Novelties "Made in Germany"

Instead of relocating production to cheaper foreign countries, Lapp made a conscious decision to retain the "Made in Germany" location. "We have highly qualified specialists and state-of-the-art technologies there. That is the key to success," emphasizes Alexander Denk, Vice President of the Epic business unit. Together with Michael Zahl, Managing Director of Contact GmbH, he has repositioned the company and made it fit for the future. In the past financial year, more than 950 small improvements were successfully implemented in accordance with the principles of the Lapp Operation System (Lean Management), making a significant contribution to the efficiency and quality of production. In addition, investments were made in modern CNC machines, packaging systems and automation technologies, as well as in more than 80 new tools. "This enables us to renew the entire Epic portfolio piece by piece and offer customers the best possible products and solutions," says Michael Zahl.

New feel for the housings

The first big step was the redesign of the Epic H-B and H-A series rectangular connector housings. They are now more modern and easier to grip. The front and rear corners have been flattened and deeper ribs have been drawn on the front sides. This means that the rectangular connector is easier to grip and does not slip out of the hand during assembly, even in oily environments. The entire H-B and H-A series has now been converted to the new design. "We want to get our customers excited about Epic again with a whole package of measures and we are sure that they will order everything from a single source again in future - not just cables, but also the matching connectors," says Martin Hoffmann Vicente, the responsible product manager at Lapp.

Data connector with snap-in clip

There are also a number of other new products. For example, two new Epic Data RJ45 field-attachable data connectors for assembly with Cat.6A or Cat.8.1 cables. They enable simple cable connection using insulation displacement technology. The metal housing made of die-cast zinc ensures the stability of the Cat.8.1 connector. The UL-certified plug is suitable for all LAN networks and Ethernet applications up to 10GBase-T or 40GBase-T. The new Epic Data RJ45Cat.8.1 enables transmission rates of up to 40 Gbit/s over a distance of 30 meters. This makes it particularly suitable for use in data centers. The new Epic Data RJ45 Cat. 6A is also available with the matching Epic Data RJ45 Crimp crimping tool for installation.

Further, cost-optimized versions of the Epic SENSOR M12 panel connector are now available. This is an "express connection" for sensor-actuator interfaces in the control cabinet. It already has 50 cm long individual wires and is screwed into the front of the housing. It can then be easily wired inside the enclosure. Its stability and tightness (IP 67) ensure secure connections in the sensor/actuator field.

Built-in plug with single wires

The Epic Power M12 panel connector is also available for the express connection of devices in the control cabinet. It also comes with 50 cm long individual wires, is screwed into the front of the housing and can then be easily wired inside the housing. M12L/M12T are used to connect smaller devices in DC applications. The M12S and M12T variants, on the other hand, are used to connect three-phase motors up to 7.5 kW. All variants are UL-certified.

For the first time, Lapp is also launching battery connectors on the market. The Epic Battery M and the Epic Battery F are special connection technology for energy storage systems up to 1500 V. Battery modules are the most important components in energy storage systems. They must therefore be connected extremely safely, quickly and efficiently. With this 360° rotatable battery pole connector, the front and rear wiring of the battery poles is completed particularly quickly.