With the new UL MTW/TC-ER certified control cable series CF150.UL and CF160.UL from igus, however, this is no longer a problem. The MTW cables are specified for use in industrial plants and can be laid directly on the cable tray thanks to TC-ER (Tray Cable-Exposed Run) approval, which places special demands on material and design. With the "UL listed" seal, the two chainflex series are the only control cables approved for the e-chain and tray. This provides users with cables that function reliably and are designed for continuous movement - with a 36-month or 10 million stroke service life guarantee.

Whether permanently installed, in a cable tray or used in the energy chain - a control cable has to withstand a wide variety of loads. If a cable fails, production often comes to a standstill. To ensure a fail-safe supply, motion plastics specialist igus has developed two control cable series that can withstand continuous movement and can be used in both the e-chain and the cable tray. Both have an outer sheath specially approved for use as MTW/TC-ER cables, which has been optimized on the basis of a long series of tests with over 26 million cycles. This oil-resistant, highly abrasion-resistant PVC sheath, which is designed for continuous movement, also meets the demanding tray cable test with the corresponding FT4, FT1 and VW1 fire regulations. The cables are available both with a screen (CF160.UL) and without (CF150.UL). They also have a bending radius of just 7.5 x d in the e-chain and are suitable for unsupported travel distances and up to 50 meters in gliding applications. Typical applications include storage and retrieval machines, processing/packaging machines or indoor cranes.

More security thanks to certified guarantee promise

Thanks to the option of laying the cable directly after the cable drag chain on the cable tray, there is no longer any need for connection points behind the e-chain, complex enclosures or double storage of different cable types for the chain area and fixed installation. This means that the cables can be used easily in different systems and downtimes can be reduced by avoiding cable types without chain qualification. This is possible thanks to UL approval from the independent US organization Underwriters Laboratories (UL), which is one of the most important authorities when it comes to product safety.

In addition, igus gives its customers a guarantee promise. "With our CF150.UL and CF160.UL control cables, we are also fully committed to a lifetime guarantee. We have developed two unique series that are suitable for use in both e-chains and cable trays - and also provide our customers with tested and certified safety," explains Rainer Rössel, authorized signatory and head of the chainflex cables division at igus. To this end, both cable series were tested under real-life application scenarios in the company's own laboratory, the world's largest for moving applications in industry. "With over 30 years of experience and numerous tests, we can make reliable and guaranteed statements about the service life of our cables and give our customers a guarantee of up to 36 months or 10 million double strokes on our cables with a clear conscience. We were the first German company to have this promise validated," adds Rainer Rössel. Based on the test results, customers can easily and transparently calculate the service life of the cables using an online tool - for greater reliability and planning security.