IT’S the time of the year when we tend to look back at what the months have held and what we have achieved. But this year is a little different. At the moment the IWMA is looking back a bit further than a year – in fact 49 years. But we are mostly looking forward.
For 2020 will mark the 50th anniversary of the world’s largest wire and cable industry association, and this issue is a small goodbye of sorts.
For our 50th year we are streamlining, smartening and refreshing our look, and in some ways also how we do things. So while we will celebrate our past success, next year we will mostly be looking towards the next 50.
In 2020 we will of course have wire Düsseldorf, the world’s biggest international exhibition for the industry, and we will not only be there, but there in strength.
Our stand will be specially redesigned and enlarged by about a third for the event, and will feature some of the association’s history and achievements, as well as our usual wide range of exhibition and member services. It will also show off our new look.
Behind the scenes we are changing: rebranding with a new corporate logo and colours, and a new website. The former will be bright and welcoming, the latter will provide more information to members in an easy-to-find, easyto-follow way. A new and improved members-only area will give access to
In this issue
8
We take a brief look ahead to wire 2020 in Düsseldorf in March.
10 wire Düsseldorf preview
4
& 18
Member news
Read the latest news and product developments from member companies.
IWMA members A list of IWMA members around the world.
14 wire Southeast Asia and wire South America reports
It was great to see so many IWMA members at these two successful exhibitions
We talk to MD Charles Horsfall about celebrating 300 years of his family company Webster and Horsfall.
Member profile
past technical papers as always, but users will now be able to search in greater depth.
There will be other improvements too: our events will be easily bookable and payable online, making things much easier; and our hundreds of membercompanies will be able to submit their news stories and information for the website and this magazine there too.
The rebranding will reflect our mission and position within the industry: to help members move the industry forward by collaboratively improving technical expertise. We intend our new look – which will be accompanied by a couple of other things I can’t reveal just yet – to propel us into the next halfcentury as the leading association for the industry, connecting expertise and helping members to make the most of our global network. Having said that, it remains for me to wish you all a happy end-of-year celebration, whatever your nationality or religion, and a peaceful and very prosperous new year. See you in Düsseldorf!
Martin Van Der Zwan Chairman, International Wire & Machinery Association
More dates for your diary. The IWMA runs a full calendar of social, educational and networking events throughout the year. Make sure you don’t miss out. 23 from everyone at the IWMA!
21
Industry events
Dates for your diary. Our list of leading industry events coming up.
Welcome new members and read the latest news from the IWMA. 22 IWMA events
Latest from the IWMA
Editorial deadline for next issue: 24 January 2020
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Member News
Prysmian cable-laying in depth
AWORLDWIDE search among employees for a name for its new cable-laying ship has resulted in Prysmian Group calling the vessel (pictured) the Leonardo da Vinci
The selected name “has its roots in Prysmian Group’s history and activity, being linked to engineering, science, innovation, excellence and Italy, and is a tribute to the Italian inventor, engineer, sculptor and architect recognised as a leading figure in European culture,” says the company.
“The challenge was to find a name that
represented the vessel’s outstanding features – which support the group’s longterm growth and leadership in submarine cable installation.”
Around 1,700 employees offered hundreds of suggests, considered by a specially-organised judging panel.
Prysmian says the Leonardo will be the most advanced cable layer in the field, reinforcing the group’s claim to be a onestop provider for engineering, manufacturing, installation and monitoring and diagnostic services for offshore wind farms and supply cables.
The Leonardo will be operational by the middle of 2021, and has cost the company around £160 million. The ship is 170m, with a beam of 34m.
The Leonardo will be able to lay new, lighter armoured cables in waters up to three kilometres deep, and can carry 17,000 tonnes of cable on two carousels, laid using the most advanced GPS positioning.
The ship also supports the most advanced cable-burying systems – and even has a reduced environmental footprint. www.prysmiangroup.com
UL establishes EV battery lab
UL IS DEVELOPING an advanced, large-scale electric vehicle battery laboratory to offer EV battery testing and advisory services to EV manufacturers and suppliers.
The centre, one of the most advanced in the world, will be operational by April next year to meet the demand for vehicle battery and charging tests as manufacturers increasingly look for a trustworthy third-party lab to help improve battery and charging performance and safety. Tests will focus on battery safety, charging systems and grid integration, and will provide manufacturers with a range of actions such as reliability verification, battery management safety, power grid integration, battery repurposing, energy storage and functional safety services within one lab. The facility is expected to help UL customers achieve shorter development
cycles, a quicker time to market and greater competitiveness.
The announcement came during a ground-breaking ceremony at the site.
Hosted by UL’s president and CEO Keith Williams, president of connected technologies Weifang Zhou, and Boris Feng –vice president and greater China managing director of UL, the ground-breaking ceremony was attended by top public and private sector leaders.
Mary Joyce, the vice president and general manager of UL’s automotive division, said: “The development of this laboratory demonstrates our commitment to the safe development of clean transportation.”
Weifang Zhou added: “We have established relationships with many top automobile manufacturers, helping customers to control risks throughout the whole industrial chain.”
www.ul.com
Leoni production space opened
GLOBAL energy and data management solution provider
Leoni has broadened its commitment to electromobility with a new, 7,000sq m production space at its Wire and Cable Solutions Division’s EMOMex building in Cuauhtémoc, Mexico. The plans include an option to add an extra 3,000sq m of production space. The facility will increase capacity for the production of mostly EV charging cables and high-voltage cables for vehicles with electric drive systems.
The foundation-laying ceremony for the new facility was attended by special guests including the state governor, Javier Corral Jurado, innovation and economic development secretary Alejandra De la Vega, and Carlos Tena, Major of Cuauhtémoc. www.leoni.com
Online e-store
PAKISTAN Cables has launched an online e-store. “We have been staunch advocates of technology that adds value in the overall consumer experience,” said company CEO Fahd Kamal Chinoy.
“Shopping at our e-store allows customers to save time and buy authentic products directly from us.”
The web site offers a range of general wiring products and allows several payment methods. The store currently serves Karachi, Lahore, Islamabad and Rawalpindi, and there are plans to extend to other cities.
Analysts suggest Pakistan’s digital economy will continue to grow in line with evolving consumer-buying habits.
Pakistan Cables is the first company in the category in Pakistan develop an e-store site.
www.pakistancables-estore.com
Inductotherm spring-wire line for Tata Steel in Tarapur
INDUCTOTHERM Heating and Welding of Basingstoke UK has supplied a full Radyne spring-wire processing line to Tata Steel’s factory in Tarapur, north of Mumbai on the sub-continent’s western coast. The line is designed to continuously harden and temper spring wire (at diameters from 7-14mm), at a rate across all sizes of two tonnes an hour.
Inductotherm’s Radyne UK division worked closely with the giant steel company to develop a custom configuration. Tata has acquired a full turnkey line with full project management and technical engineering support. Wire will start to be produced by it next year.
Radyne Spring Wire Lines are widely recognised as the market leader in the field, used in several industries and most recently to process wire for the cold-coiling of automotive suspension springs.
