wiredInUSA February 2019

Issue No. 92 - February 2019

www.wiredInUSA.com

America’s online magazine for wire and cable

wiredIn USA

Wire rod acquisition Page 9

66 th WAI president named. Page 10

Plans for Baltic link. Page 29

Africa cable moving forward. Page 35

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EDITOR

Expansion plans are very much at the forefront in this issue of wiredInUSA, with the addition of Keystone Consolidated Industries (KCI) to Liberty Steel USA, creating one of the USA’s largest producers of wire rod. The deal will allow Liberty to increase its capacity by five million tons by 2020. The acquisition also follows closely on from Liberty Aluminium’s $500 million purchase of Aluminium Dunkerque, Europe’s largest aluminum smelter. The KCI range of products is made from American-produced steel and consists of a diverse line of steel products, including steel billet, wire rod, reinforcement mesh, welded wire, agricultural wire fence, prestressed concrete strand, bar and coiled rebar used in the construction, agricultural and automotive industries. Full details are on page 9. The Wire Association International (WAI) has announced the appointment of WT Bigbee as the 66 th president of the association for a one-year term. Mr Bigbee joined the WAI in 2011. In addition to his role as president, and a second term on the association’s board of directors, he will serve on its conference programming, exhibition planning and oversight committees. Turn to page 10 for more.

David Bell Editor

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wiredInUSA - February 2019

February 2019 Issue No.92 CONTENTS

06 PAGE

Show Diary 2019

09 PAGE

Making the News Industry news from the USA

28 PAGE

Europe news The latest news from Europe

34 PAGE

Asia & Africa News The latest news from Asia & Africa

40 PAGE

Products, Machines & Technology The latest news from machine industries

wiredInUSA - February 2019

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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

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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) Dorothy Fabian Features Editor (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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wiredInUSA - February 2019

Diary Shows & Events 2019

march 5-7 March 2019 Cables 2019 Düsseldorf, Germany www.ami.international

march 9-10 March 2019 Advanced Cable Middle East Abu Dhabi, UAE www.integer-research.com may 13-16 May 2019 Interwire Trade Exposition Atlanta, Georgia, USA www.wirenet.org

march 18-20 March 2019 Advanced Cable North America Charlotte, North Carolina, USA www.integer-research.com

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

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

wiredInUSA - February 2019

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Wire rod acquisition M A K I N G T H E NEWS

London-based GFG Alliance has announced that the addition of Keystone Consolidated Industries (KCI) to Liberty Steel USA creates one of the country’s largest producers of wire rod, and provides a platform for GFG to grow its US Greensteel capacity to five million tons per annum by 2020. The completion of the deal helps pave the way towards a proposed US IPO of Liberty Steel USA, which will be led by Credit Suisse. The transaction follows closely on the completion of Liberty Aluminium’s $500 million purchase of Aluminium Dunkerque, Europe’s largest aluminum smelter. KCI’s family of companies includes Keystone Steel and Wire, Engineered Wire Products, Strand Tech Manufacturing and Keystone Bar Products. The KCI range of products is

made from American-produced steel and consists of a diverse line of steel products, including steel billet, wire rod, reinforcement mesh, welded wire, agricultural wire fence, prestressed concrete strand, bar and coiled rebar used in the construction, agricultural, and automotive industries. KCI is said to have substantially improved its financial performanceover the last five years as it expanded significantly into value-added products, augmenting its original position as a supplier of low- carbon wire rod. The acquisition strengthens Liberty’s position in the US market with the addition of a highly productive wire rod facility with a 1.1 million ton capacity electric arc furnace (EAF), an MBQ/SBQ bar mill, three welded wire reinforcement mesh facilities and a PC strand facility.

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wiredInUSA - February 2019

66 th president named

WT Bigbee

The Wire Association International (WAI) has announced the appointment of WT Bigbee as the 66 th president of the association for a one-year term, beginning 1 st January 2019. Bigbee joined the WAI in 2011. In addition to his role as president, and a second term on the association’s board of directors, Bigbee will serve on its conference programming, exhibitionplanning, andoversight committees. Commenting on the new appointment, WAI executive director Steven Fetteroll said: “The association is fortunate tohave the leadership of WT Bigbee and the support of an amazing company, Encore Wire, during this exciting

period for the wire and cable manufacturing sector. Bigbee understands the confluence of Industry 4.0, lean manufacturing and employment markets and, as a result, he can ensure the association is positioned to support the needs of the industry.” Bigbee is vice president of operations at Encore Wire Corporation. His current role includes the oversight of technical and production operations and the development of new products and services. Before joining Encore in 1997, Bigbee worked at Capital Wire/GeneralCable for tenyears. Hecurrently holdsmemberships,andserves inkeypositions, in many relevant industry associations.

