How do you choose the right wire and cable manufacturer for your business? Supplying and manufacturing custom-made cable and wire is a complex task that requires a company with a high level of experience, excellent manufacturing capabilities, and recognized certifications. Let’s take a closer look at how each of these qualities can factor into your choice.

Finding Experienced Wire and Cable Manufacturers

Working with established wire and cable manufacturers that have decades of experience ensures you’re working with a business that knows the industry and has adopted best practices for manufacturing quality cable and wire. Visit the business’ website and study their company history to determine how experienced their management and staff is.

Of course, it’s equally important to find a wire and cable manufacturer with experience creating the wire needed for your specific industry. Again, study the company website to learn what types of wire and cable they supply, and for what purposes. Often, the website will promote the specific wires and cables the company is most adept at manufacturing and selling. This will help you determine if the company fits your needs.

If necessary, calling or visiting the manufacturer is also a good way to gauge their experience. Provide them with the design specifications of the cable or wire you use and discover if they’ve ever manufactured that type of product before. Ask if you can see samples of their work, allowing you to judge their expertise.

Keep in mind that while working with a less experienced company might be cheaper, it’s better to work with experienced wire and cable manufacturers that are well-established. Not only are these companies more adept at creating the products you need and delivering them in the amounts you need, but they are also unlikely to close up and leave you scrambling to find another wire and cable provider.

Assessing the Capabilities of Your Wire and Cable Manufacturer

You likely have very specific reasons for wanting to do business with a wire and cable manufacturer. Perhaps the cable your company currently uses is defective, requiring you to obtain a more durable product, or even have a custom wire built. Maybe the cable you need has to be very flexible or made to a specific size, or with certain components or materials.

Whatever your needs, you should be sure that the manufacturer you choose is capable of providing you with what you require. This means choosing a company that not only has the manufacturing expertise to build your cable but also the means to manufacture it to your timeline so your business can save time and money. To evaluate all of this, you’ll need to assess the capabilities of your wire and cable manufacturer before you contract with them.

Wire and Cable Design, Manufacturing, and Engineering

To begin, research the company and learn how good they are at customizing or creating completely unique cables. A reliable wire and cable manufacturer should be able to not only supply you with pre-made products but also be prepared to modify existing wire or even produce entirely new cable designs using a wide range of materials.

Flexibility is also something that characterizes a highly capable manufacturer. No matter how simple or complex your wire design is, no matter how large or small your order, the manufacturer should be able to produce the cable you need in a set time frame. This is equally important for companies who place large-volume orders as well as small-volume orders. In fact, check their MOQ to determine if they can supply the quantity you need.

Other Factors to Consider

In addition to having the breadth of design and manufacturing capabilities, there are several other factors that are important considerations in selecting a cable manufacturer.

Fiber Optics & Copper – does the company have expertise with both cable types? If so, they will be more likely to supply what you need, including making suggestions for hybrids or using one type over the other for your application.

Personalized Service – Look for a smaller sized company that can provide more personalized service, giving you what you want, not forcing you to buy what they sell.

Quick & Nimble – Nothing is more frustrating than finding out your supplier can’t design or manufacture the required cable product when you need it, especially after you’re a long way into the relationship with a lot of time (and possibly money) invested. Seek a supplier who can make things happen quickly for you.

Access to Executives – When problems arise, you want your voice to be heard. So make sure your cable manufacturer provides easy access to its executives for assurance that you’ll have the right audience if and when it’s needed.

Things to Look for When Selecting a Wire and Cable Manufacturer

In order to construct the type of cable you need, a manufacturer must have excellent sourcing capabilities. This means they must have access to a wide range of materials — such as jacketing and insulation compounds, a variety of shielding materials, or different types of armor — and be able to obtain these materials quickly, saving you both money and time.

When assessing a wire and cable manufacturer’s capabilities, it’s a good idea to meet with their engineering department and learn more about their sourcing and manufacturing capabilities. Ask what methods they use when working on a new product and how long it will take to design your wire, create a prototype or production sample, and produce a finished product.

Pay particular attention to their quality management systems. Learning how your cables are processed during production and the types of quality checks the manufacturer performs is essential to knowing your manufacturer is capable of producing a good product.

Learning About Your Wire and Cable Manufacturers Certifications

Another important way to determine your wire and cable manufacturer’s experience is to check their certifications. A manufacturer’s certifications not only show they adhere to all required safety and quality standards but also identify what industries they’re capable of serving. Certifications should be shared on the manufacturer’s website and the company should be able to share any additional information needed to show they’re capable of working on your project.

Depending on the type of wire and cable manufacturer you are working with, you may find many different certifications, including:

  • UL: UL stands for Underwriters Laboratories, a not-for-profit certification agency that is recognized by the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA). This certification indicates the product meets industry-wide safety and quality standards.
  • ETL: ETL certifications come from Intertek’s Electrical Testing Labs — an OSHA-recognized testing laboratory — and ensures that products meet quality, health, environmental, safety, and social accountability standards.
  • ISO 9001: ISO 9001 is an international standard for a quality management system (QMS) in multiple industries.
  • RoHS: RoHS (Restriction of Hazardous Substances) is a product-level compliance certification that indicates a company’s products do not exceed the allowable amounts of lead, mercury, cadmium, hexavalent chromium, polybrominated biphenyls, and polybrominated diphenyl ethers in electrical and electronic equipment.
  • ABS: ABS (American Bureau of Shipping) certification indicates that cables used in shipbuilding are compliant with regulations.

Selecting the Best Wire and Cable Manufacturer for Your Needs

Finding wire and cable manufacturers with the proper experience, capabilities, and certifications for your business ensures you receive the exact type of wire or cable you need. Since 1972, Remee Wire & Cable has been providing clients with the cables they need—from standard to modified standard, to custom-engineered wire and cable.

Our flexible service terms are a great fit for many unique business requirements. Contact us today to see how we can help with your cable needs.