InfoPower

Cable is a sleek composite of resins and metals which are vital materials of making world-class power cords and cord sets. While dependable and durable, even essential to modern-day life, cable is also susceptible to acute bending, especially near the point where the cord exits the equipment. Underneath the smooth resinous skin of our example cord, lay three conductors of extruded copper wire. If those wires are extremely bent or otherwise damaged, the result could be loss of electrical continuity or shortened lifespan—protecting your cord’s bend radius helps maintain connectivity. And understanding your cord’s recommended minimum bend radius for cable is critical to the maintenance and longevity of the cable and the machines and equipment powering them.

Before cord sets are ready to be boxed for shipping, the colorants used in the resins, and the shiny brass and alloys of blades and pins may often resemble an electrical work of art that catches the eye—especially the orange and red cord sets preferred by Australian and Denmark hospitals respectively. Or maybe it’s a clear molded plug, or a hand-wired plug where one can see inside to tell whether every wire retains electrical continuity around the stainless steel ring that binds the conductors. Even standard colors like black and gray offer a semblance of eye candy while manufactured to carry hundreds of volts to equipment across multiple environments.

Individual conductor wires are extruded in resin before 2- and 3-wire conductors are cabled into a “twist” of conductors before jackets are extruded over them. The jacketing process is similar to insulating copper wires on the extrusion line. The main difference is jacketing uses more extruded resin making it more time-consuming than insulating. Prior to extrusion, talc is applied to the twisted, insulated conductors which acts as a release-agent for stripping the jacket. This is especially user-friendly when a few millimeters of jacket need to be stripped for crimping wires.

Interpower North American and international cable is manufactured in the U.S.A. at its Lamoni, Iowa, facility. So how is Interpower durable and reliable cable manufactured?

Cable is made up of specialized material and components that are vital parts of making a world-class power cord or cord set. If one of the cable components is damaged, it can directly affect the product. Making sure you know the recommended minimum bend radius for cable is critical to the performance and longevity of your product and its ultimate success.