By Malcolm Moss, Managing Director of Doby Verrolec
Time is money. It’s a phrase that is heard often and it remains one of the immovable principles of working life because labour is one of the major financial elements of any project.
As a result more is expected from you in less time – and you still need to ensure that you carry out a professional job. So when there is an option to save a few man-hours it is the perfect scenario for everyone.
If you Google the phrase ‘time saving solutions for electricians’ you will be faced with a plethora of weird and wonderful tools, fixtures and components. But if you look at them purely in terms of value for money some are undoubtedly better than others.
Value for money is something which both you and your client want and there are some solutions on the market which will allow you both to achieve success – particularly when the job involves the overhead suspension of static loads.
For many people reading this it will conjure up images of working at height with some fairly hefty bits of kit because that is the reality of traditional solutions which use threaded rod or jack chains. But there is an alternative in the form of wire rope suspension systems and it is a solution which is gaining in popularity.
Cut out the costs
Wire rope suspension systems use a very simple formula to produce a very versatile and effective result – and it is this combination which is proving popular with installers who are looking for a modern and fast way to suspend static loads such as luminaires, HVAC equipment and cable tray.
If you take DobyGrip as an example, the galvanised wire rope can be loop-ended, fitted with a carabina, eye bolts or used in Y-shape formation depending on the application. This, together with the precision-engineered gripping mechanism such as the patented design used by this system, makes the entire installation significantly faster and easier to complete.
Fast and easy are phrases that everyone likes to hear, but unlike some of the products which a Google search throws up, these are genuine claims which are achieved because wire rope suspension systems don’t require any of the time consuming tasks necessary to complete the installation using a threaded rod system.
For example, if you are using a traditional threaded rod solution you could waste a lot of time measuring, cutting, screwing and adjusting bulky channel and studding materials – and that’s before you factor in problems such as damage from minor burrs to the thread which cost additional time and money. In comparison a wire rope suspension system is made up of very few components and it can be accurately adjusted with nothing more complex than a pair of snips to remove the excess wire once the height has been adjusted, cutting the time spent on the job by up to 60 per cent.
Aside from the drastic cut in preparation time required, the fact that the installation is faster also means that there is less time spent working at height. The site can also be kept free of tripping hazards as there is no need for long runs of channel to be stored anywhere; and the hot work and necessary permits associated with cutting materials to size is also removed from the equation.
Selection policy
This type of solution is indeed very easy to install, but it is worth noting that the skills which are required should not be taken for granted and if you want the end result to perform as expected you need to carry out the correct installation procedures.
Therefore a supplier who offers a free product selection service is the best way to ensure the right combination of grips and end fixings are used for the application. Making use of specialist knowledge from the manufacturer’s technical experts will also guarantee that you choose the most suitable products for the application ensuring that you won’t have to return to the job to make changes.
A modern solution
Whatever the application, the ability to get the job done faster is going to be a benefit that no customer will turn down. But in addition, the look and feel of the solution will also win hands down over its traditional rivals. Ultimately you could be the person responsible for the higher standard of finish on a job that has traditionally placed function way ahead of form – it’s certainly a tempting prospect.
This feature was published in the June 2015 issue of Professional Electrician. If you would like to commission a similar feature please contact Tracey Rushton-Thorpe.
