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wiredIn USA Digital . Networking . Monthly .

October 2014 issue - No 40

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Belden on target at new Abu Dhabi stadium p9

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wiredInUSA - October 2014 Visit us at IWCS, November 9-12, Booth 106

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Belden have turned in a match-winning performance with its copper and fiber optic cables being used to provide the infrastructure at the newly completed Hazza Bin Zayed stadium in Abu Dhabi. The company's cables have been used for the 25,000-seater stadium's 85 screens – including its 40m 2 stadium screen – audio system, dedicated media center, press conference room, outside broadcast units and for over 30 camera locations for television broadcasting. You can catch all the details on page 9. There's also good news on the solar power front with construction starting on the $1 billion Silver State South power plant in the Mojave Desert, Nevada. The 250MW project, due for completion in 2016, features arrays on nearly four square miles of federal land in Las Vegas. For the full story, see page 16. David Bell Editor #40 EDITOR

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wiredInUSA - October 2014

CONTENT News Editor David Bell

david@wiredinusa.com Features Editor (USA) Dorothy Fabian Features Editor (Europe) Gill Watson Editorial assistant Christian Bradley Design Hélène Phillips

OCTOBER 2014 issue

#40

helene@wiredinusa.com - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Sales & Marketing (International ) Jason Smith jason@wiredinusa.com +44 1926 834 684 - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - Advertisement Coordinator Liz Hughes Accounts Manager

Julie Case Publisher Caroline Sullens - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - INTRAS OFFICES Europe:

46 Holly Walk, Leamington Spa Warwickshire CV32 4HY, UK

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wiredInUSA - October 2014

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INDEX

06 Show Diary 2014, 2015 and 2016

09 Making the News Industry news from the USA

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32 Industry Trade Association Spotlight on awards, education and events 34 Asia & Africa News The latest news from Asia & Africa 26 Europe News The latest news from Europe

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Products, Machines and Technology The latest news from machine industries

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DIARY SHOW EVENTS

2014

April 28-30 April: Interwire 2015 Atlanta, Georgia, USA Exhibition www.wirenet.org MAY 12-15 May: wire Russia Moscow, Russia Exhibition www.wire-russia.com

OCTOBER 28-30 October: wire India Mumbai, India Exhibition www.wire-india.com

NOVEMBER 9-12 November: IWCS Rhode Island, USA Conference and table top exhibition www.iwcs.org 2015 JANUARY 10-13 January: Wire and Cable Arabia, Dubai, UAE Exhibition www.wirecablearabia.com

SEPTEMBER 15-17 September: wire Southeast Asia Bangkok, Thailand Exhibition www.wire-southeastasia.com OCTOBER 6-8 October: wire South America São Paulo, Brazil Exhibition www.wire-south-america.com 2016 APRIL 4-8 April: wire Düsseldorf Düsseldorf, Germany Exhibition www.wire.de

MARCH 23-27 March: NPE2015 Orlando, Florida, USA Exhibition www.npe.org

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OPTICAL FIBRES Measurement Instruments In line data collection, display, record and report

Measure & Control Instruments

CIM PC software:

LIS-Glass:

Laser Interferometric Sensor

 Diameter repeatability: ±0.005µm at 50kHz  Diameter uncertainty: ±0.15µm  Defect detection 75kHz , event recording  Ultra fine air line detection, 0.3µm, 400Hz  Fibre position: ±2mm range ±0.1mm , 1kHz  Spinning frequency profile  Fibre no circularity measurement Non Contact Tension Measurement (Drawing force Birefringence principle)

NCTM:

 0-400 grams ±1gram, 1kHz  Measurement field: 4mm Ø ± 1 gr within 10-40°C ambient Coating Monitor 5 axes

CM5:

 Absolute diameter: ±0.2µm, 400Hz  XY Positions ±0.1mm 1kHz  5 axes Lump & Neck: ±2µm, 3.6MHz sampling  Coating asymmetry: 30Hz  Internal defect detection: 800kHz (Airlines, bubbles, inclusions, delaminations…) AIR (AIRline detector) LDS-T (Laser Diffraction Sensor for transparent product) www.CERSA-MCI.com

Others:

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MAKING THENEWS Cable company’s stadium gig

Abu Dhabi’s recently completed 45,000m 2 Hazza Bin Zayed stadium has made extensive use of Belden copper and fiber cables. The Belden brand cabling infrastructure will support 85 screens, including a 40m 2 stadium screen, a sophisticated audio system, dedicated media center, press conference room, outside broadcast units and over 30 camera locations for television broadcasting. The 25,000-seat stadium demands video and audio transmission in compliance with all requirements of Society of Motion Picture and Television Engineers (SMPTE) standards, including cables to interconnect professional high-definition Sony video cameras, transmit high

definition broadcasting signals, collect data from outside broadcast vans and deliver crisp, clear sound throughout the stadium. One of the region’s systems integrators, Al-Futtaim Technologies, selected Belden’s Pro Broadcast solutions with the result that the Hazza Bin Zayed project was completed in a record time of just 17 months, and is equal to the highest international standards. The stadium is the first in the Middle East to have a parasol roof to fully shade all spectators, and features an outer shell of 600 fabric panels with independently controlled LED lights.

