Installing any component into a structure requires careful planning and selection. Failure to do so can lead to unnecessary additional costs and duplicate efforts, derailing the accomplishment of the project and causing overall inconveniences to everyone. So even for the little details, like cable glands, it’s imperative to pay them due attention because the goal for any construction project is to get the job done the right way, cost-effectively, and quickly.
Cable glands are nothing exceptionally fancy, really, but choosing the appropriate style and size can contribute significantly to the overall proper maintenance of cables distributed throughout the structure, and compliance to industry standards. If you are tasked to choose cable glands for a building project, provided below is a checklist that can help you select the appropriate size and design to meet your project’s requirements.
- Always start off by correctly identifying the type of cable to be used.
- Be sure to know the construction, size and material properties of the cable.
- Do find out if electricians want to color coordinate cables so identification and organization would be easier, especially now that cable glands come in a variety of colors.
- Establish the location of the cables and the conditions within that location. Will they be exposed to dampness and would you need water-resistant, corrosion-proof cable glands for the job? Is it really hot where the cables will be installed? Temperature has always been known to have a direct impact on the integrity of cables and all the other components that support them.
- If the cable is armored, also be sure to consider the following:
- Type, size and material of the armor
- Actual diameter of the inner bedding and lead covering
- Short circuit fault current rating of the armor
- Size of the overall cable diameter
- Material of the mating electrical enclosures, because dissimilar metals tend to have a negative reaction to each other
- Is protective plating necessary to be applied to the cable gland or not?
- Type and size of the cable entry hole in the mating electrical equipment
- Ingress protection rating of the site standard
- Is a single or double seal cable gland required?
- Are fixing accessories, earth tags, and shrouds required?
- Is an entry thread seal needed for IP66 (or IP67/68)?
- Will you need a thread conversion adaptor/reducer to make the installation?
- Are stopper plugs needed to close off unused cable entries?