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The Challenges

Building a cable for use in a fire safety system presents a number of issues for custom cable suppliers:

•  The cable needs to perform reliably under extremely harsh conditions
• The cable needs to be safe, even when burning; burning plastic and metal components could potentially emit dangerous fumes and make the situation even worse.
• The cable needs to be unobstructive and versatile – the less cables a system requires, the more reliable it is.
• The cables needs to meet the fire safety standards set out by the likes of BS5839 (a code practice for fire alarm system design) and BS 7629-1 (the standard for fire-resistant electric cables).

The Solution

Custom cable designers have met the unique design challenges presented by fire-resistant cables in a number of ways:

• Fire-resistant materials are used to construct the cables, including fire resistant cable shielding.
• Low smoke, zero halogen cable sheathing is used, preventing the cable from fire damage while also ensuring that the levels of poisonous halogen emissions from burning sheathing are kept to a minimum.
• Cable screening is utilised to ensure that the cable is unaffected by any electromagnetic interference.
• Twisted conductors are frequently used to facilitate data transmission, allowing for a connection to be made to the local emergency services and any on-site fire safety officials.

Fire-resistant custom cables are used across a vast range of industries, meaning they also have to be versatile in their design to accommodate for different fire system designs and building layouts. Luckily, custom cable designers are well accustomed to this kind of work! For more information on fire-resistant cables, get in touch with Custom Designed Cables on 01204 658 784 or via the contact form on the contact us page.

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With the environment at a tipping point and the reduction of carbon emissions essential, more and more buildings are employing solar panels as a power source. Although one might suspect that the British weather doesn’t lend itself to a source of power that comes solely from sunlight, solar panels can provide clean energy to power most commercial and household tasks. However, the deployment of solar panels on a wide range of different buildings has presented something of a problem for the manufacturers of photovoltaic systems – namely, finding a way to ensure that the panels provide as much energy as possible regardless of the size or shape of the building. One of the main issues in achieving this comes with the power cables that transmit energy. As most buildings are different sizes, the length of a solar cable needs to be long enough to connect between two points without suffering from too much voltage drop. The power demands of whoever is using the solar panels also needs to come into play as the cable needs to be able to meet the requirements of the user. As these requirements will vary widely between different users, designing a ‘one size fits all’ solar cable is nigh-on impossible, which is where custom cables come in. Custom-built photovoltaic cables can address all of the issues outlined above and more, providing a cost-effective way of harnessing the full power of solar energy. Having a cable built bespoke also negates any potential performance or safety issues associated with using the wrong cable. A key task in the designing of a solar cable is calculating how much voltage drop may be suffered due to the distance between the panels and the end power point. This is done by working out the distance between the cables and the end point along with the overall amp rating of the combined panels. Going through this process allows the cable designer to determine what gauge of cable to use when producing the final product. As a general rule, the thicker the gauge of the cable, the more high-demand energy tasks it can power. Thicker gauge cables also tend to be used when the distance from the panels is quite significant. At the core of a solar cable tends to be a stranded copper core, which can be increased in size according to the demands of an application. Equally important, however, is what lies on the outside of the cable.  Solar cables are exposed to a lot of heat, making heat-resistant cable extrusion an important addition. As the cable will be located outside, the cable jacket also needs to be sufficient enough to protect the cable from the elements. The connectors at the end of the cable will largely depend on your particular type of solar panel and whatever it is you’ll be using the panels to power. This is something that your cable manufacturer will advise you on. Custom Designed Cables have extensive experience in designing photovoltaic cables and developing cables for commercial and domestic use for a large renewable energy company. For more information on solar cables, and custom cables in general, contact Custom Designed Cables on 01204 658 784.

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