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Leadership changes

In support of the company’s five-year strategic plan, Southwire has announced a reorganization of its executive leadership and business structure. The company is placing an increased emphasis on its core wire and cable business, yet looking at opportunities to focus more intently on areas such as metals management, modernization, researchanddevelopment and systems optimization.

vice president and chief commercial officer – wire and cable. Adkins has over 20 years of experience with the company, leading marketing, sales and business initiatives across wire and cable teams in areas such as international, utility, OEM and retail and electrical distribution. Brandon Moss will be promoted to executive vice president of tools, components and assembled products, and CharlieMurrah will serve as Southwire’s EVP of metals.

In linewith this commitment, NormanAdkins will now serve as the company’s executive

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Future-proofing purchase

Cisco is to acquire the semiconductor company Luxtera for $660 million, with the intention of incorporating its technology into Cisco’s networking portfolio for enterprise, data center and service provider markets. The acquisition is intended to expand Cisco’s 100GbE and 400GbE portfolio, and to future-proof networks for emerging applications such as distributed cloud, mobility, and Internet of things, which are

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Family firm’s new family

Motor City Industrial has announced its acquisitionof Smith Fastener, inpartnership with its third-generation owner, Brian Smith. This is the third acquisition by Motor City Industrial; the combined companies now serve over 20 states from seven locations. Founded in 1965, Smith Fastener distributes industrial consumables and ancillary products throughout North America.

team to begin a new chapter with Smith Fastener,” said Brian Smith, executive vice president and general manager. “Motor City Industrial’s strategic support, while respecting what makes us unique to our customers and associates, was the ideal partnership for the future of Smith Fastener.” Brian Smith succeeds his father, Jim Smith, and grandfather, Willie Smith, to lead the organization.

“I am proud of what my family has built, and excited to join theMotor City Industrial

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wiredInUSA - February 2019

Indiana cable plant investment

Wire and cable manufacturer Lake Cable LLC plans to invest $7 million in its Valparaiso plant, where it plans to hire up to 54 more workers by 2021. The Illinois-based company has announced plans to expand the facility with an additional 82,000 square feet. Construction is scheduled for completion in 2020. “Fourteen years after expanding into Valparaiso, we are excited and optimistic about the way our business is growing and

developing,” said Lake Cable president Emile Tohme. “The Valparaiso location recently became ISO 9001 certified for its quality management system, which translates into new opportunities, productivity and efficiency for our company.” Indiana will give the company $300,000 in tax breaks if it fulfills its hiring plans. The city of Valparaiso is also considering further incentives that would reduce its property taxes.

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Expansion for recycler

Fluoropolymer Resources LLC (FRL) has opened a new 63,000ft 2 production facility in North Windham, Connecticut. FRL, a division of Prime Materials Recovery, is a recycler of FEP, PFAand ETFE fluoropolymer plastics in North America. A press release said that the company’s latest facility will bring all existing assets under one roof, while also adding new capacity and capabilities to expand the company’s position as a fluoropolymer reprocessor.

More spacewas also required tocomplete the integration of FRL’s 2018 acquisition of Trifluor Kunststoff, a supplier of reprocessed PFA and FEP with clarity and properties equal to prime virgin polymer. The resource has added substantially to FRL’s commitment to upgrade the usefulness and value of even the most contaminated PFA and FEP scrap supplies.

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wiredInUSA - February 2019

The all-electric DH4010VGP wire bending machine from BLM Group

No-twist bending

BLM Group USA has announced its all- electricDH4010VGPwirebendingmachine.

The machine cuts wire free from the coil before the bending operation begins, so eliminating the twisting that can occur when making flat bent wire parts from coil. Thebender canbe fed fromcoil stock or use pre-cut straight lengths of wire in diameters up to 0.39 inch.

The DH4010VGP features twin turrets and twin heads for complex wire bending jobs.

