Choosing the proper cable management is crucial to ensuring performance in industrial spaces and decreasing downtime and operational and repair costs. Various factors should be considered when selecting a cable management system. We’ll take you through the importance of cable management systems in industrial applications, the types of systems on the market, and what characteristics may impact your decision.
Proper Cable Management is Crucial for Industrial Applications
Apart from maintaining a well-organized environment, a quality cable management system will maintain functionality, protect equipment, increase security for those working in the area, and have long-term benefits for the cost of repair and management.
Cable management systems are critical for supporting electrical cables in harsh climates for markets including chemical, petrochemical, mining, battery manufacturing, semiconductor, oil and gas, and more. These systems are critical in keeping your facilities and projects safe and running smoothly. Proper industrial wire and cable management are critical factors in a high-performing and secure industrial setting.
The Consequences of Poor Cable Management
Industrial applications typically come with challenging conditions and harsh environments. Safety is a top priority and requirement to ensure the success of these projects. Poor cable management can have costly and dangerous consequences; apart from inefficiency, there is a direct impact on your facility's operational costs and safety.
Some of the most common negative impacts we’ve seen from poor cable management include:
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- Cables succumbing to costly damage
- Need for recurring repairs
- Impact on the lifespan of equipment and connected devices
- Accidents such as electrical fires
- Downtime associated with accidents or repairs
Unfortunately, failing to invest in a proper cable management system from the start can have costly and even fatal consequences in the long run. To make the best decision for your industrial application, continue reading to see your options.
Types of Cable Management Systems
There are various pieces to a cable management system, and your specific needs will rely on the industrial space your project is operating in. Innovative solutions are often needed to meet the needs of these challenging conditions.
Here are some products we utilize to achieve safety and success in cable management for industrial applications:
Fiberglass (FRP) Cable Tray
Enduro’s FRP cable trays have been built to perform in the most corrosive and structurally demanding environments. This product is especially favorable for retrofitting rusting applications, supporting electrical cables in highly corrosive environments, low-voltage or communications cables, fiber-optic cables, and hydraulic or pneumatic tubing, among many others.
FRP cable trays are ideal for cable management systems (particularly ones in challenging conditions like chemical plants and construction) due to being lightweight, high strength, and flexible installation.
FRP Ladder-Type Cable Tray
Enduro’s fiberglass cable ladder trays are built to withstand harsh conditions with high durability, fire retardant, corrosion resistance, non-magnetic, and more. These qualities ensure less downtime, maintenance costs, and increased productivity.
Ladder-type cable trays distribute cables and allow power distribution throughout facilities such as offshore platforms, chemical plants, oil and metal refineries, and water treatment plants.
FRP Wireway
Our cable management solutions are built to protect data, control, communication, and power cables from atmospheric conditions like dust, dirt, oil, and water. The fiberglass wireway and channel-type instrumentation tray safeguard your system from unauthorized or accidental tampering with cables and wires.
This cable management product is best suited for application in food processing plants, transportation or subway systems, and computer, communication, and clean room applications. This product has a Class 1 fire rating (in accordance with ASTM Standard E-84), superior strength, conforms to the grid-post system of raised floors and is corrosion resistant.
FRP Strut
Fiberglass strut systems and strut channel framing offer components to support other cable management systems in almost any environment. Strut channel framing attaches to industry-standard materials and structures and works well with Enduro cable tray systems and fiberglass strut systems.
The FRP strut channel framings are lightweight yet highly durable and comply with NEMA VE 2 standards for field installation. Requesting a custom system design for your unique project is also possible.
Instrument Stands and Accessories
FRP instrumentation stands are more corrosion-resistant than stainless steel or galvanized ones and are a cost-effective alternative for challenging environments.
Their durability and exceptional strength make them best suited to support electrical instruments and support switch station stands or racks in demanding environments. They are also compatible with metallic post bases and metallic support structures. Our engineers can collaborate with your team and develop custom configurations that work perfectly with your specific space and application.
Our cable management system products have undergone world-class quality testing in our on-site testing laboratory. Our decades of experience, design capabilities, and comprehensive quality control ensure that Enduro’s cable management system products consistently deliver results for various uses.
Cable Management Case Studies
If you’d like real-world input on what cable management system best meets your needs, take a look at our case studies. With installations worldwide, we’ve seen our cable management solutions at work across various industries, environments, and applications. One real-world FRP cable management system application is the Anadarko offshore platform application.
Anadarko’s offshore cable management system needed high-quality, versatile materials to withstand the harshest conditions. To complete this project, we utilized a ladder tray, cable tray, and strut and support accessories.
The primary factors that dictated our cable management system design were weight, raw material cost variance over time, final price, resistance to corrosion, ease of installation, and high-temperature performance.
Our system was 30-40% lighter than traditional materials (SS 316), possessed stable raw material costs compared to metallic components, provided significant cost savings to conventional cable support systems, and was designed for superior corrosion resistance in saltwater environments.
You can read more about this case history and Enduro’s custom approach.
Choosing the Right Cable Management System for Your Project
Every industrial application has unique challenges and needs that will impact your choice of the cable management system. Understanding your environment’s conditions and top safety concerns and establishing the necessary safety certifications and compliance will be vital in choosing a cable management system.
For additional information and assistance, please contact Enduro Composites, Inc. Our technical staff can help with identifying appropriate materials and specifications for your project.