The group brings together 40 companies with 38 manufacturing facilities in 23 countries across such brands as Inductotherm, Banyard, Inductoheat, Thermatool, Radyne and Consarc.
www.inductothermhw.co.uk
Bekaert Group completes team with new CFO
STEEL wire and coatings company
Bekaert Group, which has undertaken extensive restructuring and leadership changes in the past 18 months, completed its new senior team with the appointment of chief financial officer Taoufiq Boussaid (right).
Mr Boussaid, who is also a member of the group’s executive team, succeeded longtime Bekaert employee Frank Vromant, who took on the role of interim CFO in November 2018.
Taoufiq began his career in international finance with 10 years as an audit manager with Ernst & Young in France, and with the Coca-Cola company in the USA. From 2004-2007 he worked in finance for United Technologies Corporation, then joined Bombardier Transportation, where
he rose to vice president of finance for EMEA and Asia Pacific. He has also run the French and North African businesses of Bombardier.
Bekaert’s changes have been intended to sharpen the customer focus and business performance of the $5.5bn, 30,000employee company.
Chief executive Matthew Taylor said: I look forward to working with the new leadership team and driving our business forward on the positive improvement path we have set out.”
www.bridon-bekaert.com
L-R: Chihuahua state congresswoman Patricia Terrazas Baca, Leoni Cable Inc president Bill Livengood, and Chihuahua state governor, Javier Corral Jurado.
Member News
Saying goodbye to a respected colleague
FORMER IWMA board member Paul Free, of PF Consultants, passed away in August in hospital, surrounded by his family.
Paul, a valued member and friend of the IWMA board, resigned from his position earlier in 2019. He had regularly represented the IWMA at its exhibition stand during wire Düsseldorf.
The funeral took place on 30 August 2019 at St Leonards Church, Penwortham in Preston UK.
Hannah completes MA level three
RAUTOMEAD'S first female apprentice, Hannah Devery (21), has completed a Level 3 Modern Apprenticeship in Engineering: Electrical Manufacture. The apprenticeship covers electrical control systems equipment.
Hannah is seen here with Rautomead managing director Brian Frame as she receives her certificate from David Weir, an engineering assessor from MI Technologies. www.rautomead.com
New dual-axis diameter and ovality laser diffraction gauge
CHINESE instrumentation specialist SCreate Dala Technology Co Ltd has introduced new models it claims are among the best on the market.
The new D360 offline dual-axis diameter and ovality laser diffraction gauge allows laboratories and wire manufacturers to measure wire sample ovality with the highest accuracy in the industry.
The device features a bench-top, non-contact laser diffraction gauge with an OLED display that can act as a standalone laboratory laser gauge.
Most dual- or triple-axis laser gauges calculate wire ovality with data in two or three directions, but the D360 allows hundreds of measurements in 360 degrees of sample rotation.
Accuracy is in the ±0.01μm range, thanks to two high-performance built-in digital processing units working together and combining patented algorithms and exclusive self-calibration technology.
The unit offers long service and durability: the use of laser diffraction techniques eliminates routine maintenance and recalibration.
The unit is also proof against dirt, vibration and temperature variation: results vary by no more than 0.000025mm with every 10 degrees of temperature.
The D360 also has built-in data storage for analysis, and its display can be read at up to a 170° angle.
SCreate has also introduced the O2-201XY dual-axis inline diameter and ovality laser diffraction gauge, designed with advanced laser diffraction techniques and offering accuracy in the tenths of a micron range: ±(0.12+0.03%*D).
The O2-201-XY measures diameter in two directions in real time, and doesn’t average the results. Ovality is calculated on measured data.
The unit is insensitive to temperature changes, offering consistency similar to the D360, and has the same long durability lacks to the lack of interior moving parts. Though SCreate has been in business only since 2012 a combination of product accuracy and relatively low cost has given them a presence in 95 per cent of Chinese wire manufacturing companies.
www.screate-tech.com
Bigger bandwidths with core insulation lines
ROSENDAHL’S Core Insulation Line is the ideal choice for manufacturers of the latest generation of high-speed data cables, says the company. Such cables are widely used in specialist communications technologies, where optimal transfer rates and product stability are essential.
The need for peak-quality cabling is due to the constant expansion of the world’s telecoms network, in which technologies are in almost constant development. Only a few years ago the demand was for transfer rates in the low megahertz range, while today we are in the thrall of a move up to a 5GHz – “5G” – network.
Transfer rates of 5G are not only necessary for surfing the internet or telecoms; communication between machines is almost getting faster – as in medicine, where the speed of data transfer plays a vitally important role in moving the data used in diagnostic scanning and for similar purposes. The demand for cables required for these applications is huge.
On the domestic and commercial front, nearly every area of a building can be controlled from anywhere by modern sensors, and to use as little space as possible, cables must be highly sensitive and have very small diameters. Rosendahl’s core insulation line has been specially developed and is continually improved for such products, offering reductions in waste materials, product repeatability and line flexibility. www.rosendahlnextrom.com
Kabel a Motion Control Industry winner WCISA awards
THE Wire and Cable Industry Suppliers Association (WCISA) had a large number of scholarship applications and requests this year. The competition was strong enough for the WCISA board of directors to award multiple annual scholarships, as well contributing to two special scholarships for a programme organised by the IWCS The high school graduate winner received $1,000, while six others received $550.
The WCISA employee and intern scholarship winner received $1,000, the runner-up $750 and the third recipient $500.
The WCISA Special Scholarship also gave $3,000 each to the IWCS scholarship funds at the Rensselaer Polytechnic Institute and Georgia Tech University.
www.iwcs.org
THE winners of the fourth Motion Control Industry Awards 2019 were revealed at a special UK gala dinner, at which 200 people from across the UK celebrated the most significant achievements of motion control companies and individuals.
Kabel.Consult.Ing proprietor Juan Carlos González Villar was named Engineer of the Year for his patented Energy Light drive system, which minimises drive output during continuous operation, acceleration, delay or braking; maximises corresponding generator output and standardises the drive system as a complex total application.
Hosted by television and radio presenter Penny Smith, the evening celebrated the achievements of 32 finalists. Juan Carlos González Villar (pictured centre, with Smith and award sponsor Mark Cattermole of Parker Hannifin) said afterwards: "I´m so pleased to have won this important industry award in Great Britain, which has produced brilliant engineers
such as Robert Willis and G J Abbott. “Without their publications our patent for the Energy Light drive system would not have been possible."
l The Reverend Robert Willis, who died in 1875, was an English academic and the first Cambridge professor to win widespread recognition as a mechanical engineer. In the 1920s, G J Abbott developed a transmission system, drawn on by Kabel, which uses technology to improve efficiency in transmission applications.
www.kabelconsulting.de
wire 2020: it’s record year
THE top international trade fair for the wire and cable industries, wire Düsseldorf 2020 at the city’s major exhibition centre, is fast approaching.
Registration figures for wire 2020 are highly promising, with organisers Messe Düsseldorf reporting a strong increase in attendance from Turkey, India and Taiwan – already greater than the final exhibitor numbers from the 2018 event. In addition, strong participation from the traditional exhibiting regions – Italy, Spain, Germany, Austria, Switzerland and Central
and Eastern Europe – suggests a new record for exhibitor figures is likely.
