Terminating Class 5 Flexible Power Cables: Special Techniques are Required to Avoid Catastrophic Failure

March 23, 2023

by Sicame Australia

Articles, Industrial Electrix

Sicame Group is one of the key players in the electrical equipment business worldwide. It has been able to adapt and develop to support the continuous evolution of electricity infrastructure in France and around the world, and become the largest independent entity in its sector.

More and more infrastructure projects are taking advantage of the versatility of low voltage flexible power cables. But there is a catch: the very fine stranding of the conductors in flexible cables require special compression techniques to eliminate the risk of overheating and thermal runaway.

Over many years, Group Sicame has developed engineered flexible cable connection solutions for the rail transport, shipping and aerospace industries and can now bring the benefits of these techniques to critical fixed infrastructure projects.

Case study: Data Centres

Sensitive application
High current in closed environment
Flexible cable due to limited space
Highly reliable connection needed

Flexible cable connection

More and more application require use of flexible cable
Flexible cable are easier to implement in
limited space
Strands expansion with insulation stripping
Flexible cables occupy more space than
rigid cable
Insertion issue lead to use of larger barrel

Risks linked to flexible cable

Using a larger barrel size leads to inappropriate compaction ratio
Inappropriate compation ratio lead to connection elevation of temperature

Connection manufacturer must adapt their solutions to specific cable types.

Standard hexagonal crimp comparison: Rigid versus Flexible cable:

330 A is needed in both case to bring the cable to 120°C
Flexible and rigid cable intrinsically exhibit similar level of performance
Terminals temperature reach 110°C when crimped on rigid cable, and 170°C on flexible one