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wiredInUSA - February 2019

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US-based telecommunications company Bluebird Network will be acquired by Macquarie Infrastructure Partners (MIP). Bluebird provides high-bandwidth networks in rural andurbanareas throughout theMidwest, focusing on connecting rural areas to major cities. It provides a variety of network services to enterprise and carrier customers; its fiber optic infrastructure connects to the Bluebird underground data center, an underground co-location facility in Springfield, Missouri. Managed by the Macquarie Infrastructure and Real Assets (MIRA) division of Macquarie Group, MIP partnered with Uniti to finance the transaction. Uniti will acquire Bluebird’s fiber network – currently undergoing a 45-mile fiber route expansion – to be leased back to Bluebird under a long-term lease. Bluebird will also acquire Uniti’s midwestern fiber business and receive a long-term lease over Uniti’s midwestern fiber network of approximately 2,500 miles, predominantly in Illinois. Upon completion of the transactions, the two adjacent networks will be combined and operatedas onecompany under the Bluebird name. The company will be operated by the existing Bluebird management team and employees, headquartered in Columbia.

Midwest fiber changes

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Infinera, a provider of intelligent transport networks,hasannouncedthecompletion of a major upgrade to Australia-Japan Cable’s (AJC) submarine cable system connecting Australia, Guam and Japan. AJCtripled the lit capacityon its 12,700km subsea cable system by upgrading its Infinera DTN-X network with Infinera’s fourth generation optical engine – ICE4 (infinite capacity engine). The network upgrade also delivers a 60 percent end- of-life capacity increase to AJC’s trans- Pacific cable system. AJC first deployed Infinera’s subsea solution in 2014. The capacity upgrade enables AJC to rapidly activate new capacity for customers with Infinera Instant Bandwidth. Instant Bandwidth allows AJC to activate and pay for additional capacity when needed, reducing the initial cost of deployment and much of the up-front commercial risk. “Infinera’s newest optical engine – ICE4 – enabled AJC to easily add more capacity per fiber pair,” said David Crofts, CEO, Australia-Japan Cable. “The ICE4 upgrade to our DTN-X network from Infinera is performing better than advertised, allowing AJC to easily deliver multi-terabit capacity with low power consumption and the reliability required for subsea networks.”

Bandwidth on demand

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New life for landmark facility

The windows on the Central Steel & Wire Co. building along I-94 on Milwaukee’s south side were covered in 2001. Photograph courtesy of Journal Sentinel files

An industrial landmark, the Central Steel and Wire plant in Milwaukee, has been sold to a Michigan company. Alro Steel Corporation, a processor and distributor of metals and plastics, has bought the plant for $7.1 million. Alro already has a plant in Wauwatosa, but has been constrained by space at that location.

so it’s an opportunity for us to service our customers better.”

The newly purchased building covers 108,000ft 2 , compared with 85,600ft 2 at the Wauwatosa plant. The 62-year old Central Steel and Wire building was once widely admired for its design, and particularly for its long stretches of windows.

Bob Bates, a regional vice president with the firm, said: “Our facility’s too small now,

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PolyOneCorporation has acquired Fiber-Line, a manufacturer of customized engineered fibers and composite materials. Founded in 1987, Fiber-Line has a portfolio of materials for thefiber opticcable, oil andgas, industrial and consumer industries. From fivemanufacturing locations in North America, Europe and Asia, Fiber-Line engineers specified performance characteristics for fiber such as strength, abrasion and chemical resistance. “Fiber-Line is an innovative and unique addition to our portfolio of fiber and composite solutions, with tremendous upside for growth,” said Robert M Patterson, chairman, president and CEO of PolyOne Corporation. “They provide an immediate leadership position in serving the build-out of fiber optic cable and future 5G networks.” Fiber-Line’s technologies will complement PolyOne’s existing specialty composite solutions and wire and cable applications. “Joining the PolyOne team represents another important and exciting milestone for Fiber- Line employees and our valued customers,” said Dale Outhous, CEO of Fiber-Line. Mr Patterson added: “Through increased collaboration with customers, we’ll capture both near-term growth prospects as well as benefit from the expansion of 5G networks. Longer term, we expect future growth to be driven by significant technology synergies between fiber and composites, utilizing specialty colorants and coatings which PolyOne is well positioned to develop.”

Composite collaboration

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EUROPE NEWS

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Image: Ministry of Energy of the Republic of Lithuania

Plans for Baltic link

The management boards of the Polish and Lithuanian transmission system operators PSE and Litgrid have committed to undertake development activities for the construction of Harmony Link, a new Polish- Lithuanian submarine HVDC cable. The agreement establishes the principles of cooperation within the preparation phase of the project. This phase encompasses activities to support an investment decision, following which the procurement for the construction of Harmony Link would be launched. The decision is expected in 2020. “The cross-border energy infrastructure project agreement, signed between Polish and Lithuanian partners today, is yet another clear sign of political and professional accord; of working hand in hand to help the three Baltic states gain full control of their electricity networks,” said Miguel Arias Cañete, EU commissioner for climate action and energy.