“Registration figures for wire 2020 confirm our exhibitors refuse to be influenced by global economic fluctuations in this industry,” said Daniel Ryfisch, deputy director of metals and flow technologies for Messe Düsseldorf.
wire 2020 will present its technical innovations in exhibition halls 9-17 on currently well over the 65,000sq m of exhibition space rented for the 2018 show.
Exhibitors display machinery and
going to be a
equipment for wire manufacturing and finishing, process technology tools and auxiliaries, raw materials, glass fibre technologies, special wires and cables, measuring, control equipment and inspection engineering.
Mesh welding machines will be located in hall 15, spring making technology and products as well as fasteners and finished products follow on from this in halls 16 to 17.
This year the exhibition adds a new category: springs and fasteners. Visitors can view the entire value creation chain, from manufacturers to develop-
ers and end-users, offering new ideas both for production and use.
Exhibitors will show everything from nanowires to universal screws, from aluminium to titanium, in new processes from additive manufacturing to Industry 4.0.
Are you an IWMA member exhibiting at wire 2020? We are preparing a special edition to mark the show and welcome your show news and intentions.
Send information and pictures to info@iwma.org.
18-20 Sept 2019
wire SE Asia’s best show yet
THE region’s huge potential market helped to push the 2019 editions of the wire and Tube Southeast Asia shows to their best year ever, with a record near-9,200 visitors from 59 countries (almost half the total from overseas).
They were informed by 376 exhibitors from 29 countries –many of them joining forces in eight national pavilions representing Austria, Italy, the UK, Germany, the USA, China, Taiwan and Singapore.
The IWMA was present to represent the interests of more than 50 exhibiting members, five of which used the IWMA’s special modular stand to host showcases for their products and services.
The shows’ energy reflects the region’s heightened demand for wire and tube products, prompted by rapid urbanisation, a rising middle class and planned infrastructure spending in the US$300-350 billion range.
Sectors such as automotive, aerospace, telecommunications, chemical, heating ventilation air conditioning and refrigeration (HVACR), water, energy and electrical and electronics all saw increases in visitor interest.
The three days of the exhibition were augmented by training courses, seminars and technical presentations led by experts from various institutions and exhibiting companies and attended by over 700 delegates.
The two exhibitions will next share Bangkok’s BITEC exhibition centre from 22-24 September, 2021.
There was brisk business throughout the five days on the IWMA stand.
Gernot Ringling (left), managing director of Messe Düsseldorf Asia with the IWMA’s (l-r) Peter Large, Andy Lewis and chairman Martin Van Der Zwan
wire South America holds fast despite Brazilian downturn
DESPITE fears that former BRIC economic hothouse Brazil’s downturn would affect interest and attendance at the wire
South America exhibition in October, visitor numbers remained fairly buoyant.
Though the Brazilian economy has gone through a major fall in the last 18 months, the general long-term investment climate in the region remains good – which gave some general stability to the exhibition’s prospects.
In total 106 companies from 15 countries exhibited at wire South America, while the parallel Tubotech trade fair attracted 80 more. For the third time there was a German pavilion for the wire and cable industry and 10 companies seized the chance to exhibit in it.
In the spectacular halls of the 9,500sq m Sao Paulo Expo Exhibition and Convention Centre, opened in 2016, the joint wire and tube exhibitions served as a meeting place for regional and international industry experts from wire, cable and pipe industries for the fourth time.
Over the three days just under 13,000 trade visitors attended: 95% from Brazil, 5% from regional neighbours such as Chile, Colom-
bia, Argentina, Bolivia, Paraguay, Mexico, Peru and Uruguay, with a few from other parts of Europe, Canada, India and China.
As usual the IWMA stand (below left) was busy throughout the event, fielding requests from members and membership inquiries.
The Messe Düsseldorf-organised joint event attracted companies offering innovative machinery, equipment and services on around 5,000sq m of exhibition space – for the first time occupying the centre’s new exhibition hall one, the easiest to reach for most of the foreign visitors.
The explanation for the reasonably buoyant interest remains clear: the products exhibited at the two trade fairs are essential components in infrastructure, energy and automotive technology and agriculture growth, where Brazil still offers potential.
Trade visitors came primarily from the oil and gas sector, the automotive industry, the construction sector, metal construction and mining.
The interest of international companies to position themselves in South America and to invest in the corresponding machinery and equipment remains high.
www.wire-south-america.com
A Karpat Ltd Canada
ABZ (Shanghai) Smart Tech Co Ltd China
ACIMAF Italy
ACOTEQ GmbH Germany
Acuity Products Ltd UK
AESA Cortaillod Switzerland
AFH-Antriebstechnik GmbH Germany
Ajex & Turner Wire Technologies India
Aleados del Cobre SA Spain
Alloy Wire International UK
Ambrell Ltd Netherlands
Anglia Metal Ltd UK
Anushka Wire India
Arcelor Mittal Kent Wire Ltd UK
Associated Engineers & Industrials Ltd India
Assomac Machines Ltd India
August Strecker GmbH & Co KG Germany
Australasian Wire Industry Association Australia
Aversion Technologies Europe SL Spain
Aymak Makine Mühendislik Hizmetleri San ve Tic Turkey
Badger Wire Australia
Baicheng Fujia Technology Co Ltd China
Balloffet SA France
Bar Products & Services Ltd UK
Bartell Machinery Systems USA
BASEC (British Approvals Service for Cables) UK
BB Spring Technologies SRL Italy
Bonakdar Ind & Com Group Iran
Bongard Machines GmbH & Co KG Germany
Bridon International Ltd UK
British Diamond Wire Die Co Ltd UK
BWE Ltd UK
Cable Tapes UK Ltd UK
Calmec Precision Ltd Canada
