Engineers and panel builders could easily be confused by the wide variety of wire marking solutions that are currently available. These range from extremely basic individual ferrules which can be time-consuming to fit - to high tech machines that produce terminal markers, along with a range of other applications. Bob Little explores some of the wire marking solutions currently available.

1. While it’s safe to assume that panel
builders want to have a straightforward,
easy-to-work and reliable solution, the
ease, and cost-effectiveness of that
solution will depend on the complexity of
the job in hand.
Manufacturers that are active in this
market segment include Weidmüller
(which became Klippon before reverting
to Wiedmüller), Grafoplast, Partex (a
Swedish company), Panduit, Phoenix
Contact and Silver Fox, which is unusual
in developing and manufacturing its
solutions in the UK.
All companies produce 2-part wire marking
systems. These involve users printing the
label, either via a thermal printer or a plotter
or inkjet, usually onto a rigid piece of plastic
and then pushing this into a clear plastic
tubing sleeve that has two recesses - one
for the label and one for the wire. The
installation of the marking label can take
place before or after the sleeve is installed
on the wire - and irrespective of whether or
not the wire is connected.
An important benefit is that the ident (ID)
can be changed without cutting off the
wire. So, if this happens during the
project, a significant amount of time can
be saved by removing the label and
replacing it with another one. This takes
seconds and compares favourably with
the time and cost of having to cut the
wire, re-label it, re-terminate it and then
possibly even re-test the circuit, which
would be necessary when using
individual ferrules or a printed tube,
such as heat-shrink or non-shrink.
Clearly, there are projects where, during
construction, there will be many
changes - so a 2-part system becomes
attractive even though each ID involves
two operations (applying the clear tube
and then applying the label). However,
tubing systems, whether they’re
heat-shrink or non-shrink, involve only
one operation - of sliding a single tube
onto the cable/wire
A key disadvantage of using most
2-part wire marking systems is that the
plastic on which the label is printed
could be rather thick. So, the label
might be difficult to fit into its recess in
the clear tubing and may also be difficult
to get out again. In contrast, Silver Fox’s
Legend® 2-part labelling system uses
flexible material which, with the use of a
special tail, can be pulled into/out of the
label recess in the clear tubing. Once
the project is finished, the tail end can
be removed or cut off. The label can
still be changed if needed, however.
14 www.pbsionthenet.net
Cabling
The hidden secrets of
non-shrink tubing
Engineers and panel builders could easily be
confused by the wide variety of wire marking
solutions that are currently available. These
range from extremely basic individual ferrules
– which can be time-consuming to fit - to high
tech machines that produce terminal markers,
along with a range of other applications. Bob
Little explores some of the wire marking solutions
currently available.
While it’s sa
builders w
easy-to-w
ease, a
on will depend on the complexity of
job in hand.
Manufacturers that are active in this
market segment include Weidmüller
(which became Klippon before reverting
to Wiedmüller), Grafoplast, Partex (a
Swedish company), Panduit, Phoenix
Contact and Silver Fox, which is unusual
in developing and manufacturing its
solutions in the UK.
All companies produce 2-part wire marking
systems. These involve users printing the
label, either via a thermal printer or a plotter
or inkjet, usually onto a rigid piece of plastic
and then pushing this into a clear plastic
tubing sleeve that has two recesses - one
for the label and one for the wire. The
installation of the marking label can take
place before or after the sleeve is installed
on the wire - and irrespective of whether or
not the wire is connected.
co
might be d
the clear tubing and
to get out again. In contrast, S
Legend® 2-part labelling system uses
flexible material which, with the use of a
special tail, can be pulled into/out of the
label recess in the clear tubing. Once
the project is finished, the tail end can
be removed or cut off. The label can
still be changed if needed, however.
14 www.pbsionthenet.net
safe to assume that panel
want to have a straightforward,
-work and reliable solution, the
and cost-effectiveness of that

2. Along with Silver Fox, Partex offer a
LASER printable sheet that’s A4 size - so
it goes through a standard laser printer
– but, effectively, the Partex sheet
produces small rectangles that are then
pushed into the clear tubing. However,
because of their shape, there’s a limit to
the length of the label - since a flexible
piece of polyester can’t be pushed very
far into the clear tubing because it’ll
merely flex and be impossible to get in.
Hence, the Silver Fox ‘pull’ system.
