Source Engineering
and Manufacturing has designed a new product and progression tooling for the
manufacture of a new cable fixing to improve safety in buildings in the event
of fire. Changes to the BS7671 wiring
regulations (wiring systems in escape routes) which have come into force this
year have seen a sudden gap in the market for metal cable fixings. The wiring
systems in escape routes amendment was in response to the deaths of two
fire-fighters who became entangled in collapsed wiring systems. The new
amendment states that wiring systems in escape routes must be supported by
metal fixings or held in metal containment rather than plastic, which has been
the norm for years.
Following a customer
enquiry, Source Engineering researched the market to understand fully the
customer's requirements and looked at similar products and how they could be
improved. The final design had a number of added benefits, including easier
fixing and installation and most importantly, competitive costing. Selecting
stainless steel as the material improves the material performance and widens
the scope for applications. Secondly, manufacturing in stainless steel removes
the need for plating the part, due to its corrosion resistant properties, which
makes it cheaper to produce than a zinc plated mild steel part and removes a
whole process.
After
prototypes were produced and assessed by the customer, Source Engineering
manufactured the progression tooling in house. Being
involved in the design meant we could optimise the part for manufacture. The
product and tooling were designed to minimise waste and make production as
straight forward as possible. We also added the ability to interchange pieces
of the tooling to meet individual customer requirements in terms of branding. From
the initial enquiry, through to design, prototyping, tooling and production took
four months. The product is manufactured for use in the construction and
electrical installation industry.
Ian Matthews, Source Engineering’s Operations Director, said: “Many metal press shops avoid working with stainless steel due to the difficulties in tooling and processing. We have 23 years of experience and knowledge dedicated this tough, non-corrosive metal. In this case the turnaround time from initial enquiry to full production was just four months, as the design, tooling and production are all in-house.”
The 17th Edition Wiring Regulations was updated on 1st January 2015 under the title ‘IET Wiring Regulations 17th Edition Amendment 3’. The new regulations came into effect on 1st July 2015 and affects electrical installations.