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wiredInUSA - October 2014

Cables catch the tide

Power cables to support Nova Scotia’s tidal energy project will be laid in theMinas Passage this fall. Matthew Lumley, spokesman for the Fundy Ocean Research Center for Energy, said: “Once those cables are laid, any turbine maker, anywhere in the world,

can come and plug their device into that cable end and deliver power.” The four cables range from two to three kilometers in length.

The 15cm diameter cables have two protective layers of galvanized steel armor for protection, and contain three copper cords to conduct the electrical power, plus copper control cables to allow turbine operators to move and adjust their equipment. Data will be transmitted from machine to shore along 24 fiber optic cables. Workersarecurrently installing‘drymate’connectors totheunderwater cables to protect the ends of the unused cables until the new test turbines are connected. Anunderwaterplatformwillbemountedtotheseabedandconnected to a 3km subsea data cable. The platform, which contains equipment that will allow researchers to measure conditions in the Minas Passage in real time, is expected to be in place by the end of 2014. After the power cables and subsea platform are installed, the group will move to Phase 2 of the sensor program with a larger, more robust and recoverable version of the platform that can be used in other parts of the Bay of Fundy.

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The

Communications

Cable

and

Connectivity (CCCA) believes that manufacture and sales of substandard communications cables are on the increase, and becoming more varied. Frank Peri, CCCA executive director, said: “These suppliers promote and advertise CMR or CMP cables that bear counterfeit certification marks or have no listing or verification marks from independent third party testing laboratories.” Recent cases include the IT coordinator for an elementary school who unknowingly purchased copper clad aluminum Association

Close encounter of the fraud kind

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(CCA) communications cable without a legitimate CMP fire safety listing. The manufacturer did not have authorization touse the listingmark froman independent testing agency, clearly displayed on the distributor website. During testing the buyer found the conductors brittle, and his investigations through the CCCA brought the fire hazard to light. “I did not want to be the installer who burned down a school because I installed CCA cable. The day after I found out about the fire hazard risk, I immediately disconnected all the PoE connections and began to remove cable,” he said.

The cable’s jacketing was shown to have minimal fire retardant and smoke suppressant properties, and to include insulation materials not suitable for installation in buildings. Although the cables were marked as plenum (CMP) compliant and made with copper clad aluminum, the material analysis predicted catastrophic failure in the NFPA 262 plenum cable fire test, in violation of NEC fire safety requirements. CCCA emphasizes that copper clad aluminum is perfectly acceptable in certain coaxial cables and should not be singledout as aclass or typeof conductors to be avoided for other cable designs.

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Nevada projects

Three companies will build 480MW of photovoltaic solar projects in southern Nevada, close to transmission lines connecting California with Arizona. In June 2014 the Bureau of Land Management named the three companies as winners in an auction for solar developers to build projects in the Dry Lake solar zone, about 15 miles north of Las Vegas. First Solar is planning a 200MW project, Invenergy will build a 130MW project, and Las Vegas utility NV Energy has plans for a 150MW project. The Dry Lake zone includes two transmission corridors with

natural gas, petroleum product and electric transmission lines, includinga 500kV transmission line. First Solar is already working on the 250MW Silver State South solar project near Primm, Nevada, sold in May to NextEra Energy Resources. Power from the facility will be sold to Southern California Edison under a 20-year contract. Also in southern Nevada, First Solar is building the 250MW Moapa Southern Paiute project to provide power to the Los Angeles department of power.

wiredInUSA - October 2014 ir I - t r

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W I RE & CABL E MAK I NG MACH I NERY P LANT OPERAT I ONS SESS I ONS S P E A K I N G O P P O R T U N I T I E S

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A l s o w i t h W A I ’ s 2 n d G l o b a l C o n t i n u o u s C a s t i n g F o r u m

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Second Silver State plant

Construction has begun on the $1billion Silver State South solar power plant in the Mojave Desert, Nevada. The 250MW project is due to be completed in 2016. A First Solar representative explained that the project, which features arrays on nearly four square miles of federal land in Las Vegas, is being developed by First Solar adjacent to the smaller 50MW Silver State North project near Primm. Owned by Canada-based Enbridge,

the Silver State North project sells power to NV Energy for use in the Las Vegas area. A NextEra subsidiary will own the Silver State South plant, which will provide power to Southern California Edison as part of a long-term contract. NextEra president and CEO Armando Pimentel said: “Renewable energy sources such as solar power play an important role in the future energy mix in this country.”