Initiation of the Harmony Link works is directly linked to the political roadmap for synchronizing the Baltic states’ electricity grid with continental Europe. That agreement was signed in June 2018 by the president of the European Commission and heads of state and government of Lithuania, Latvia, Estonia and Poland. The roadmap assumed the technical solution for synchronizing the Baltic states’ system by 2025, consisting of synchronization via the existing link between Lithuania and Poland (LitPol Link), complemented by a new undersea cable between Poland and Lithuania. While the process of synchronization will be under the supervision of ENTSO-E Regional Group Continental Europe, the construction of the Harmony Link will remain the responsibility of PSE and Litgrid.

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Scottish renewables target

Aluminum export figures

Russia has exported aluminum wires since 2016, although the volume has suffered a year-on-year fall. According to global export-import data, the country’s estimated aluminum wire export in 2016 was 163,279 tonnes, which dropped 5 percent to 155,389 tonnes in 2017. The data also shows that the estimated amount in 2018 is likely to stand at 115,914 tonnes, 29 percent down on 2016 and 25 percent less than that of 2017. Russia’s revenue from aluminum wire export in 2016 was $249 million, which grew in 2017 to $272 million. In 2018, however, the revenue may be around $225 million, 10 percent down from 2016 and 17 percent down from 2017. The US sanctions against Rusal, the leading aluminumproducer in Russia, could be one reason for the 2018 export drop. However, according to the latest report, the United States has offered to remove sanctions from Rusal under certain conditions. Aluminum wires are widely used in home electrical appliances, switches, circuit breakers and motors owing to their light weight, corrosion resistance and retention of temperature, even at low temperatures. They also reduce corona, an electric discharge associated with high power transmission, thus fueling an increasing industry demand.

The Scottish government has set an ambitious target for renewable energy resources to meet 100 percent of the country’s gross annual electricity consumption by 2020. Large onshore wind farms, such as SP Energy Networks’ 88MW KypeMuir wind farm, whereNexans recently provided a 16km 132kV underground grid connection, will play a key role in meeting the target. With a total capacity of over 10GW, Scotland’s renewable electricity generation sector is now over three times the capacity it was at the end of 2008. Onshore wind is the biggest single renewable technology, accounting for over 74 percent of installed capacity. A key element in the wind farm project is the 16km underground cable connection required to link the new 132/33kV SP Energy Networks substation at the Kype Muir site with the existing Coalburn 400/132kV grid substation. SP Energy Networks awarded the contract for the connection to Nexans France with a timescale of just eight months to provide design, manufacture and delivery of the cable, civil works, cable laying, design and supply of the cable accessories, jointing and commissioning.

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Power export cable making progress

Deer Island connection

Image: By Doc Searls from Santa Barbara, USA wikipedia.org

Nexans has successfully completed the installation of the first four cables for NordLink, a power connection between Norway and Germany. The NordLink project is a collaboration between Statnett, TenneT and the German promotional bank KfW. The 1,400MW interconnector will connect the Norwegian and German electricity markets to allow the two countries to exchange renewable energy. In the framework of the €500 million contract awarded to the group in 2015, Nexans is designing, manufacturing and installing six 525kV mass-impregnated HVDC interconnector cables with a total length of around 700km. Nexans has already manufactured and installed two thirds of the interconnection length. The cables are installed using the cable-laying vessel C/S Nexans Skagerrak and trenched using the Nexans Capjet system. The last two cables are currently in production in Halden, Norway, and are scheduled for installation during 2019. The route of the power connection between Norway and Germany. Photograph courtesy of www.askjaenergy.com

Prysmian Group has won a contract with Caldwell Marine International LLC, a US construction contractor specializing in submarine utility operations. “This contract represents a very strategic opportunity for Prysmian Group as we move, following the acquisition of General Cable, to consolidate our presence in the US interconnection market,” stated Hakan Ozmen, EVP projects, Prysmian Group. Prysmian Group will be responsible for the design, manufacture, supply and testing of a 6km 3x630mm² 115kV submarine cable system with XLPE insulation, plus all related cable accessories, to connect Deer Island to mainland Massachusetts. The group will also be responsible for the project’s land section, for which it will supply and install 8km of 115kV land cabling and all related accessories. Delivery of the project is scheduled for early 2019.

