In close collaboration with the customer, an e-beam crosslinkable, halogen free and flame retardant (HFFR) cable-compound was developed for the Asian railway market.
The requirements on cables for the railway sector are very high. In order to meet the critical specifications including long term aging, high flame resistance and excellent electrical properties, high grade compounds must be used. At the same time, the material must be cost efficient and easy to process.
The following requirements had to be met with the new compound development:
- Cable standard EN 50264-3-1
- Material properties EI 110
- Fire test EN 45545-2
In order to meet the specification, a new material was developed step by step and in close cooperation between Lapp Engineering and the customer. Already at an early stage of the project it was realized that the desired properties can only be reached with an optimal combination of raw materials used in the compound formulation.
While the compound development and preliminary testing were performed at Lapp Engineering, the prototype fabrication and testing were realized directly in the production facility of the customer. With this process it was ensured that potential challenges regarding material processing or technical requirements can be anticipated and solved already at an early stage of the project.
The specialized compound with high end properties and excellent processability allows the customer to produce efficiently and independently. The close cooperation brought flexibility and knowledge transfer as well as the possibility of further optimizations and customizations of the compound, also for cable applications outside of the railway sector. Owing to the tailor-made compound solution, our customer stands out from the crowd and successfully develops new markets.