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US drops some duties, ups others

The US commerce department has dropped a preliminary decision to impose anti-dumping duties on steel rebar imports from Turkey. US rebar producers have described the move as “shocking” because they believed they had a strong case. The ruling reverses a preliminary decision in April that would have imposed duties of up to 2.6 percent on the country’s imports of rebar. “We are shocked that the commerce department failed to find dumping against Turkish rebar companies,” the Rebar Trade Action Coalition said in a statement. The coalition is made up of Nucor Corp, Byer Steel, Cascade Steel, Commercial Metals Co and Gerdau Long Products North America. In another announcement the commerce department confirmed that duties of up to 66.7 percent will be imposed on Mexican material. Duties of 66.7 percent will be imposed on Grupo Acerero SA de CV and Grupo Simec, with a duty of 20.58 percent for all other producers and exporters. Deacero chief executive Raul Gutierrez said the duties will have a “big impact” on Mexican manufacturers and US consumers, who will no longer have a high quality alternative to US-produced rebar.

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PMSS America Inc, the US division of renewable energy consulting firm TÜV SÜD PMSS, has announced the appointment of Doug Pfeister to the role of senior vice president. Doug moved into the company in September, and will work alongside a growing team in the New York offices. He joins TÜV SÜD PMSS from the Offshore Wind Development Coalition (OffshoreWindDC), where, as acting president, he worked to promote offshore wind development by representing the interests of developers and firms working throughout the growing supply chain. Previously he worked for offshore wind developer NRG Bluewater Wind, leading siting and permitting across the company and helping to negotiate the first offshore wind power purchase agreement in Delaware. An advocate of progressive offshore wind policies, he successfully lobbied, along with other offshore wind proponents, for the New Jersey offshore wind development act of 2010, a highly influential state law that has supported the establishment and growth of US offshore wind to date. “Doug is a highly driven individual and a staunch advocate of offshore wind in the United States,” said Sebastian Chivers, a director and head of the North America business. “His experience and regulatory knowledge…will be an invaluable asset to TÜV SÜD PMSS as we look to support the growth of a domestic industry and strengthen our local capabilities for our clients.” New appointment at consulting firm

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PV panels hit the roof “Dominion has been an outstanding corporate partner to Virginia Union University for many years,” said Dr Claude G Perkins, president and CEO of Virginia Union. “We are excited to take part in the solar partnership program and look forward to additional opportunities to advance the university's sustainability efforts.” Electricity generated from the solar panels will flow to the electric grid for use by Dominion Virginia Power customers. Dominion’s Solar Partnership Program is authorized toconstruct andoperateup to 30MW of company-owned solar facilities on leased rooftops or on the grounds of commercial businesses and public properties throughout the company’s service area. When fully implemented, the programwill generate enough power for up to 7,500 homes.

Dominion Virginia Power has installed 240 photovoltaic panels on the rooftop of Virginia Union University’s Thomas H Henderson Center. The system will generate around 70kW of electricity. “Dominion Virginia Power is making important strides in the solar energy arena,” said Ken Barker, vice president of customer solutions. “Businesses and educational institutions in the state, such as Virginia Union University, have shown they are as dedicated to the development of renewable energy as we are. We are thankful for their support and enthusiasm.” The installation at Virginia Union University is considered a demonstration site under Dominion’s solar partnership program. Demonstration sites are strategically selected locations that offer community benefits by providing opportunities for customer outreach and education of solar technologies.

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In print On-line CD Rom Apps

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Leading magazines for the wire industries www.read-eurowire.com / www.read-wca.com

46 Holly Walk, Leamington Spa, Warwickshire CV32 4HY, UK INTERNATIONAL SALES: Tel: +44 (0)1926 334137 eurowire@intras.co.uk / wca@intras.co.uk

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Colorado in Alaska

most of its energy from the Chugach Electric Association in Anchorage. Colorado Wire & Cable supplied its Okonite products to power the 48MW LM 6000 Soldotna turbine, one of two plants used as a backup power source. Colorado Wire and Cable supplied the products to the NAES Corporation, a contractor which worked directly with HEA on the Soldotna project. Based in Denver, Colorado Wire & Cable frequently works within the power and utility industry to provide electrical wire and cable for various types of power plants, including those powered by nuclear, hydro, solar and wind energy.

Alaskan electrical company Homer Electric Association has announced the completion of its new power plant, using wire and cable products supplied by Colorado Wire & Cable. The Soldotna Combustion Turbine is part of HEA’s $180 million Independent Light project, under which the company aims to produce all of its own power, increasing output while decreasing its reliance on fossil fuels. Until the end of 2013 the company, which serves the lower Kenai Peninsula in Alaska, purchased

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Canadian Solar's a manufacturer of solar photovoltaic modules, and Sichuan Development Investment Management have signed an agreement to launch an investment fund to finance the development, construction and ownership of solar power generation projects in China. Sichuan Development, Canadian Solar and third party investors plan to raise a total of $800m. With over $3.7 billion of assets under management, Sichuan Development is expected to provide support to facilitate the project development and financing to the fund. Chinese solar partnership

Canadian Solar chief executive officer and chairman, Dr Shawn Qu, said: “Our partnership with Sichuan Development to develop, build and own solar power plants is an important milestone for Canadian Solar. “This partnership will leverage Canadian Solar’s proven track record in developing and building solar power plants on a global basis, with Sichuan Development financial strength and credibility, to create an industry leader well positioned to participate in the expected growth in the adoption of solar energy in China. “While we expect to cover the whole country, this fund will focus particularly on utility-scale and distributed generation solar projects in Sichuan Province, China and other solar resourceful regions in the country.”