Cape Gate (PTY) Ltd South Africa
Carl Bechem GmbH Germany
Cemanco LC USA
Central Wire Industries UK Ltd UK
CeramTec GmbH Germany
Chaplin Bros (Birmingham) Ltd UK
Chemetall Ltd UK
Cimteq Ltd UK
Commission Brokers Inc USA
Condat Ltd France
Consultex SP Zo o Poland
Control and Power Engineering Ltd UK
Copperweld Bimetallics UK Ltd UK
CRU Group UK
CSM Metalurji Imalat Sanayi Ve Muhendislik Ltd STI Turkey
Danross Engineering UK
De Montfort University UK
Deutsches Kupferinstitut Berufsverband EV Germany
DLB Draht und Litzen GmbH Germany
Dongguan XinMei Precision Mold Co Ltd China
Drahtwerk Waidhaus GmbH Germany
DRT Impianti SRL Italy
DSE Test Solutions AS Denmark
Ducab UAE
Eder Engineering GmbH Austria
EFD Induction AS Norway
EJP Maschinen GmbH Germany
IWMA corpor
Er-Bakir Elektrolitik Bakir Mamulleri AS Turkey
Eurobend GmbH Greece
Eurotek SRL Italy
FH Machinery USA
FIB Belgium SA Belgium
Fisk Alloy Conductors BVBA Belgium
FMS Force Measuring Systems AG Switzerland
Fort Wayne Wire Die Inc USA
Foxton Dies Ltd UK
Frontier Composites & Castings Inc Canada
Fuchs Lubricants (UK) PLC UK
G & A Engineering Ltd UK
G Church - Consultancy UK
Geca-Tapes BV France
Gem Gravure Co Inc USA
GEO Reinigungstechnik GmbH Germany
Golden Technologies Wire & Cable Equipment Co Ltd China
Goodwin Machinery Ltd UK
Guidetti SRL Italy
Gurfil Sanayi VE Elektronik Cih Paz AS Turkey
Gwo-lian Machinery Industry Co Ltd Taiwan
H&R ChemPharm (UK) Ltd UK
H Folke Sandelin AB Sweden
Häfner & Krullmann GmbH Germany
Hans Schmidt & Co GmbH Germany
HB Cables & Components Ltd UK
Heda Industrial Co Ltd China
Heinze & Streng GmbH Germany
Heshan Hang Kei Steel Wire Manufacturing Co Ltd China
Hipo Electrix Science & Technology Co Ltd China
Hoang Hung Long Co Ltd Vietnam
Holton Crest Ltd
Huestis Industrial
Huntstar Trading Ltd
ICE Wire Line Equipment Inc
Inductotherm Heating & Welding Ltd
InnoVites BV
Institute of Spring Technology Ltd
Integer Research Ltd, an Argus Media Company
Interlink Ltd
International Trade Shows Link Ltd
Intras Ltd
Itaya Europe Ltd
JG Tec Ltd
Jiangsu Handing Machinery Co Ltd China
Jiangsu Hongtai Stainless Steel Wire Rope Co Ltd China
Jina Special Steel Works Pvt Ltd India
Joachim Uhing GmbH & Co KG Germany
John Binns & Son (Springs) Ltd UK
Kabel.Consult.Ing Germany
Kay Pee Dies India Pvt Ltd India
Kelani Cables PLC Sri Lanka
Key Rate International Co Ltd Taiwan
Kieselstein International GmbH Germany
Knight Precision Wire Ltd UK
Koner SpA Italy
Lamplast di Aldo Redaelli e C SAS Italy
Lanfang Xinming Cable Machinery Ind Co Ltd China
Lanka Special Steels Ltd Sri Lanka
Lantor BV Netherlands
Leoni Temco Ltd UK
ate members
Lewis Wire Ltd UK
Locton Ltd UK
Luma Metall AB Sweden
Lune CHF GmbH Germany
Madem SA Ind E Com de Madeiras Brazil
Maillefer Extrusion Oy Finland
Manentimacchine SRL Italy
Marldon Group Ltd UK
Mathiasen Machinery Inc USA
Medek & Schörner GmbH Austria
Meisenbach GmbH Germany
Metalube Ltd UK
Microdia SA Switzerland
Mikrotek Machines Ltd India
MSS Products Ltd UK
Nanjing Zhongchao New Materials Corporation China
Nano-Diamond America Inc USA
Nappoo Hi #Command India
NDC Technologies (Beta LaserMike Products) USA
NeoFil Ltd UK
Niehoff Maschinenfabrik GmbH & Co KG Germany
Ningbo Kaite Machinery Co Ltd China
Nota-Zaklad Mechaniki Precyzyjnej Poland
Novametal Wire Uk Ltd UK
NV Bekaert SA Belgium
OMA SRL Italy
OMA (UK) Ltd UK
Ormiston Wire Ltd UK
P W Hall Ltd UK
Pakistan Cables Pakistan
Pamica Group Ltd China
Pan Pioneer Co Ltd Taiwan
Peddington Lubricants and Coating Pvt Ltd India
Pentre Group Ltd UK
Permanoid Ltd UK
Pextrusion Ltd UK
Plasmait GmbH Austria
Plexchem Technologies Singapore
Pneuform Machines Ltd UK
Premier Cables (Pty) Ltd Pakistan
Pressure Welding Machines Ltd UK
Proton Products International Ltd Belgium
Prysmian Group UK
PS Costruzioni Meccaniche SRL Italy
Q8Oils Belgium
QED Wire Lines Inc Canada
Qingfeng Electrical Technology (Hong Kong) Co Ltd Hong Kong
Queins Machines GmbH Germany
Qunye Electrical Co Ltd China
Rautomead Ltd UK
Ravicab Cables Pvt Ltd India
Reb Mech Pvt Ltd Canada
Reber Systematic GmbH Germany
Redies Deutschland GmbH & Co KG Germany
Reelex Packaging Solutions Inc USA
RichardsApex Europe Ltd UK
Ridgway Machines Ltd UK
Riedel SDS Germany
RK Umformtechnik GmbH & Co KG Germany
Roblon AS Denmark
Rollring Industries India
Rosendahl Nextrom GmbH Austria
SACO AEI Polymers UK Ltd UK
Sanxin Wire Die Inc USA
Sarkuysan Elektrolitik Bakir Sanayi ve Tic AS Turkey
Scapa UK Ltd UK
Scott Precision Wire Ltd UK
SCreate Dala Technology Co Ltd China
Shanghai Geili Precision Dies Co Ltd China
Shanghai JNL Industry Ltd China
Shanghai Kechen Wire & Cable Machinery Co Ltd China
Shanghai Singcheer Technology Co Ltd China
SHI Kabel GmbH & Co KG Austria
SI Interline Ltd Russia
Siebe Engineering GmbH & Co KG Germany
Sikora AG Germany
Sinoleader Industries Group Co Ltd China
SKET Verseilmaschinenbau GmbH Germany
Smeets NV SA Belgium
Sneham International India
South African Wire Association South Africa
Southwire USA
Spring Tooling Ltd UK
Stonepark Consultancy Ltd UK
Stride Supplies Ltd UK
Supermac Industries India Ltd India
T Fukase & Co Ltd Japan
TapeFormers Ltd UK
Techna International Ltd UK
Techno Commerce Ltd UK
Technokabel SA Poland
Thai Summit Cable & Parts Co Ltd Thailand
The Worshipful Co of Tin Plate Workers Alias Wire Workers UK
Thermogreen Solutions Czech Republic
Thompson & Hudson Wire Machinery UK
Tianjin Huayuan Times Metal Products Co Ltd USA
Traxit International GmbH Germany
Troester GmbH & Co KG Germany
U Gear Automatic Machinery Ltd Taiwan
UL International (France) SA France
University of Southampton UK
Untel Kablo AS Turkey
Upcast Oy Finland
Uygar Makina San.Ve Tic Ltd STI Turkey
VDKM Germany
Vietnam Electric Cable Corp (CADIVI) Vietnam
Vinston US Corp USA
Warbrick International Ltd UK
WCISA c/o Wire Lab Co USA
Weber & Scher Mfg Co Inc USA
Webster & Horsfall Ltd UK
Whitelegg Machines Ltd UK
Windak Group USA
Wintwire Ltd UK
Wire & Cable Technology International USA
Wire & Plastic Machinery Corp USA
Wire Association International Inc USA
Wire Electric Supplies Ltd UK
Wire Lab Co USA
Wolco Sp Zo o Poland
XL Technologies UK Ltd UK
Yangzhou Havet Machinery Co Ltd China
YTC America Inc USA
Zumbach Electronic AG Switzerland
Member Profile
Starting as we mean to go on...
