Cable management: crucial in every mechanical machine design

It is not the heart of your machine, but it does make that heart beat. Perhaps it is because of this supporting role that some machine developers pay less attention to cabling. That is a pity. Because poor cable management invariably leads to problems. Here is a look at the culprits and the solutions.

The devil is in the details. One of those details in the design of your custom machine is the cabling and the associated cable management.

Good cable management guarantees that:

• Routing paths are organized as efficiently as possible.
• Cables are neatly concealed while remaining accessible.
• Everything is orderly organized to avoid cable spaghetti.

Feedthroughs, cable trays, and hooks

With us, cable management is a standard part of the machine design. From the very first step, our engineers consider how best to integrate electrical cables and compressed air lines, for example. By providing cable trays on or feedthroughs in the machine frame, for instance. Or by integrating mounts at the right locations to secure cables and lines.

Avoid afterthought solutions

This approach guarantees that we can make the right decisions upfront. If we fail to do so, it always comes at the expense of your machine’s quality.

If cabling is not taken into account during the design phase, afterthought solutions are inevitable. You can spot them from a mile away:

• Exposed electrical cables
• Lines running over the frame
• A tangle of cables
• Dangling cables
• Unnecessary bends

This not only looks messy, but it also causes actual problems. Such as dust accumulation on and between the lines. And unprotected electrical cables that pose a safety risk to your operators.

Poor cable management also makes efficient maintenance difficult. A clear schematic combined with logical cabling makes it easy to locate a specific cable or line. This, in turn, equates to faster troubleshooting and easier repairs.

Conclusion?

So, even though it is not the heart of your machine, check how your machine developer handles cable management during your initial meetings. Do they pay sufficient attention to it, or do they dismiss it as just a detail?

Know that a lack of attention to this aspect will inevitably come back to haunt you, your operators, and your maintenance team.