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Wire rod joint venture

A joint venture between Shinsho Corporation, Kobe Steel, Metal One Corporation, Osaka Seiko Ltd, Grupo Simec and O&K American Corporation has been established to produce cold heading steel wire. The new venture, Kobelco CH Wire Mexicana, SA de CV (or KCHM), will process steel wire rod into cold heading steel wire for sale to automotive parts and fasteners manufacturers in Mexico. KCHM will be headquartered in Guanajuato, Mexico, and headed by president Mitsufumi Konishi from the

Shinsho Corporation. Total investment is anticipated to reach around $41 million with Shinsho the major shareholder. Operations at the plant, which will have wire drawing machines, pickling equipment and heat treatment furnaces, are due to begin at the end of 2015. Demand for cold heading steel wire is likely to increase in the coming years as many Japanese parts manufacturers establish operations in Mexico. There is expected to be a growing need for local sourcing of the material.

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Titania research Research from North Carolina State University indicates that a type of modified titania, or titanium dioxide, has potential as an electrical insulator for superconducting magnets, allowing heat to dissipate while preserving the electrical paths along which the current flows. According to NCSU, superconducting magnets are being investigated for use in next-generation power generating technologies and medical devices. “Superconductingmagnetsneed electrical insulators to ensure proper operation,” said Dr Sasha Ishmael, a postdoctoral researcher at NC State and lead author of a paper describing the work. “Changing the current inside the superconductor is important for many applications, but this change generates heat internally. The magnets will operate much more safely if the electrical insulators are able to shed any excess heat. Otherwise, the

higher temperatures could destroy the superconductor.

“This titania-basedmaterial is up to 20 times better at conducting heat than comparable electrical insulators,” Dr Ishmael said in a statement. “It has characteristics that are verypromisingforuseaselectricalinsulators for superconducting technologies.” The precise chemical composition of the modified titania is proprietary information The material’s development and characterisation was a joint effort between NC State and nGimat LLC, based in Lexington, Kentucky. The researchgroup’s findings arepublished in a paper. “Thermal conductivity and dielectric properties of a TiO 2 -based electrical insulator for use with high temperature superconductor-based magnets” is available online in the journal Superconductor Science and Technology.

Fenn at WIRE AND CABLE INDIA Fenn, LLCwill exhibit atWire&Cable India in Mumbai, as part of the North American pavilion, on booth 1/F32.

Its extensive product line is used in both the ferrous and non-ferrous industries and includes rolling mills, complete wire flattening and shaping lines, power and non-driven turks heads, single and double capstans, drawbenches, swaging machines, swager feed units and Torin ® CNC camless spring coilers.

Established over 100 years ago, Fenn is a global supplier of metal forming machinery, and has a reputation built on decades of engineering and machine building experience.

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EUROPE NEWS

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Greek power extension Greek electricity grid operator ADMIE, fully ownedbyPPC, thecountry’s biggest power producer, has contracted with foreign and domestic companies to connect the Greek islands with the mainland grid. The $310.39 million project will see Alstom, ABB, Prysmian and Athens-based Hellenic Cables build subsea power cables to connect the islands. ADMIE runs approximately 11,000km of high-voltagepower linesacross thecountry. Most Greek islands currently lack links to the mainland grid and depend on oil-fired power stations to provide electricity. “We will save 100 million euros ($129.31 million) a year by linking the Cyclades islands,” deputy environment minister

Makis Papageorgiou said in a statement. “We are also shielding one of the most dynamic sectors of our economy (tourism) because this project will put an end to possible power blackouts at our country's main tourist destinations,” he added. The project is expected to be completed within two years. PPC is selling a 66 percent stake in ADMIE, for which Belgian power grid operator Elia, State Grid Corporation of China, Italian grid operator Terna and Canadian pension fund PSP Investments have been shortlisted to bid. Athens hopes the eventual buyer will invest in extending its grid to several islands, and to lay new connections to neighboring countries.

EUROPE NEWS

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Denis O'Brien , Digicel chairman

Death of distance?