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wiredInUSA - February 2019

New mill with export aims

Reviewing the wind power situation

Mukand Sumi Special Steel Ltd (MSSSL), a joint venture between Mukand Ltd, India, and Sumitomo Corporation, Japan, has placed an order with SMS group for a special bar quality rolling mill for the production of bar and rod. The new mill will adjoin Mukand’s existing steel making facilities near Hospet in Karnataka. MSSSL plans to export products from the unit. In its first stage the mill will have an annual capacity of 400,000 tons, but capacity will increase to 600,000 tons per year in a second stage. The mill will comprise a walking-beam reheating furnace with a capacity of 75 tons per hour in the first stage, and 110 tons per hour in a second stage, 18 housingless two-high stands in H/V arrangement, a precision sizing mill (PSM ® ), shears, cooling lines, cooling bed with finishing facilities, a wire rod line with a ten-stand wire rod block, laying head, loop cooling conveyor (LCC ® ), coil handling equipment and a coil compactor. Wire rod in 5.5mm to 22mm diameters will be produced on the wire rod block at a maximum speed of 90m per second. The signing of the agreement between Mukand Sumi Special Steel Ltd and SMS group

Photo by Remi Yuan on Unsplash

Danish offshore wind company Ørsted A/S, is reviewing plans for investments in Taiwan, having been unable to secure a key permit for 900MW of offshore wind projects in time for the 2018 feed-in tariff. The company says it missed the 2 nd January 2019 deadline for signing with Taipower because Taiwan’s bureauofenergydelayedtheestablishment permit for the Greater Changhua projects. The Taiwanese government in November suggested a cut to the offshore wind feed-in tariff in 2019 and also proposed a cap of 3,600 on annual full-load hours. In December, the Global Wind Energy Council (GWEC) said the new rules in Taiwan could reduce project revenues by roughly 20 percent, rendering projects “non-investable”. Ørsted offshore CEO Martin Neubert stressed in a press release that significant changes to these proposals will be needed for Ørsted to progress any further towards a final investment decision on the Taiwanese projects. Ørsted believes the feed-in tariff needs to reflect the high costs involved in building Greater Changhua 1 and 2a, including essential onshore grid infrastructure upgrades, and the cost of operating and maintaining wind farms in waters susceptible to typhoons and earthquakes.

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Steel mill results

Fiber plant plans

Image: Bekaert

Image: BMZ

Vietnam’s central province of Qu ả ng Ngãi has agreed, in principle, for Belgium’s NV Bekaert SA to build a steel fiber factory at the VSIP Qu ả ng Ngãi industrial park in the S ơ n T ị nh district. A report in Viêt Nam News said that the Bekaert Vi ệ t Nam-Dung Qu ấ t steel fiber plant could have total investment capital of over $125 million. Construction should begin in late 2019, and the facility could be in operation in 2021 to produce a range of products for automotive and other industries. The factory’s capacity is expected to be up to 75,000 metric tons a year in braided steel fibers, 2,000 metric tons of steel cords, and 2,000 metric tons of improved braided steel fiber. The project would be the second largest foreign direct investment project in the Qu ả ng Ngãi province, after the Doosan Heavy Vi ệ t Nam Co Ltd project.

Alexander Olesik, press secretary of Belarusian steel mill BMZ, has announced that the company’s 2018 results are up $293 million from the total figure registered in 2017. A shipment of reinforcing bars shipped to BMZ’s trading house in the Baltic states in late December raised the year’s total earnings to $1.5 billion. In January-November 2018, BMZ made 2.24 million tonnes of steel, 1.95 million tonnes of rolled products, 136,500 tonnes of seamless pipes, and 386,600 tonnes of steel wire products (metal cord, bronzed bead wire, wire for high pressure hoses, and steel wire for other applications). BMZ exported about 1.845 million tonnes of merchandise worth over $1.156 billion to 66 countries worldwide, 106.6 percent as against the same period of 2017 in physical terms and 128 percent in monetary terms. BMZ has four enterprises — a steel smelting division, a rolling division, a pipe division, and divisions making hardware items, work tools and implements. The company exports over 80 percent of its output every year.