While the IWMA proudly celebrates its 50th anniversary in 2020, we look at a member company commemorating a slightly longer history next year –Birmingham UK’s family-owned Webster and Horsfall.
WEBSTER and Horsfall’s contribution to the history of wire and wire rope manufacture cannot be overstated, given that 2020 marks its 300th anniversary – a staggering record in modern industrial terms, and one that will
be celebrated with a gala dinner on current managing director Charles Horsfall’s 65th birthday, July 24.
“It’s a coincidence that the dinner will be on the same day, but it’ll be a bigger birthday party than I’m used to,” laughed Charles (pictured top), who has worked in
the still-family-owned company since the early 1970s.
It’s going to be quite a year for one of Birmingham’s oldest industrial institutions: from February until the end of September, Birmingham Museums and Art Gallery will display an exhibition, Webster and
Right: Charles Horsfall, current managing director
A contemporary depiction of workers making the armour wire for the first transAtlantic cable in the early 1850s
Horsfall: 300 years of innovation; the gala dinner will be held in the Great Hall of the University of Birmingham, and there are plans to create a mobile exhibition on the history and heritage of the Hay Mills site for community groups and schools. The company also hopes a permanent museum, with a strong online presence, will link the story with partner company Kiswire’s museum in Busan, South Korea, where some of the organisation’s historic machinery is already on display. It will be a fitting anniversary for a business that has made a notable impact on world industry.
Webster and Horsfall (W&H) is remarkable by any standard: one of its innovations was to adopt the use of the “new” steam power in the early 18th Century –and neatly, the company continues to innovate in the energy field.
Webster and Horsfall can claim to have
invented modern wire and wire rope manufacture as we know it. Its products have influenced a remarkable diversity of engineering accomplishments throughout the developing industrial world since the Industrial Revolution, and its history embodies British manufacturing so fully that some of its archives have been recorded by the British Historical Manuscripts Commission and held by the Birmingham Wolfson Centre.
Over three centuries the company’s developments have marked major landmarks in UK, indeed world, history. It produced the finest music wire available in the age of Mozart; it made the 1,600 tons of armour wire for the first successful communications cable between the UK and America in 1866, and in the 20th century it developed the “locked coil” wire rope, invented by one of its partners and adopted around the globe for its strength and durability, particularly in mining.
Webster and Horsfall is also a clear demonstrator of the everincreasing efficiency of the industry: “When I came here in the early Seventies, around 275 people worked in 10 acres of covered workshops across the site, producing 10,000 tonnes of wire a year. A third of that went to wire rope and the remainder was for the spring industry,”
said Charles. “Today, with around 35 people, we handle about 4,000 tonnes of wire and wire rope in just four acres of manufacturing and storage areas.
“That translates into 36 tonnes per head in 1970 – and 114 tonnes per head this year, in a quarter of the space.”
The smaller, more efficient business currently supplies specialised wires for many applications (even including dental orthodontic wire for teeth correction), and thanks to major investment now has greater production flexibility.
The company is today involved in more than 5,000 product lines – many its own, some distributed on behalf of other makers, and some made by other respected
companies and supplied under the W&H name after specialist redrawing or other processes.
Past times
John Webster and his first partner, John Turton, got together in 1718 and had turned to wire production in 1720, hence the forthcoming anniversary. A generation later, Webster’s son Joseph acquired a lease on a mill north-east of Birmingham in 1752, where one of his top products was high quality piano wire – additives to which over the decades gave his products greater strength and a competitive edge. By the mid-1800s the competitors included James Horsfall, who had been in business as a wire manufacturer at Hay Mills for a few years. Horsfall’s own patent for wire treatment led to the two companies merging in 1855.
The new company flourished, moving into one site at Hay Mills, south west of Birmingham centre on the Coventry Road, in 1859, where it has been ever since.
When the last Webster died in 1860,
James Horsfall, aged 57
Brunel’s Great Eastern, laying the first successfully completed trans-Atlantic cable.
St Cyprian’s church and school – built by the company in the 19th century – at the entrance to the Hay Mills site
Horsfall became the sole proprietor, and his descendants remain in control of the company today. Managing director Charles is the family’s fifth generation in charge, with a board of managers and shareholders from within the sixth generation of the Horsfall family.
“It’s very much a family business, and always has been,” he said, acknowledging that one of Webster and Horsfall’s great strengths over the decades has been the family-like closeness between bosses and workers and with the wider community around the 16acre site. Decades ago, the company built the local parish church, at the main gate of the site, and is still involved in community matters.
“We have always been the anchor business in this part of Birmingham, even though in modern terms we are quite small,” he explained.
times and to shrug-off adversity in the worst. Well-placed mergers and acquisitions over the centuries have helped to keep the company active.
Big blows, like the loss of the UK deep mining industry, had a profound effect on the company. The death of UK mining killed a full third of W&H’s business. In 1885 the firm’s merger with wire rope makers Arthur Latch and Telford Batchelor had led to the latter’s “locked-coil” wire
“At our peak in the war years we had around 1,000 workers, but the numbers have gone up and down over the years –we have probably averaged about 250300 – and today there are only a few dozen.
“This part of Birmingham is far different than it was even in the early Seventies. But we are keen to grow and improve local employment, and have fairly high hopes of doing so as we reorganise and improve the efficiency of our company over the next couple of years.”
The key to W&H’s longevity has been its ability not to overstretch during good
rope design revolutionising deep mining, and it remains the industry standard to the present day, so when UK mining disappeared, so did a huge W&H market. True to form, the company moved on and production increasingly turned to specialist products for markets including crane ropes, stainless steel wires and wire rope, and wire for the oil and gas industry. Webster and Horsfall had earlier been one of the first firms to come under direct government control during the two world wars.
During 1914-1918, Hay Mills was the sole manufacturer of munitions fuse spring wire (producing over 80,000 miles
of it), as well as helping to develop antisubmarine netting, mine, aircraft and balloon cables. Its strategic importance in World War II led to it being bombed several times by the Luftwaffe.
The 1,000 wartime employees made a huge, largely unrecognised contribution to the war effort, but even this didn’t stop the company almost going under in the post-war period, when workers had to be made redundant and talk of nationalisation depressed output.
Again, W&H bounced back, setting up a plant in Canada that ran until 1990, and growing its production of spring wire for automotive, aeronautical and pharmaceutical industries, which remains a major percentage of output today.
In 1955 the threat of nationalisation led the two Hay Mills-based companies to be separated. Latch and Batchelor became a subsidiary of the main company and today, at only 135 years old, with partners Kiswire of Korea and Verope AG, makes specialist ropes for worldwide sales and distributes a wide range of lifting ropes and attachments in the UK and Ireland.
One of L&B’s biggest projects was supplying the 78mm locked-coil wire rope for the Warragamba Dam, near Sydney in Australia. The dam is one of the largest domestic water supply dams in the world, four times the size of Sydney harbour and storing 80 percent of the city’s needs. The dam opened in 1960 – and still uses the original rope.