Wire work win

JDR will supply over 95km of copper core inter-array cable and accessories for the 402MW Dudgeon offshore wind farm in the east of England. Manufacturing will take place at the company’s UK bases in Cambridgeshire and Hartlepool. Two JDR-designed inter-array cables, a 185mm 2 copper conductor cable and a 500mm 2 copper conductor cable, will be supplied in two continuous lengths. The lines will be XLPE insulated and type tested to IEC 60502-2 and CIGRE standards. JDR will also supply pulling grips, hang-offs, connectors, fiber optic patch panels, cable cleats, three-month abandonment kits and subsea repair joints. Dudgeon, under development by Statoil and Statkraft, is located 32km off the north Norfolk coast in water depths of between 18 and 25 meters. Construction is scheduled to start in 2015.

The Irish Times has reported Denis O’Brien’s address to the United Nations’ small islands developing states conference in Samoa. Technology was among the Digicel chairman’s themes in his speech to an audience that included Ban Ki-Moon, the UN’s secretary general, and Rachel Kyte, vice-president of the World Bank. Mr O’Brien called for a public-private partnership to build a high-grade undersea telecommunications cable from Papua New Guinea, across the Pacific Ocean to Sydney. He suggested the cable could connect a long line of Pacific island nation states, such as Fiji and the Solomon Islands, to deliver high speed broadband with the potential to transform their economies. “This cable would lead to the death of distance, and bring this last geographic frontier into the global information age,” said Mr O’Brien. “It would become vital to the national economies of these islands,” and give companies in the region, such as Digicel, the facility to sell high-bandwidth fixed-line services. He also said that struggling Caribbean economies should receive debt relief in exchange for economic reforms, following the model of the IMF-World Bank African HIPC (heavily indebted poor countries).

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Christof Barklage , CEO of Nexans Deutschland

DNV GL presented its recommended practice at CIGRE. “Qualification procedure for offshore high-voltage direct current (HVDC) technologies” features technical input from Europacable, which has warmly welcomed its publication. As offshore wind farms are built further from the coast, and more offshore oil and gas installations are electrified from shore, there will be an increasing need for long distance underwater power transmission. This recommended practice (RP) specifies a procedure for technology qualification that can be used to prove that offshore HVDC transmission technologies are suitable for their intended use. The Recommended Practice can be accessed from the Europacable website. Recommended practice

Array agreement

Nexans has signed an agreement with DONG Energy of Denmark for the delivery of up to 1,750km of submarine cables for wind farms off the British coast. The cables will be used to connect turbines together and to the offshore transformer platforms. The framework agreement runs until the end of 2020 with a two-year extension option and the option to include the delivery and installation of cable accessories. DONG Energy has already equipped a number of large-scale wind farms with Nexans cables, including West of Duddon Sands and Westermost Rough in the UK and Borkum Riffgrund and Gode Wind 1-2 in Germany. “Concluding an agreement of this magnitude provides a solid basis for the growth of our offshore cable business here in our Hanover plant,” said Christof Barklage, CEO of Nexans Deutschland, commenting on the significance of the contract.

EUROPE NEWS

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Finnish power improvements

Mooring cables, at length

Eltel and Caruna have signed a frame agreement on improving the operational reliability of power distribution networks in the southwestern areas of Finland. The improvements on the medium and low voltage networks will be carried out during the next three years. The frame agreement consists of several separate network improvement projects. Many of the overhead power lines will be replaced with underground cables. In addition to cabling, existing poles will be changed, more automation will be added, and hundreds of transformer stations will be installed. The agreement is based on a turnkey principle with Eltel taking responsibility from project planning to completion. “The agreement is a good example [of] how the infrastructure markets are changing. Our works are more and more larger cabling projects. The agreement is also a great proof of Caruna’s trust in Eltel’s competences in project management and underground cabling, and it is very important for us,” commented Juha Luusua, managing director of Eltel in Finland and president of Eltel Power distribution business.

Bridon has received a contract from Samsung Heavy Industries, in South Korea, to supply the floating, production, storage and offloading mooring cables for the Egina oil field. The cables are scheduled for delivery in August 2015. The Egina field, located 150km off the coast of Nigeria, is under development by Total Upstream Nigeria in partnership with CNOOC, Sapetro and Petrobras and is Total’s third deep offshore development in Nigeria. Completion is scheduled for the end of 2017. Located 20km from the existing Akpo field, the Egina field covers an area of around 500m 2 with a water depth of up to 1,750m. Bridon will be supplying 17 lengths of 116mm sheathed spiral strand with a finished diameter of 138mm. Each length is to be fitted with a forged closed socket delivering a total length of 2,220m. With a minimum breaking load of 13,900kN and a design life of 25 years, each complete reel will weigh 185 tonnes. This will be the longest mooring cable Bridon has manufactured since BP Thunderhorse in 2002, and also represents the largest tonnage of spiral strand produced for a single project at around 2,800 tonnes.

