One of the areas of Western Power Distribution (UK), WPD Midlands, regularly connects three core cables incorporating collective Cu-wire or Cu-tape screen. Lovink was asked to develop a solution within the LoviSil® technology.
Cables with Cu-tape screen are thicker and require more space to create effective earthing. The existing resin space in the Lovisil® K105 was not suitable for this purpose. The solution involved extending the cable input by 160 mm. Once the design was ready, the opportunities for production were examined. Considering the numbers, it did not make sense to create a new mould. The idea of integrating extensions quickly came to the fore. They are also made from ABS and can be effectively glued to existing cable joints. Naturally, the design underwent far-reaching strength testing. In the second half of 2013, the first 1000 extended cable joints were delivered – straight through joints as well as branch joints.
Interesting facts
- Extended joints offer greater space to bond additional components such as lead sheaths on polymeric cable or DWA
- More bonding length and better water sealing