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ASIA & AFRICA NEWS

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Africa cable moving forward

A consortium of Saudi Telecom, MTN group, Telecom Egypt, Telkom South Africa, PCCW Global and Etisalat has signed a construction and maintenance agreement for Africa-1, a submarine cable system linking South Africa, the Middle East, Pakistan and Europe. The 20,000km system is due to start operations in early 2021. “We believe strongly in the potential success of this project due to the strength of our partners,” said Marc Halbfinger, chief executive officer of PCCW Global. “All are major telecommunications service providers. We view Africa-1 as a natural extension to facilitate the increasing capacity demands of the Asia-Africa trade corridor with better levels of reliability to connect people and business in the world’s fast-growing economies.”

PCCW Global, Saudi Telecom Company (STC), Telecom Egypt and Telkom South Africa entered into a memorandum of understanding to construct the new system. At the time the plan met with reservations. Chris Wood, chief executive officer of African connectivity wholesaler WIOCC, and co-chair of the EASSy consortium, called the project “totally unnecessary”. increasing opportunities arising from the positive socio-economic developments in many African countries,” said Homoud M Alkussayer, vice president and head of wholesale business unit of STC. “We believe that with its effective connectivity with the rest of the world, Africa-1 can become an important enabler and contributor to the economic progress of Africa in the coming years.” However, “Africa is an important emerging marketplace with ever-

News of the cable development was released in 2016 when MTN group,

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New plant overseas

Offshore cable “first”

Image: Admiral Cable

Image: LS Cable

Taiwan-based Admiral Cable is expanding to Santa Teresa, New Mexico, where it expects to create over 340 new manufacturing jobs. The company also plans to invest in building a new facility, and will have access to up to $3.92 million in Local Economic Development Act (LEDA) funds for the expansion. Admiral Cable manufactures assembled electrical cords, power supplies, and industrial cables and wires for the consumer and industrial markets. The New Mexico plant is expected to become operational in early 2020.

South Korean manufacturer LS Cable and System has won a contract to manufacture submarine power cables for the Yunlin offshore wind farm in Taiwan. The company will supply 170km of 66kV cables under the contract, said to be the first secured by a Korean cable maker for the Taiwanese market. The 640MWproject, 8kmoff western Taiwan, is under development by the German wpd group, with Van Oord acting as the preferred contractor. Taiwan plans to build a 5.5GW offshore wind power facility by 2030, at an estimated cost of $23 billion, to increase the country’s renewable energy sources. A submarine power grid of over 2,000km is expected to be necessary. The first phase of the project, scheduled to be finished by 2025, is led by European wind power firms.

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Chinese venture growing

Nigerian network growth

Image: Ibrahim Dikko

Image: Kobe Steel

Nigeria’s Backbone Connectivity Network (BCN), through Fleek Networks Ltd, plans to build approximately 10,000km of broadband fiber optic network, beginning in 2019. The CEO of BCN, Mr Ibrahim Dikko, who spoke during the launch of a free, high- speedpublicWi-Fi hotspot inAbuja, created in partnershipwith Google, said the network is expected to link about 200 points of access across all local government areas in the seven northwestern states of Jigawa, Kaduna, Kano, Katsina, Kebbi, Sokoto and Zamfara. The free Wi-Fi station marked the start of Google’s plan to roll out free Internet services in northern Nigeria. BCN owns and operates a network of over 2,000km of fiber optic broadband cable, including the largest broadband fiber infrastructure in Abuja to serve network broadband carriers, Internet service providers, business enterprises and retail households. Dikko stressed the social impact of the BCN- Google partnership. He said BCN is working with Google to activate more sites in Abuja and the northern region this year.

Kobe Steel and shareholders of Kobe Special Steel Wire Products (KSP) have agreed to increase the production capacity of their Chinese joint venture. The other venture partners are Shinsho, Osaka Seiko, Meihoku Kogyo, Metal One and Kyodo Shaft. KSP was established in 2007 to supply cold heading steel wires to manufacturers of automotive bolts, nuts and bearing products. Full-scale operation began in 2009. Kobe Steel provides 100 percent of the special steel wire rods used by KSP, so the same material is available for parts manufactured in Japan and China. This will be the fifth capacity expansion to help meet the needs of KSP. Around $8 million will be invested in three additional wire drawing machines, making a total of 11, and two additional heating furnaces, bringing the total toeight. Thenew equipment is scheduled to start in March and June 2020, respectively. Production capacity will increase to 5,500 metric tons per month.

