Keystone will extend plant shutdown

A shutdown at Keystone Steel & Wire Co. that was scheduled to be three weeks has been extended because of slow business conditions, a company official said Tuesday. The shutdown originally was for maintenance and repairs at the rod and wire mill plant, but slow business conditions will keep the plant closed up to an extra two weeks, said Vic Stirnaman, executive vice president of Keystone. For some, layoffs could extend longer, he said. Some production will resume the week of Dec. 8, but when full production resumes is not yet known, Stirnaman said. “For now, in general, the whole plant is shut down. We have annual shutdowns for repairs, but because of business conditions, we are still shut down. “The repairs are done, but we haven’t come back on line yet because of business conditions,” he said. That means many of Keystone’s 800-plus employees will be laid off several more weeks – perhaps into the new year – said an official with the union that represents Keystone’s hourly workers. “A lot of our guys are probably looking at the first of the year before we get back to full production and start ramping up for spring. That’s our busiest time of year,” said Roy Griffith, secretary-treasurer of the Independent Steel Workers Alliance in Bartonville. Keystone shut down most of the plant three weeks ago for maintenance and repairs, but that wasn’t an unusual occurrence during the fourth quarter, which is typically the company’s slowest time of year, Griffith said.

3M Completes Acquisition of Grafoplast S.p.A.

3M announced today that it completed its acquisition of Grafoplast S.p.A., a manufacturer of wire identification systems for the wire and cable market. Terms of the transaction were not disclosed. Grafoplast’s innovative products—from thermal printers and software to identification systems for special applications, cable holders and insulated end sleeves—serve installers, contractors and automation industries across Italy and Europe. Grafoplast’s range of electrical permanent marking products complements 3M’s existing range of tape marking system products and will help us to better serve the wire and cable markets. Together, 3M and Grafoplast will offer a complete marking system solution for our customers globally.

P.I.E. to make solar panel cables next year

P.I.E. Industrial Bhd plans to make solar panel cables next year to diversify further its manufacturing capability and mitigate the impact of the global recession. Group managing director Alvin Mui told StarBiz. it was now applying for the relevant TUV certification from Germany to manufacture the solar panel cables. The certification is expected by mid-2009. “There are new multinational corporations in the country involved in the solar panel business and we look forward to supplying to them”.

Japan October copper cable shipments down 7.9 pct yr/yr

2007 for the data to show a decline in shipments from the automobile sector, which until now had been one of the industrial areas where demand has been fairly robust. Exports also fell year-on-year defying the expectations of industry officials, many of whom had anticipated brisk overseas sales to last at least until March 2009. Only the telecommunications and Japanese copper wire and cable shipments fell 7.9 percent in October from a year earlier to an estimated 71,600 tonnes, with a decline in most sectors including automobiles, industry data showed on Friday. It was the first time since August the electric power industry showed a year-on-year increase in October.

India has a vital role to play in the wire and cable sector

India has a vital role to play in the wire and cable sector, projected to have tremendous potential in the long term, Wire & Cable India Chairman Deepak Chhabria said. Speaking at the conference held at the second International Exhibition ’’Wire & Cable India 2008’’, organized by the Confederation of Indian Industry (CII) here, Mr Chhabria, who is also Managing Director of Finolex Cables Limited said, ’’The growth of this sector is only predictable, as the investments in real estate, infrastructure, power, telecom and other sectors would grow.’’ Mr Chhabria, in his presentation, gave an overview of the key segments in the wire and cable sector, with patterns of growth in house wiring, power and telecom segments.

Madem Reels USA,Inc completes first year: 8 new warehouses throughout the US

Madem Reels USA Inc, located in Chattanooga, TN has successfully completed one year since their first machines arrived in the US for commissioning. Last week with Chattanooga Mayor Ron Littlefield, Hamilton County Mayor Claude Ramsey,other authorities, and business partners, Madem commemorated 1 year of activities with a ribbon cutting ceremony.

New halogen-free, high-heat grades of TPUs for wire & cable applications

The thermoplastic polyurethanes (TPU) business unit of BASF Corporation has unveiled two new tough, halogen-free, high-heat grades of TPU for wire and cable jacketing applications at the annual 2008 IWCS (International Wire and Cable Show) held in Providence, Rhode Island, USA. Both TPUs exhibit excellent abrasion resistance, toughness, low temperature properties, hydrolytic stability and fungus resistance per standard DIN tests.

Tata Steel looks to buy wire firms

Tata Steel is scouting for acquisition of wire-manufacturing companies in Europe to boost capacity of Corus. Anglo-Dutch steel-maker Corus, which was acquired by the Tata Group company, manufactures wire rods. A senior executive of Tata Steel said the move is in tandem with the group’s plan to become the third largest player in the wires segment. Tata Steel has been following a new strategy, where the primary product is manufactured closer to the raw material site, while the finished product will be closer to the market. The wire division is a strategic business unit of Tata Steel and the company also operates a subsidiary in Sri Lanka. Tata Steel’s Tarapur and Jamshedpur plants together manufacture 300,000 tonnes of wire, which is being increased to 450,000 tonnes. “The capacity increase would be completed by the first quarter of the next financial year,” said the executive.

3M announces agreement to acquire Grafoplast S.p.A

Diversified technology company 3M announced on Wednesday (12 November) that the company has entered into an agreement to acquire Grafoplast S.p.A, a manufacturer of wire identification systems for the wire and cable market based in Italy. 3M said that Grafoplast’s range of electrical permanent marking products complements the company’s existing range of tape marking system products and will help it to better serve the wire and cable markets.

JDR Marine Cables To Supply Airgun Umbilicals and Lead-in Cables for Polarcus Fleet of Six Ultra-Modern 3D Seismic Vessels

JDR, a global provider of custom designed and manufactured marine cables, has been awarded the contractby the Polarcus Group based in Dubai U.A.E. for the supply of Airgun umbilical systems and Lead-in cable systems for their entire fleet of six new build, ultra-modern 3D seismic vessels. The scope awarded to JDR includes the supply of 35 kilometres of Airgun umbilicals and 65 kilometres of Lead-in cable systems. The cable systems will be supplied from JDR’s new quay side facility located at Krimpen near the port of Rotterdam. The new facility, built in 2008, provides state-of-the-art manufacturing, coupled with industry leading research and design.