240 1512

Process Control Corp

The MGS Group Micro Products Co

Progress Maschinen & Automation AG

Promostar Srl

Microdia USA Mid-South Wire

417 853

Properzi International Inc

PWM

1358

Mikrotek Machines Ltd Morgan-Koch Corp Mossberg Associates Inc Mossberg Industries Inc

1710 1451 1364

Q8Oils

771

QED Wire Lines Inc

1361 1051

Rad-Con Inc Radyne Corp

858

814

Movacolor/

Rainbow Rubber & Plastics

1556

KN Manufacturing Solutions

430

Rautomead Ltd

432

Nexeo Solutions

1505

Reel Options by Vandor Corp Reel Power Wire & Cable Refractron Technologies Corp

1154 1023 1510

Niehoff Endex North America Inc Nitta Corporation of America

841 150

Oden Technologies Inc Oklahoma Steel & Wire

1829

RichardsApex Inc

541

864

Roblon US Inc

1350 1531

OMCG Inc

1542

Rosendahl Nextrom

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42

Company

Booth Company

Booth

Roteq Machinery Inc SACO AEI Polymers Saint-Gobain Ceramics

1631

Tensor Machinery Ltd Traxit North America LLC Troester GmbH & Co

959 550

423

1817 1227

1457

SAMP USA Inc

Ulbrich Specialty Wire Products

213 400 652

Sanxin Wire Die Inc –

United Wire Co Inc

Nano-Die America

1500, 1501

Upcast OY US Extruders

Schlatter North America

1530 1819 1615

1806 1747

Schnell SpA

Varibelt Inc Mekosan USA

Shanghai Anchors Mold Trading Co Ltd Shanghai HOSN Machinery Co Ltd

Vinston US Corp

317 753

951

W Gillies Technologies LLC WAFIOS Machinery Corp Weber & Scher Mfg Co Inc

Shanghai Pudong

1005 1242 1641

International Exhibition Co

611 730 411 205 751 531

Sikora International Corp

Windak Inc

Simpacks

Wire & Cable Technology International

240

Sivaco Wire Group Sjogren Industries Inc

Wire & Plastic Machinery Corp

1131

wire 2020/

Sonoco

Messe Düsseldorf North America

1100

Star Materials Co Ltd Steel Cable Reels

1707

Wire Lab Co

605

332

Wire Machine Systems Inc

1540 1300

Stolberger Inc DBA Wardwell Braiding

1306 1005 1452

Witels Albert USA Ltd

Strecker USA

Woodburn Diamond Die Inc

804 455

Sweed Machinery Inc

WTM Srl

Takikawa Engineering Co Ltd

355

Yield Management Corp Zumbach Electronic Corp

1849 1341

Tapeformers Ltd

1000

Taubensee Steel & Wire Co Taymer International Inc

441

1360 1469 1259

TECVIL

Teknikor

Teknor Apex

305 333

Tektapes

43

wiredInUSA - April 2019