Present and Future
In the 21st Century, W&H has continued to invest in its core business and has moved into others. Wire production capacity has been made more efficient with the purchase of state-of-the-art drawing machines and as a small, expert company, it can produce the small quantities of wire and cable often too complex or specialist for international competitors, for whom several miles of cable might be a minimum order.
What W&H has is expertise and space, so the company keeps a stock of hundreds of tonnes of specialist wires for redrawing and reprocessing to customer specification, acting also as a major wire distributor with the help of a vast stock control system.
But core business consolidation made it obvious that the company didn’t need the entire Hay Mills site to continue production, so when Birmingham University came calling, Charles and his team didn’t need much persuading to embark on a bold new business project.
Here: a seven-hole wire-drawing machine from the 1960s.
Above: now that’s a sales display case: examples of the locked-coil wire ropes produced by W&H subsidiary Latch and Batchelor in the early 20th Century
This period of evolution emerged as Tyseley Energy Park, which covers five innovative phases of regeneration and in some ways could set the standard for future UK industrial energy supply.
The university had been researching clean energy methods and came to Webster and Horsfall for help in establishing a pilot project. What resulted was a plan to redevelop 10 acres of the site as a clean energy hub.
In 2009 the company’s park masterplan was approved, and in 2013 phase one was agreed: a £47 million investment by Cogen and other partners to develop a 10MW – enough to power around 17,000 homes – waste wood biomass power plant (pictured below right).
This facility, completed in 2016, now supplies the company’s manufacturing operations – and those of its tenants across the site – with renewable electricity at a significantly lower cost than the grid price.
In so doing, the plant has created 19 new jobs, and each year diverts 72,000 tonnes of waste wood from landfill.
Three years ago phase two of the plan, for the UK’s first low- and zerocarbon refuelling station, was approved, for the supply of public and commercial vehicles of a range of low- and zerocarbon fuels –
It’s a startling change of direction for the company, one that harbours well for its future – not that the business that has occupied directors for the past 300 years has been put on a back-burner.
“The need for wire and wire rope isn’t
going away and remains our core concern – indeed we can see us going back to 24hour operations in time. There’s plenty of scope for development.” explained Charles.
“We will be growing that business by adding value to our products and we are hoping to push our employee number to over 100 in the next 18 months.
Below: The biomass-fuelled power plant in Tyseley Energy Park that powers the site from waste wood.
including hydrogen, an electric vehicle charging hub, compressed natural gas and biodiesels – to help reduce emissions. Expansion for the next generation of waste reprocessing technologies is being developed in phase three of the project, which will supply clean energy to a wider grid.
Phase four covers the development of the University of Birmingham’s innovation hub, starting with research facilities looking into thermal energy storage, materials, fuel cells and thermo-catalytic re-forming. The hub will also have facilities to support teaching and business development.
Phase five sees existing industrial units on the site being transformed into a business incubation hub. This will support the commercialisation of emerging recycling, energy generation and storage technologies
“But the new project is immensely exciting, with possibilities for supplying fleets and companies beyond our site.
“The possibilities of this new direction are enormous, though being a family firm it has been very difficult to have to lose good people in the face of such massive change.
“People ask me if I feel the weight of all that business and family history.
“I say no – at least not any longer, because we are doing exactly what my ancestors would have done; seeing a great opportunity that demands total commitment.
“Then the family motto kicks in: ‘Incepta persequor’ – Finish what you start.”
Archives and Heritage
In collaboration with Birmingham City Council Archives and the Heritage Department, the Hay Mills Foundation Trust is conducting detailed research into W&H’s 300-year history. Volunteers are working with the company archivist, Sandy Robertson, to record the impact of the company on the people who worked there and on the wider Birmingham area. It will also detail the lasting global legacy the company has left on the industrial world.
Over the past 170 years W&H has been a major employer in Birmingham’s Tyseley and Hay Mills areas, and has played a key role in the development of local infrastructure, including construction of the area’s first school, St Cyprians Church, in 1854, a Memorial Hall, and several homes.
“We don’t see this just as a part of our history,” said Charles Horsfall. “We and the energy park are continuing the community tradition by working with the local community and local businesses to support the regeneration of this part of Birmingham.”
CADIVI in top 50 of Vietnamese companies
FORBES Vietnam has named IWMA member the Vietnam Electric Cable Corporation (CADIVI) one of the top 50 Vietnamese companies.
CADIVI was one of only two companies selected in the household goods category. The company achieved a previous top 50 place in the 2016 list.
Forbes Vietnam compiled the list according to the same formulae Forbes US uses for its list of the world’s top companies, which take into the account the role of the brand in the performance of each business.
In the list are 20 Vietnamese business brands worth over US $100 million. Food and drink accounts for 10 of the top companies, while agriculture, securities, tourism and accommodation services have only one representative between them.
Household goods, banking, telecommunications, real estate and retailing accounted for a high proportion of highvalue brands.
The most valuable brands in the list were those that achieved a large turnover within their industries.
After making a long-list of more than 100 strong brands, Forbes Vietnam calculated income before tax, loan interest and asset values to make its 50-strong shortlist. To be selected, companies had to have profit growth in the previous three years. Companies were assessed on growth indicators such as revenue, profit, return on capital and earnings per share. The top 50 are recognised as companies creating jobs, benefiting investors and contributing to the Vietnamese economy.
www.cadivi-vn.com
AWI’s nuclear growth
ALLOY Wire International’s highperformance nickel alloy wire is helping to fuel the UK growth of nuclear power.
AWI has seen a 10 per cent surge in orders for its specialist wire, which is used in components for the nuclear power industry and critical seals and springs found in many of the world’s largest reactors.
Employing 31 people across sites in the West Midlands and Yorkshire, the company is on course to hit £1m of sales for this sector for the first time.
“We have been supplying the sector for a long time,” said managing director Mark Venables. “The last nine months have been our busiest time to date. We are supplying wire for existing plants and new projects across the world.
“Companies need to know the material they have ordered will withstand harsh temperatures and corrosion. The world relies on nuclear power more than ever, and any type of disruption has an impact on a lot of people.”
AWI is one of the UK’s leading manufac-
turers of round, flat and profile wire, and has over 200 tonnes of approved stock available at all times for manufacturing its 60-strong range, which includes Inconel® 600, Inconel® 718, Inconel® 750, Nimonic® 80A and Nimonic® 90 – all materials suited to nuclear applications. The firm’s emergency manufacturing service – which involves wire being produced and delivered in only a few days –has also been in high demand, with sales almost 15 per cent up on last year.
“This underlines the fluctuating requests being placed on spring makers supplying nuclear, and the importance of being able to access material quickly to meet spikes in demand,” said Mark.
“Investment in our manufacturing capabilities and technical team allow us to offer this unique service. We have spent over £250,000 already this year on new multiblock drawing machines.
“These have increased our capacity to take on even more nuclear work as we attempt to build on a record year.”
www.alloywire.com
Ambrell’s new UK HQ
AMBRELL Ltd – the British sales and service arm of American induction heating specialist Ambrell Corporation – has completed a move to a new location not far from its previous base in Cheltenham UK.