However, with any wire marking job that
involves up to, say, four characters, it
makes some sense to use manual
ferrules. Taking the time to turn on a
computer and a printer, load them with
both the relevant information and the
blank labels - and then produce and
apply the labels - is more expensive and
time-consuming than using the low-tech,
old fashioned manual ferrule approach.
There are, of course, other approaches
to wire marking – notably the heat-shrink
and the non-shrink tubing approaches.
Both heat-shrink and non-shrink tubing
systems are similar in that they’re both
tubes to which printing is applied in some
form. Heat-shrink polyolefin labels can be
shrunk down using a heat gun (and will,
thus, grip the cable they’re labelling),
while the non-shrink is usually made from
pvc and is just slid onto the wire.
Using non-shrink tubing can also be
helpful in higher volume jobs particularly
where there are expected to be fewer
changes but where it’s important to be
able to produce the relevant IDs not only
cost-effectively but also in good time.
The benefits of this approach include:
• single application – only one tube is
slid onto the wire, saving time, whereas
by definition, with the 2-part system,
there are two parts and, thus, two
operations
• non-shrink tubing is a low cost option,
both compared with individual ferrules
and with heat-shrink tubing
However, if a change is needed during
construction then the 2-part system has the
advantage that the wire doesn’t need to be
cut in order to make a change. The more
changes that are necessary, the more a
2-part system comes into its own.
Both Partex and Silver Fox offer non-shrink
tubing systems but Silver Fox’s
non-shrink tubing is soft, matt and
oval in shape. The oval shape is designed to
give the label maximum grip on the wire.
This prevents the tubing from sliding down
the wire while, at the same time, allowing the
user to turn and leave the message in a
position for easy reading, both now and in
the future.
Under the Silver Fox system, when produc-
ing the ferrules, users can choose the length
of label required. This can be anything from
10mm to 110mm – and more, if needed.
There’s no limit on the number of characters
that can be included on each label.
While those using the Silver Fox 2-part wire
marking labels can opt to print these via
laser or thermal printer, Silver Fox’s non-
shrink labels can only be printed via its
thermal printer. However, this allows users to
print two rolls at the same time and, if they’re
using the Professional version of the
software, produce the cross-ferrules’ IDs or
even print both ends at the same time on
the same print run. Whether printing both
ends at the same time or just printing a
straightforward job with two rolls also
ensures the optimum use of thermal ribbon.
With the Silver Fox solution, the same
printer, thermal ribbon and software can be
used on the full range Silver Fox thermal
labels. There’s no need to change the
ribbon.
Nick Michaelson, Silver Fox’s CEO,
commented: “We’re extremely proud of this
solution, as it helps our customers save both
time and money. We’ve invested thousands
of hours, so the engineer doesn’t need to!”
“We’ve made sure it’s simple and straightfor-
ward to use - with one printer, one ribbon
and one software program. There’s no
time-consuming set-up each time a label
type is changed and no more wastage of
labels. Just prepare the information, load the
labels and print - job done!”
“Non-shrink tubing is an extremely
cost-effective way of marking wires –
certainly for the higher volumes and
even for lower volumes,” he continued.
“It compares favourably with using
individual ferrules and, in most cases,
costs less. Notably, though, there are
also time savings in using this method of
wire marking.”
“Non-shrink tubing’s quicker for Z-type
labels, for example. Instead of putting
individual characters on a wire one at a
time, users can print the complete ID.
This saves money and time - key
considerations in today’s business
world, where you need the most
cost-effective and efficient solution for
the job on hand.”
www.pbsionthenet.net 15
However, if a change is needed during
construction then the 2-part system has the
advantage that the wire doesn’t need to be
cut in order to make a change. The more
changes that are necessary, the more a
2-part system comes into its own.
Both Partex and Silver Fox offer non-shrink
tubing systems but Silver Fox’s
non-shrink tubing is soft, matt and
oval in shape. The oval shape is designed to
give the label maximum grip on the wire.
This prevents the tubing from sliding down
the wire while, at the same time, allowing the
of hours, so the engineer doesn’t need to!”
“We’ve made sure it’s simple and straightfor-
ward to use - with one printer, one ribbon
and one software program. There’s no
time-consuming set-up each time a label
• s
s
An important benefit is
that the ID can be changed
without cutting off the
wire. So, if this happens
during the project, time
can be saved by removing
the label and replacing it.