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Furthering Iran’s renewables plan

Fiber spread in Egypt

Egypt has revealed plans for a major overhaul of its infrastructure, replacing up to 95 percent of its copper network with fiber by 2020. The deputy spokesperson of the Egyptian government’s communication and IT committee, Ahmed Zidane, said that the committee has filed a complaint with Egypt’s ministry of communication over low Internet speeds in Egypt, with, to date, only 60 percent of copper cables replaced with fiber. In recent years, state-owned Telecom Egypt has worked to replace copper wires with fiber in all Egyptian governorates. The government’s digital transformation strategy aims to connect more people across the country. According to Statista, 43.3 percent of Egypt’s population used the Internet in 2015, and this is expected to grow to around 53 percent in 2019. To meet rising demand, Egypt has opened local fiber manufacturing plants as part of an agreement between Egyptian HitekNofal Solutions and the Chinese Hengtong Group. Liquid Telecom recently announced an agreement with Telecom Egypt to expand its network into Egypt using the latter’s infrastructure.

A senior official has confirmed that Iran will build a 1,000MW solar farm, its largest to date, in Markazi province, central Iran. Saeed Farokhi, the province’s deputy governor general for economic affairs, said the photovoltaic power plant will be constructed near the city of Saveh. According to the official, the equipment and panels required to produce 100MW of electricity have already been imported, and the implementation of the project will begin in the near future. The project has been funded by a UK-based Iranian investor. Renewable ventures are gaining popularity in Iran which, with over 300 days of sunshine throughout the year, has huge potential to expand solar energy infrastructure and attract foreign investments. Iran meets more than 80 percent of its demand for electricity from thermal power plants, run on fossil fuels. Of the daily production capacity of 80,000MW, only 670MW is from renewables. Photo by American Public Power Association on Unsplash

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Taking power to the people

Composite rebar

The University of Southern Queensland recently partnered with Composites Australia to provide Australian civil and composite engineers with a workshop on the use of fiber reinforced polymer (FRP) compositematerials toaddress theproblem of corrosion in concrete infrastructure. Engineers from some of Australia’s major engineering consultant and construction companies were among the 40 delegates representing over 20 organizations and five states who attended the workshop in Brisbane. The use of FRP bars is gaining interest and acceptance as internal reinforcement to concrete structures, particularly in highly aggressive environments where corrosion of steel reinforcing bar is a major problem. The workshop covered recent developments and field applications; specifications and design codes; and design considerations and principles, supplemented with many practical examples and fundamental theories of concrete member behavior. Professor Brahim Benmokrane from the University of Sherbrooke, Canada, who delivered the workshop, explained that corrosion resistance was the main motive and attraction for the choice of FRP over steel bars in public infrastructure.

Photo by amer mohamed on Unsplash

JinkoSolar Holding Co Ltd has announced its partnership with Schneider Electric to donate a 55kW off-grid solar project in Abu Redis, South Sinai, Egypt. The project will serve a remote village called Abu Ghuraqd, which comprises 35 families, a mosque, a school, a small medical center and three farms. The total connected power load includes 15kW residential load and two 25kW irrigation pumps. Before the project, the only electricity source for the village was three 30kW diesel generators that supplied electricity for only eight hours each day. The completed off-grid solar power system covers power load for the village for 20 hours per day, significantly improving the life quality of the residents. Reduced operation time of diesel generators is also helpful for health and environment protection. “We’re pleased to form a strong partnership with Schneider Electric to deliver this meaningful project. At JinkoSolar, we believe that access to energy is a fundamental human right, and this project is directly in line with that,” said Dany Qian, VP of JinkoSolar.

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Products, Machines & Technology

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Securing fasteners Weld Systems Integrators Inc (WSI) is offering its new 12J series capacitor-discharge welding equipment to join fasteners to hot stamped, high boron steel. The welders are designed to deliver high peak currents (175,000+ amps) in 3 milliseconds, resulting in total weld times of below 10 milliseconds. The company says that very short weld times with high welding forces result in consistent, high quality projection welds. These welds exceed push-out and torque requirements without damaging threads or creating an unacceptable heat affected zone. Less than 60 amps, single-phase, and no water cooling make the single- and multi-head welding machines suitable for producing projection welds to hot stamped and press-hardened, high boron steel.

