Wire Striping / Cable Striping

What is Wire & Cable Striping?

Wire and cable are unlike any other product in terms of colour, because of the limited options available. The wire and cable colour standards are typically limited to 10 numbers ranging from 0-9, with specific products allowing a few additional colouring options. Wire and cable striping is used to help electrical personnel find exactly what they're looking for as quickly as possible, with each wire having a base colour and stripe that identifies its specific purpose.

0. Black

1. Brown

2. Red

3. Orange

4. Yellow

5. Green

6. Blue

7. Purple (violet)

8. Grey

9. White

Now imagine an application that requires 15 plus wires with the same connectors, all connected in very close proximity to one another. Things can get complicated very quickly, with applications continuously growing in size and technology consistently advancing. Circuit identification has a few noticeable benefits; first is that it provides people maintaining these electrical wiring systems with organized and safe working environments. Second is wire striping saves time because having the same colour wires in close proximity to one another makes continuous maintenance extremely difficult. The only reliable way to identify a specific cable without a stripe is by following it to its destination or by using a different kind of print on each one.

   

Different Wire Striping Styles

Wire striping generally comes in 3 options:

   

1. Spiral Cable Striping (Most common)

The most popular option, as the stripes can be seen from any angle. Striping is typically added after manufacturing and can be completed relatively easily.

    

2. Vertical Cable Striping (Longitudinal)

The vertical striping line runs down a single vertical side of the cable and is typically extruded by manufacturers. The vertical or longitudinal striping is also rarely used as the stripe is much more difficult to see.

   

3. Ring Wire Striping (Solid Circles)

The most unpopular method that exists is the ring band stripe. This method has a very similar end result to the ‘spiral striping’. This type of striping is also preferred on certain products, mainly the mil-spec designations (M27500 in particular).

   

The different striping methods are all unique in different ways, and although each method has its own pros and cons, spiral striping is still seen as the most time-efficient and cost-effective. Being the most popular type of striping, manufacturers and distributors have begun adding additional stripes for even further identification. Adding more than 1 stripe can get confusing very quickly, but with lay lengths ranging from 1" to 3", each line is easily identifiable. Generally, most individuals will only ever require 1 stripe, but customers can request up to 3 spirals at one time. Using any additional lines will cause overlapping, and most striping machines only have 3 ink wells.

    

Overall, striping is one of our most popular value-added services and is one of the most time-efficient and cost-effective services available. With hundreds of different combinations, this VAS can make even the most confusing wiring systems manageable and organized. Our team at Sycor has been providing striped cables since 1981 and can help answer any questions or wire striping requests you may have.

   

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