Harwin goes to great lengths for custom cable assembly
Reporting a rapid rise in demand in cable assembly, Harwin has significantly expanded the scope of its custom cable assembly capabilities. The service is conducted by the company’s newly announced HRi business unit and covers multiple configurations and features, specifying cables to any length.
Custom cabling can be provided by Harwin HRi for high reliability interconnect products including the 1.25mm-pitch Gecko, 2mm-pitch Datamate, 3mm-pitch M300, the high-power Kona families and the Mix-Tek combined power and data connectors. Applications expected to use the custom cable assembly capabilities are robotics, UAVs (unmanned aerial vehicles), AGVs (automated guided vehicles), satellites, and medical equipment.
Presently, OEMs looking to source custom cable assemblies have a limited number of possibilities. Going to an assembly house requires a large upfront payment for tooling, for example. This can prove uneconomical, especially if there are only relatively small unit quantities required. Alternatively, the OEM could do the work itself but this requires investment in specialist assembly equipment, as well as extensive staff training and reorganising workflows. Testing will also need to be conducted, which will further add to the cost and logistical complexities involved.
Harwin’s engineering expertise can be brought to even the most challenging cabling projects. The team offers the skills necessary for coax cabling work, as well as the use of twisted pairs and the addition of shield braiding to combat EMI issues. Back potting can also be incorporated into assemblies to achieve better cable retention.
With very small minimum order quantities (MOQs) able to be catered for, Harwin’s custom cable offering is suitable for early stage prototyping work. It also fully supports customers across the rest of the products’ lifecycles, including transition into production phases.
Drawing on the knowledge of Harwin’s engineering professionals, the cabling implemented will deliver the maximum possible performance while keeping the overall size and weight down. Once assembled, thorough testing is carried out on the cabling to assure its quality and long-term reliability. The company’s cable assembly facility is fully compliant with the IPC-A-620 standard.
“The ability to quickly and conveniently access cable assemblies that match their exact criteria is vital for an increasing percentage of our customers. Rather than doing this work themselves, they want to offload it onto a trusted supply partner with all the in-house know-how,” states Ryan Smart, head of product management at Harwin. “The broad array of custom capabilities we can now provide complement our off-the-shelf cabling options.”
“By being able to deal with everything under one roof, we are bringing real value to customers; in terms of amenability, cost-effectiveness and short turnaround times,” he continued. “And what sets us apart is that we can take care of even the smallest volumes.”
