The long-length line for jacketing cable-in-conduit conductors

Cable-in-conduit conductors (CICCs; multistrand fully transposed cables with metal jacket) have been investigated and widely used during the last 10–15 years. There are two main technologies for jacketing such conductors. One is a cable overlapped by metal tape which is welded into a jacket by a longitudinal weld. The second, so-called ‘pulling through’, technology consists of butt welding a full-length conduit, its check and insertion of the cable into the conduit. For both technologies the assembled conduit with cable is then compacted to the required shape and dimensions and wound on a drum. A brief comparative analysis shows the merits and demerits of these technologies. There are now some production lines for jacketing CICCs. One has been created in Russia. Its length is 1000 m. The line is fitted with all the necessary technological equipment and facilities for testing and quality assurance procedures. We describe our short-length sample trials and long-length (90 and 860 m) dummy CICC manufacturing experience.