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Peder Østermark Andreasen , CEO of energinet.dk

Towering success for cables

Going Dutch on Danish

Prysmian’s FP200 Gold and FP Plus have been installed as part of the emergency building service systems in East London’s Aldgate Tower. Designed by Wilkinson Eyre Architects, the steel frame structure relies on a central steel core and offers 16 stories of office space with panoramic views of the city of London. Over 50km of Prysmian’s FP200 Gold fire resistant cable and its enhanced FP Plus cable have been specified and installed to facilitate the fire alarm and emergency lighting circuits within the building. With a high volume of people expected to use the building, it is imperative the safety measures are as effective and robust as possible. Electrical contractors Firetex installed the cables into the tower, and company owner Andrej Rocko said: “It’s the only cable we can trust 100 percent, I’ve used Prysmian since starting the business in 2008 and it’s never let us down. Prysmian was specified by the project engineers Protec for its technical performance. It is a sound choice as its unique dressable construction makes for easy installation as well as being a financially viable option.”

The Dutch transmission system operator TenneT and its Danish counterpart, Energinet.dk. have approved the development of COBRAcable, a new 300km subsea interconnector between the Dutch and Danish power grids. The HVDC cable will have a transmission capacity of approximately 700MW, and will run from Eemshaven in the Netherlands to Endrup in Denmark. A key role of the COBRAcable project, developed jointly by the two operators, is to allow for the integration of more renewable wind energy into the Dutch electricity system. “The COBRAcable is good news for the European electricity market. The connection will improve competition in north-western Europe, and societywill benefit from it. It will also improve security of supply in both Denmark and the Netherlands, to the benefit of consumers and industry,” said Peder Østermark Andreasen, CEO of energinet.dk. The project is supported by subsidies under the European Energy Programme for Recovery (EEPR). TenneT and Energinet.dk are now working on securing the required permits and putting the project out to tender. Contracts are expected to be awarded in late 2015.

EUROPE NEWS

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India

Improved show services for members The world’s largest corporate membership association for the wire and cable industry – the International Wire and Machinery Association – will be providing a host of hospitality services for its members and their clients to use at Wire & Cable India 2014. With a larger stand than in previous years, more centrally positioned for the convenience of members, the IWMA continues to be a valued industry partner of ‘wire’. Wire & Cable India 2014 at which will take place at the Bombay Convention & Exhibition Centre in Mumbai from 28 th to 30 th October, the IWMA will offer improved services to members such as hospitality facilities, meeting and office space, translation services, Internet facilities and general exhibition advice and assistance. In fact the IWMA stand at all regional wire shows will mirror the quality and range of services that are provided at the Düsseldorf show, the largest in the industry, and provide greater visibility for the association and its members alike, whilst continuing to provide the highest level of support and expertise that everyone has come to expect. Shell scheme stand application packs for this prestigious wire and cable exhibition are available upon request from the IWMA office. Once completed, they should be returned to the IWMA or forwarded directly to Messe Düsseldorf, which will then confirm your company stand allocation. If your company wishes to exhibit at this well-established exhibition, then please contact the IWMA office for an application pack. We would be delighted to help.

India Wire & Cable Industry Key Facts The overall conditions for the exhibition are very positive. The main customers for the wire and cable industry are the automotive, telecommunication and construction industries, with all these industries having witnessed a rapid expansion and growth of around 25 percent in India. The government of India has begun to focus primarily onpublicprivatepartnerships withmajor infrastructure projects. With an investment need of about $450 billion, infrastructure construction is the growth engine for the construction industry, especially for the development of the transport sector. As per the details provided in the Automotive Mission Plan 2006-2016, the Indian government is geared up to double the automobile industry's contribution to the country's GDP by 2016 and furthermore intends to create 25 million new jobs. The telecommunications market in India is the third largest in the world and the fastest growing. This growth is being witnessed in the wireless and telephony sectors. Furthermore, in the Internet sector, the government is trying to provide the rural regions of India with broadband connections.

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CabWire 2015 world technical conference – a date for your diary!

There will also be an event at a downtown Düsseldorf location on the Tuesday evening where delegates will get the chance to network and socialise. If you would like to be involved by presenting a paper at this exciting event, then please forward by email a short abstract of no more than 50 words to the IWMA office at info@iwma.org There are also a variety of promotional opportunities available, such as sponsorship and table top displays. Similarly, if you are interested in attending as a delegate and would like to be kept up to date with conference developments then please get in touch.

The IWMA is delighted to announce that the 7 th biennial CabWire world cable and wire technical conference will take place on Tuesday, 3 rd November 2015 in Düsseldorf, Germany, home of the wire industry. The conference will be held at the Congress Center, and is already attracting interest following the successful CabWire conference which was held at the Palazzo Turati, Milan, in November last year, and attracted 200 wire and cable professionals from all over the world. Preparations are well under way with Dr Probst, retiring CEO of Leoni AG, committed as a keynote speaker, and Arcelor/Mittal preparing to host a visit for delegates to its rod mill in Duisburg on Wednesday, 4 th November.

www.iwma.org Remember to follow the IWMA LinkedIn page to ensure you are kept up to date with all activities, whether it is announcements about exhibitions, conferences and events or the educational trust, as well as member news. Follow us. . .