The new unit – at Space Business Centre, Cheltenham – is now Ambrell’s UK and Ireland sales headquarters.
Scott Miller, who is sales manager for Ambrell in the UK and Ireland, said, “We’re very excited about our new home. The layout has been optimised for efficiency and productivity, to strengthen the support we provide our customers.”
He continued, “The recent growth of Ambrell has been extraordinary and we continue to build on our most successful year in over 30 years in the industry. The move to our new location will help to meet the demands of our growth.”
www.ambrell.com
No-waste linear resistance measure
AESA-CORTAILLOD’S newlyintroduced and currently unique range of linear resistance testers offers highly-accurate results and no waste, since tests can be undertaken in production, without cutting the cable line.
The three-machine ResTest range features a standard model (8134), a model for aluminium cables (8135, which uses hydraulically-operated clamping, to accommodate the higher pressure required without deforming the cable), and a compact model for tighter spaces (8136).
The models save time and money because cables are tested in around five minutes on the production line (the ResTest features built-in heating for uniformity) and cables need no ground insulation for the test to take place. The machines are also mobile enough to be taken from line to line.
The line is stopped, the clamps attached, voltage taps and temperature sensors positioned, and the cover closed. The system heats and stabilises at the conductor temperature so the linear resistance can be measured.
The absence of cut samples means there is
very little scrap material. Engineers reckon a one per cent reduction in waste by a typical manufacturer, processing a few thousand tonnes of copper a year, can result in savings of up to $200,000.
The standard model can be used on copper cables from 2.5mm²-2000mm² and aluminium from 2.5mm²-300mm² over a one-metre section; the aluminium model can be used on copper cables from 2.5mm²-2000mm² and aluminium from 2.5mm²-1200mm², again over a one
metre section (various clamp designs are available), and the compact model handles copper up to 630mm² and aluminium up to 300mm² over a half-metre section.
Windows-based software manages conductor specifications and automatically saves conductor identification and the test results, which can be retrieved at any time. A printer can also be attached.
www.aesa-cortaillod.com
New business development roles at Metalube
SALES engineer Songul Facey has given up the fine weather of her home in Istanbul, Turkey for rainy Manchester UK as a business development manager for global lubricant manufacturer Metalube.
Songul, who has an engineering degree, has almost 20 years’ experience in the industry.
She joins the Manchester-based company after recent work in the wire drawing, wood panel and automotive sectors.
In earlier years she worked in the steel and iron, automotive spare parts and fastener industries. She will be responsible for the company’s global business development.
Also heading to Metalube as a business development manager is Adrian Day.
Adrian will be working closely with existing clients in Africa, Australasia, China, India & SE Asia.
Adrian has a wealth of experience after over 20 years in the industry, the last eight focused on speciality lubricants used in the nonferrous tube, wire drawing and wire rope sectors.
Metalube commercial director Douglas Hunt said: “It’s great to have them both on board.”
n BAHRA Cables, one of the leading wire and cable companies in the Gulf, is using two of Metalube’s products on its wire drawing machines.
Lubricool 22G and Metaclean NEC-50 have helped Bahra to achieve peak performance from its state-of-the-art Niehoff MM85 breakdown machine.
Bahra is achieving production speeds of 36 m/sec and an average daily production of 120 tonnes of drawn copper – around 40,000 tonnes a year – on one machine.
www.metalube.co.uk
EFD Induction appoints MD
EXPERIENCED and enthusiastic are the two main characteristics
Anders Karlsved, the recentlyappointed MD at EFD Induction, Sweden, uses to describe himself. A “people person”, he has been in the role since July, spending his time so far getting to know the company and exploring targets and business opportunities. He has an acknowledged talent for building teams and networks.
“I enjoy developing companies towards specific targets,” he says. “You have to start with an organisation that works well – and EFD Induction does.”
Karlsved (55, pictured below) has held executive positions in the electrical industry for decades. He joined EFD after 11 years with Swedish electrical company Eldon Installation, where he was first country manager then group CEO. He was responsible for building a new organisation with production in Vasteras, Sweden, and for developing and building new business areas, including electric car chargers.
“I very much enjoy meeting people from different parts of the world,” he says. EFD has bases worldwide and works across several industries, including cable and wire, and has systems for heating and treating structural ferrous and nonferrous wires, copper and aluminium cable and conductors, and fibre-optic cable production.
www.efd-induction.com
Power legacy: Ducab celebrates 40th year
AS THE UAE moves to widen its industrial capabilities, Ducab is celebrating 40 years as one of the region’s leading manufacturers.
Ducab is a global leader in the development, design, manufacture, marketing and distribution of copper and aluminium wire and cable products.
Founded in 1979, Ducab serves global customers in several sectors, including energy, general construction, oil & gas, renewables, industrial, defence, rail transport, marine, mining and other specialities, with revenues of around US1.5 billion.
The company – jointly owned by the Investment Corporation of Dubai and Senaat (General Holding Corporation, Abu Dhabi) – exports around 60% of its products and has diversified to offer a full range of cables, as well as aluminium and copper rod, from six manufacturing facilities.
Ducab’s loyal workforce of around 1,600 people includes many who have been there since day one, serving customers across the UAE and much of the world. While Ducab has achieved significant international growth in recent decades, the company believes the future of its industrial operations will focus on promoting research and innovation, talent development and strengthening the regulatory framework for the cable industry –the latter particularly important as the
global energy moves to alternative power sources.
The UAE has a national energy strategy to 2050.
“This year we are reflecting on the continuing investment in facilities and people that has brought value to our customers and the national economy,” says managing director Andrew Shaw.
“At this year’s Middle East Electricity conference we are thanking our partners for their continued loyalty while also exploring new partnerships, through which we can expand our product range, reach out to a wider geographical network, and build a more skilled workforce.”
Recent estimates show that the Gulf Cooperation Council region currently holds unawarded construction, transport and energy projects worth more than $2.5 trillion – a huge driver for the cabling industry.
Visitors to Middle East Electricity, a trade exhibition in Dubai attracting around 1,600 exhibitors and over 60,000 visitors, will be able to see Ducab Group’s latest business units, including Ducab Wires and Cables, Ducab High Voltage, Ducab Metals, and the Ducab Aluminium Company. Ducab is also speaking about best practice for power transmission to national power grids from renewables.
The MEE exhibition takes place at the Dubai World Trade Centre.
Virtualising a better harness
WIRE harness or cable assembly? While the terms are used interchangeably by many, there are some fundamental differences between the two, says Cimteq. Since individual cables are already protected by their own exterior sheath, a wire harness presents a simple and cost-effective exterior sheath to bundle the wires and protect them from their environment. Cable assembly, on the other hand, provides a heavierduty material that not only keeps cable organised in the same way as a wire harness, but shields the bundle from heat, friction, moisture, compression and other factors. Which of these two approaches a manufacturer will opt for will depend on the operating environment. In either instance, the set of wires, terminals and connectors relays information and electric power, so plays a critical role in connecting the components of products such as cars or washing machines.
Each electrical harness or cable bundle must demonstrate two specific qualities: geometrically, it must fit into a specific space – in some cases serving a much larger wiring network; and electrically, it must protect the cables from damage and conform to the standards of the industry in question.