Lighter shielding PolyOne has rebranded its ElectriPlast material technology as Surround™ EMI/RFI shielding formulations. These conductive thermoplastic materials shield sensitive electronics from both electromagnetic interference (EMI) and radio frequency interference (RFI). Surround’s long-fiber material is suitable for advanceddriver assistance systems (ADAS), replacing metal in shielding applications. As automakers continue to add ADAS functionality, more electronic control units, cameras, and sensors are needed for the systems to function. In addition to minimizing crosstalk between electronic components, Surround is up to 60 percent lighter in weight and is easier to process than traditional materials such as aluminum or copper. Injection molding also permits more complex shapes and fewer design constraints than aluminum or copper, all without compromising on dimensional stability of the component during use. The Surround range is durable and non-corrosive in long term use, and is customizable, including pre-coloring, to application needs. Category 6a L-comGlobal Connectivity, amanufacturer of wired and wireless connectivity products, has unveiled a series of plenum-rated,

S S Short weld times with the 12J series from Weld Systems

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category 6a cable assemblies and bulk cable designed for applications that demand strict burn ratings. L-com’s new shielded ethernet cables feature a plenum and FT6-rated jacket that is fire retardant, making them compliant with building codes for in-wall or in-ceiling installations and a suitable alternative to PVC jacketed cables. With shielded RJ45 connectors and a F/UTP aluminized polyester shield with drain wire, these cables provide protection from EMI/RFI and grounding while maintaining data transmission characteristics. The new cables have full 10G ethernet throughput, with 23 AWG solid conductors that terminate into standard IDCconnectors — suitable for PoE applications and longer cable runs. The category 6a cables are designed for applications such as network cabling for plenum or riser spaces and general use, high speed data centers and processing networks, storage area networks and metropolitan area networks.

structures, SES-PD-027. The specification covers the minimum requirements for the design, drawings, material, fabrication, welding, coating, inspection and delivery of tubular steel pole structures. The rivet nuts exceed application performance and safety requirements including maximum retention in fiberglass material and increased spin-out resistance. The rivet nut is also expected to serve other industries including automotive, heavy equipment, rail and HVAC. EFC is a strategic partner into these industries for Sherex.

S S Sherex Fastening Solution’s large size rivet nuts for use in steel utility poles

Sherex large size rivet nuts eliminate the welding process and reduce the number of installation components. They also allow for safer, one-handed installation of the step bolts in the field. “This is a significant cost saving for pole and tower manufacturers and we are excited to bring this product to the market,” said Paul Musgrove, industrial and distribution sales manager.

Fastener secures approval

EFC International, a supplier of engineered fasteners, has announced the approval of Sherex Fastening Solution’s large size rivet nuts for use in steel utility poles. The approval is in accordance with the specification for tubular steel pole transmission line

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High-powered partnership

“For Huber+Suhner, the JMA Wireless DC power up-converter family, with its modularity and high-density features, is a perfect complement to our modular Masterline hybrid trunk cable portfolio,” said Patrik Schönenberger, head of business unit fiber connectivity outdoor at Huber+Suhner AG. Huber+Suhner’s HD 12×24 low-inductance hybrid cable offers optimization for dual- band high-powered radios and 12-OVP installations. AFL has introduced high fiber-count indoor/ outdoor plenum (OFNP) tight buffered cables. Suited to campus environments, the helically stranded design is available with 36 to 72 fibers. The cables’ sub-units and outer sheath contain a UV stabilizer and anti-fungus protection, making them equally suited to outdoor applications. The OFNP cable features water-blocked sub-units that meet the water penetration requirements of GR-20-core to help ensure that any damage to the cable is restricted to a repairable length of a few meters. The outer jacket is moisture resistant, fungus resistant and UV resistant, and can be used in all environments including riser, and general inside and outside plant. High count anywhere cable

JMA Wireless, a developer of wireless communications solutions, has partnered with Huber+Suhner to provide an economical hybrid power-plus-fiber cell site cabling solution. Carriers deploying dual band, 4X4 MIMO (multiple input, multiple output), high- powered remote radio heads at macro sites require greater DC power, compared to traditional low-power radios. Due to voltage drops, the current hybrid power/fiber cable infrastructure cannot support high-power radios at distances over 200 feet. The voltage drop issue is alleviated with PowerBoost, an inline voltage up-converter solution from JMA Wireless. Combined with the Huber+Suhner high density 12x24 hybrid power/fiber cable, carriers can now power up to 12 dual/single band remote radio heads with a single hybrid cable at distances of up to 600 feet. “The industry’s smallest voltage up- converter, PowerBoost from JMA Wireless, pairs naturally with the Huber+Suhner high-density hybrid cable,” said Shawn Chawgo, vice president of product line management – transmission systems at JMA Wireless. “This combination offers our customers the smallest and least expensive solution for their 4G and 5G high-power radio deployments.”

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