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ASIA AFRICA NEWS &

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High-speed education

puts Singapore on a par with similar grids in the United States and Europe. Slix makes it possible for resource-intensive research to be carried out collaboratively by researchers in Singapore and in the United States or Europe, helping to further Singapore’s ambition to be a global research hub. Leong Mun Yuen, chief technology officer at the Infocomm development authority, said ultra-fast research grids such as Slix will enhance the roll-out of high-tech applications and services, such as remote patient monitoring, automated traffic and illegal parking monitoring.

File sharing and video streaming for 80,000 students and staff at the National University of Singapore (NUS), Nanyang Technological University (NTU) and 5,000 researchers at the Agency for Science, Technology and Research will be faster since the launch of a new fiber optic network. The new national education and research grid has been named the SingAren-Lightwave Internet Exchange (Slix). The 100Gbps network, the fastest in Asia, is 100 times the maximum speed of fiber broadband available in homes. It is the result of investment by the Singapore advanced research and education network (SingAren) and the National Research Foundation, and

ASIA / AFRICA NEWS

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Hydro re-fit

Into Africa

The board of directors of Mainstream Energy Solutions Ltd has approved a capacity recovery plan (CRP) for the rehabilitation of the Kainji and Jebba hydropower plants in Nigeria (with a total installed capacity of 1.3GW) as prepared by RusHydro International AG, a subsidiary of RusHydro. The next move for RusHydro International will be to assist Mainstream Energy Solutions to prepare tender documentation and begin procurement procedures for the supply of equipment, construction, and assembly work. The Kainji and Jebba plants are located on theNiger river,andhaveinstalledcapacities of 750MW and 578MW, respectively. The currently available capacity of the plants is substantially below the installed capacity. The concession conditions provide for rehabilitation and modernization of the power plants, and to bring their capacity back up to the design level.

Liquid Telecom, majority owned by Econet Wireless Global, is planning to spend $200 million over the next year, expanding its network across the African countries where it operates. Reuters reports that Liquid Telecom is constructing a fiber optic network across southern Africa to cover Botswana, democratic republic of Congo, Lesotho, South Africa, Zambia and Zimbabwe. The company also has a presence in Rwanda, Kenya and Uganda and already has 17,000km of fiber optic cables in southern and eastern Africa. Ben Roberts, Liquid Telecom Kenya CEO, told reporters that the company has raised around $200 million in financing, and plans to invest it all in Africa. The company has spent $20 million in Kenya since March 2013, and “has another $30 million to go,” Mr Roberts said.

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Dorit Davidovich-Banet , CEO of the Eilat-Eilot renewable energy initiative

Wire cuts

Solar tender

Citing the pressures of cheap imports as a primary cause, OneSteel Wire at Jindera will be making an unspecified number of job cuts. The company will be looking to source gates, rather than making them on site. A spokesman for OneSteel Wire said he could not confirm how many workers would be affected by changes at the business, or when they would happen, but the decision to cut jobs was necessary to keep the business running. “We’ve been going through a program of integrating our steel business from two businesses – manufacturing and distribution – into a single steel business,” he said. “But we also look at where the growth areas are. Businesses are opened up and closed based on demand in different areas; that’s what happens when you run a national operation.” The factory will continue to manufacture other goods including silos, rural fencing and accessories and other farming products. The company manufactures and distributes a wide range of steel products including hot rolled structural sections, rail, rod, bar, wire and structural pipe and RHS products, and distributes sheet and coil, plate and aluminum products.

Israel’s Eilat-Eilot renewable energy initiative will issue a tender to set up and operate the Timna Solar Park, a new 50MW PV tracker solar energy field in southern Israel. The new solar park will be located on a 247-acre plot of land adjacent to the site of the former Timnamines, approximately 28km north of Eilat. The tender will be open only to PV tracker solar systems and the cost of the bid will cover only the acquisition of the land. The tariff per installed kilowatt has already been determined by the government of Israel, according to regulations established in 2012 for solar energy harvested by PV systems. “We are very proud to announce this tender for the Timna Solar Park and significantly expand the amount of solar energy produced in the Arava and Eilat regions, which currently stands at 65 megawatts,” explained Dorit Davidovich-Banet, CEO of the Eilat-Eilot renewable energy initiative and chairperson of the Eilat-Eilot green energy conference.

ASIA / AFRICA NEWS

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Fastener exports increase

Fish pond power

Data from Japan’s ministry of finance indicates that Japan’s fastener exports rose 5.4 percent in volume during July, a year-on-year increase to 30,552 tons, and up 10.5 percent from the previous month. Export value totaled 26,083.4 million yen, up 5 percent year-on-year, and up 10.4 percent over June. During July, the main consumers of Japan’s fasteners were mainland China, the US and Thailand. Japan’s fastener imports declined one percent in volume, year-on-year, to 22,825 tons, but were up 15.2 percent compared with June. Import value increased 0.3 percent year-on-year to 8,437.6 million yen, and up 9.8 percent over the last month. The main exporters of fasteners to Japan were mainland China, Taiwan and the US.