Creating the perfect electrical harness or cable assembly begins with the robust design of cable and wire – a process supported by Cimteq’s software.
CableBuilder’s approach to cable design allows engineers to produce model variations before committing to the cost of production. Similarly, production costs can be significantly reduced by catching noncompliance issues early in the process.
Investing in software designed with the complexities of cable and wire in mind – not just as products, but also how they perform in situ, allows cable manufacturers to develop products highly specific to the job they need to do.
www.cimteq.com
Better product at a lower cost
AJEX & Turner says its new VNT Nano PCD dies for stranding, compacting and bunching copper and aluminium and low-carbon welding wire not only save power and metal, but also offer the brightest surface finish and reduce heat generation on the die or wire – all with little or no die replacement.
The die’s ultra-hard vapourdeposited multi-layer diamond surface offers extremely low surface friction. Its consequent advantages in metal and power consumption and surface finish, lack of metal dust creation and very long life at peak performance.
THE popular IWMA travel awards – through which the IWMA actively encourages industry newcomers to gain new skills and experience – are to have a facelift in 2020.
Recipients get the chance to attend major industry events such as wire Dusseldorf and CabWire, as a IWMA travel award contributes to travel and hotel costs.
The new-look award scheme will be renamed and include a more comprehensive programme – for example, at wire Düsseldorf, recipients will arrive on Monday in time to attend a welcome drinks reception. They will also be invited to the IWMA gala dinner on the Tuesday evening.
During the show, award recipients will visit member-company stands and assist in networking tasks such as making presentations to other awardees about their own companies’ work.
“It’s a much more comprehensive schedule, offering more opportunities to the recipients,” explained IWMA marketing manager Jessica Lambert.
Look out for full details and application forms in December.
Previous winners of the IWMA travel awards
Happy anniversary to us
NEXT year the IWMA celebrates its 50th anniversary, and we have lots planned to mark the occasion. We’ll not only be looking back at past achievements but also looking ahead to even greater heights in the future. See IWMA chairman Martin Van Der Zwan’s welcome on page two for a few of the details.
Don’t forget to send us your news stories to share here and online with other members.
First submissions for IWMA youth award received
NOMINATIONS for the new Wire & Cable Industry Young Person of the Year Award are already starting to arrive. The award, launched as part of the celebrations to mark the 50th anniversary of the IWMA, recognises the effort and abilities of the next generation of talent within the wire and cable industry.
“We’re highly encouraged by the early response from members,” said IWMA executive manager Andy Lewis (left).
The recipient can be from anywhere within the cable and wire industry, but must be under 30, work for an IWMA member-company and have been an employee for at least 12 months.
Shortlisted candidates will be invited to the well-established IWMA lunch (below) in February 2020, at which the winner – selected by a panel of top IWMA and industry experts – will be announced.
The lunch will also include a presentation from Mr Marcello Del Brunna, CEO of Prysmian UK, and Michael Finch, head of wire and cable at CRU Group in London.
Award nominees must show a “significant and sustained contribution” to their organisation and work colleagues and must be able to show progress in line with their employer’s business objectives.
Shortlisted candidates are also likely to be able to demonstrate a commitment to their company’s objectives above and beyond that normally expected at their level, as well as to their colleagues.
Candidates are also expected to demonstrate enthusiasm for their own professional development.
“Winning won’t be easy but we are looking for the best of the best in an outstanding pool of young talent,” explained Andy Lewis.
“As well as the prize, there will be other benefits for the winner – not least having their name in front of hundreds of senior managers from IWMA businesses all over the world.”
The submission must detail the achievements of the individual (in accordance with the given criteria), and should include details of the nominee’s company, the nominee’s name and role within the organisation and the name, role and company of the proposer.
See full details and an entry form at www.iwma.org
Welcome new members
Wire Electric Supplies Ltd in was founded in 1990 to provide the best service, quality and product range to the electrical coil winding industries. WES continues to set a high standard in product development and service back up.
www.wes.uk.com
Luma Metalspecialises in fine wire products in tungsten and molybdenum, as well as gold plating tungsten and molybdenum wires. Luma also uses fine and super fine wires in copper, beryllium copper, brass, stainless steel, silver and monel for plating. www.luma-metall.com
Baicheng Fujia Technology is the main cable equipment supplier in China. With continuous development and growth, the company has become diversified within multi private enterprises.
www.bcfjmm.com
Nappoo Hi Command was founded in 1998 The company has established a reputation for customer-specific solutions for processing a wide range of raw materials, both ferrous and nonferrous in bar, rod or wire form.
www.thaisummitcable.com
Riedel SDS, founded in 1990, has built a strong worldwide clientele for its wire drawing products for over almost 30 years. The company has customers all over the world and can supply many countries within 24 hours
www.riedelsds.de
BB Spring Technology is an Italian company founded in the 2014, specialising in the production of spring coiling machines. The company also produces wire payoffs which work perfectly with its machines, guaranteeing high performances. www.bbspringtechnology.com
Pakistan Cables Ltd was established in 1953 as a joint venture with British Insulated Callender's Cable (BICC), UK. Pakistan Cables is today a market leader and premier cable manufacturer, and has been listed on the Pakistan Stock Exchange since 1955. www.pakistancables.com
Heshan Hang Kei Steel Wire Manufacturing Co Ltd specialises in carbon steel wire, bedding spring wire, ACSR, galvanised low carbon steel wire for cable armouring, galvanised wire strand, fibre-optic cable, zinc-coated steel strand. www.hangkei.en.ec21.com
Forthcoming IWMA events
FEB
2020
05/02/2020 AGM and industry lunch with Wire and Cable Industry Young Person of the Year Award 2020
The Mere Golf Resort and Spa, Knutsford, Cheshire, UK
Novametal Wire UK Ltd is one of the major stockists and suppliers of stainless steel wire in the UK. Formerly known as Techwire International.
www.novametal.co.uk
MAR 2020 31/03/2020 wire Düsseldorf gala evening Congress Center, Düsseldorf, Germany
JUN 2020
SEP 2020
04/06/2020 Annual golf event
The Mere Golf Resort and Spa, Knutsford, Cheshire, UK
24/09/2020 Taste of Shanghai Evening Venue TBC, Shanghai, China
NOV 2020 24/11/2020 Taste of Mumbai Evening Venue TBC, Mumbai, India
For more information or to book tickets for any of these events, please visit the IWMA website, www.iwma.org/events, or email info@iwma.org
The IWMA is an industry partner to these major international wire and cable exhibitions
Be a part of it, when the future opens its gates: The world’s leading trade fair for the wire and cable industry extends an invitation to an industry spectacle. More innovative: Experience visionary machines, technologies and processes. Wider: For the first time, pioneers in the manufacture of end products – springs and fasteners – will be there. Thus, the complete value chain from raw materials to industry right up to high-end results is represented. In focus: Trends in mesh welding machines. And wire is becoming greener: With the ecoMetals Trails, you can take a tour to the pioneers of sustainability.
The field of progress has been prepared – for you as a decision-maker of the future. The best thing to do would be to register today: wire.de/2130
