TECHNOLOGY NEWS:
New fibre UV-upcoating system
Buffered optical fibres for premise applications have traditionally been made via extrusion of a fire-retardant thermoplastic material such as PVC over coloured optical fibres. The recent development of UV-curable acrylate resins with unique mechanical and fire-retardant properties has opened the door to a new generation of product design possibilities. Such designs offer the potential for improved product performance and for improved manufacturing efficiencies.
Nextrom, Switzerland, one of the world's premier suppliers of manufacturing solutions and services to the fibre optic industry, has developed new components to facilitate the conversion of existing factory equipment to produce a variety of new, buffered fibre designs. The company’s fibre upcoating system FUS contains a large capacity heated acrylate supply system, coating applicator and UV-lamp system. The FUS is easily incorporated into a tandem buffering line to produce 400 or 500µm Ø acrylate buffered fibres over-coated to 900µm Ø with a traditional thermoplastic. The final product combines the fire retardancy of traditional outer materials with a soft inner-buffering layer to enhance performance. Another possibility is to use the FUS in tandem with a jacketing line. The FUS would produce a 900µm Ø buffered fibre to allow the manufacture of patch cords in one step by eliminating a separate tight-buffering operation. The individual components developed for the FUS can also be used to upgrade traditional colouring machines, thus allowing the efficient high-speed manufacture of 400 – 900µm Ø fire-retardant buffered fibres.
Company: |
Nextrom Holding SA |
Country: |
Switzerland |
Fax: |
+41 21 804 8401 |
Email: |
|
Website: |
www.nextrom.com |