A new 100MW solar PV power plant in Xiangshui, Jiangsu province, China, has been connected to the grid. The new connection brings the total of solar PV power projects owned by JinkoSolar Holding Co Ltd to over 300MW. The project has been built on top of a 2,000,000m 2 fish pond, located in the coastal economic development zone in Xiangshui, Yancheng City. It is among the largest solar PV projects connected to the grid in Jiangsu Province and has the highest boosting level in China. “The Xiangshui project is a landmark ground-mounted solar PV project in eastern China with its efficient use of land and combination of fish farming and solar power generation, which is in line with the national energy administration's new policy,” said Mr Xiande Li, chairman of JinkoSolar. “The government continues to promote favorable policies and subsidies which we believe will create numerous new opportunities during the second half of 2014. Our strong financial position, rich project development experience and high quality pipeline will ensure that we achieve our full year project development target as we work to increase shareholder value.”

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Kane Thornton , Chief executive at Clean Energy Council

Floating solar

Australians support renewables

Kyocera Corporation, Century Tokyo Leasing Corporation and Ciel et Terre International have announced plans to begin construction on what is believed to be the world’s largest floating solar installation. Terms of the deal call for Kyocera TCL Solar LLC to develop and operate utility-scale floating solar power plants utilizing Ciel et Terre’s Hydrelio © floating solar platforms in two installations totaling 2.9MW at Nishihira Pond and Higashihira Pond in Kato City, Hyogo Prefecture, Japan. The 1.7MWplant, planned at Nishihira Pond, will become the world’s largest solar power generating system installed on water, according to the Kyocera. Kyocera and Century Tokyo Leasing jointly established Kyocera TCL Solar LLC in August 2012 to construct and operate multiple utility-scale solar power plants in Japan under the country’s feed-in-tariff system. Since its launch the company has constructed 28 solar power plants.

An Australian renewable energy industry body has commented that the federal government has not convinced the industry or the public of a need to change the renewable energy target (RET) and should leave it alone. Clean Energy Council’s acting chief executive, Kane Thornton, said that while it was reassuring that the federal government had indicated it would not do anything that damaged billions of dollars in existing investment, the options it has discussed to date would decimate the industry. “Neither the government nor the Warburton review has made any convincing argument for reducing the RET, particularly as the review’s own economic modeling showed every scenario for reducing the target would result in higher power bills,” Mr Thornton said. “The ongoing uncertainty is impacting thousands of businesses and the 21,000 people they employ across the country. Every week that passes there are more stories of businesses shrinking or closing and people losing their jobs in this sector."

ASIA / AFRICA NEWS

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PRODUCTS MACHINES TECHNOLOGY &

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DAS cable

The new VDV tools complement Southwire’s full line of low-voltage cable products and extend Southwire’s tools and equipment line.

Superior Essex has launched an indoor plenum fiber copper hybrid cable for distributed antenna systems (DAS). The DAS hybrid cable consists of two discrete cables, one copper and one fiber, paired beneath an over-jacket. The dual design allows the hybrid cable to transmit communications while also providing power to DAS remote units. Several features are specifically designed to facilitate installation and deployment. The two-in-one design allows power and fiber cables to be pulled simultaneously, saving time and labor by eliminating the need for two separate pulls. Unlike round hybrid cables, with unjacketed copper and fiber, the discrete copper and fiber cables within the Superior Essex hybrid cable can be easily separated and routed individually. Furthermore, the copper conductors utilize an intuitive black and red color scheme that makes it easier to determine positive and negative connections. The cable is UL 13 CL2P plenum rated, eligible for installation throughout a building, including air carrying plenum space. Where the cable forms part of a NEC class 2 power limited system some local building codes allow it to be installed without being enclosed in a raceway or armored.

The new VDV tools from Southwire. Photograph courtesy of Southwire

“Installers are passionate about the tools in their tool bag,” said John Payne, Southwire’s product director for VDV, test and measurement. “Our objective is to build professional tools that exceed our customers' expectations for quality, performance and features.” A new product is the T100PK professional toneandprobe kit. Market research suggests that installers find the test leads on most tone generators to be frustrating because they hang loose, andareeasily tangledwith other tools so Southwire has found a way to store the test leads in the tester body, completely eliminating the problem. product development approach – the same approach Southwire has successfully used to maintain leadership in the wire and cable market for years,” Mr Payne added. “Our goal is to improve installer job site productivity by creating a set of quality tools “It’s an installer-focused

VDV launch

Southwire launched its new line of over 40 voice-data-video (VDV) tools at CEDIA Expo 2014, a showcase for new audio, video, control, networking and lighting products.

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