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Custom Cable Assemblies

Custom cable assembly being used to connect keypad terminal

Custom Cable Assemblies to Help You Gain a Competitive Edge

Whether filling scheduled orders or building a custom stocking program, we’re a partner you can count on to meet your production goals with robust cable assemblies for the most challenging applications. Our experienced team of employees provides an unsurpassed level of customer service and technical expertise.

Why ETI/ACH for Custom Cable Assemblies?

Among other reasons: the right equipment, efficient production methods and industry connections to a vast supply chain. Our customers also choose us for:

  • Decades of experience with complex cable assemblies 
  • Highly trained technical staff that treats every project as unique
  • Box build capabilities for a complete, vertically integrated solution

Whether you need a dozen 45-foot harnesses for heavy equipment or thousands of cable harnesses to be used on lawn mower engines, you will receive a robust and reliable assembly. 

Our cable assemblies are built to the highest standards

Whether we’re producing a dozen units or 100,000 units, top quality is our goal, combined with superior service and value. As a US-based contract manufacturer with facilities in Wisconsin and Iowa, we take pride in building high-quality, reliable interconnect solutions. We build to IPC-WHMA-A-620 Class II and Class III and UL 508A standards.

Our NPI Process for Custom Cable Assemblies

Bill of Materials

The customer provides a list of materials and requirements, which goes to our engineers for analysis. At this stage, the exact length of the wires used in the cable assemblies are determined. This can vary from the prints we receive due to the bends and breakouts required.

Cut Sheet

Our engineers break down the bill of materials, fill in gaps, and organize it to allow our team to put together an NPI build. The cut sheet must be detailed in describing characteristics such as the type of wire or cable, its gauge, its color, its length, how far back it should be stripped and the material for the protective jacket.

The NPI Build

New Product introduction

Our team lays out the product on a harness board and creates an engineering document. Cable assemblies can be as long as 45 or 50 feet and extremely complex, with multiple breakouts. We have our customers approve the NPI build before moving into full production builds.

Markup

By examining and testing the NPI build, and through discussions with our customers, we determine what must be changed and capture that information in Engineering Change Notices. The bends, breakouts and multiple terminals involved can mean that wires need to be longer or shorter, or the amount they are stripped back must be revised. Continuity testing assures our customers that the routing of the wire matches from end to end. 

Production

Production — After changes and testing are complete and the customer has signed off, we proceed to the production build.

Our Custom Cable Assembly Capabilities: Any Length, Any Quantity, Any Complexity

Your custom cable assemblies will be built to IPC-WHMA-A 620 standards. From 24 AWG to 250 MCM, we work with high-temperature rated wire, marine-grade wire, and many other specialty wires and cables to meet the toughest requirements. We handle a range of projects, from simple cable assembly applications—cut, strip and terminate—to extremely complex and large assemblies with multiple breakouts. 

  • Automated cutting & stripping of multi-conductor cable
  • Cutting, stripping & terminating of lead wires
  • Large harness capability (up to 50 feet)
  • Braiding
  • Looming
  • Ultrasonic welding
  • Potting
  • ROHS-compliant tin dipping
  • Inline hot stamping of alphanumeric characters
  • Semi-automated heat shrinking
  • Wire marking
  • Label wrapping

Continuity & Functional Testing of Custom Cable Assemblies

Testing capabilities for the functionality and reliability of your completed cable harnesses include:

CableEye Testing

  • Checks for opens, shorts and mis-wires 
  • Measures diode forward voltage
  • Checks resistance values
  • Tests conduction and isolation resistance against specified thresholds

Automated Pull Testing (performed on all terminal crimps)

  • Ensures against under-crimping, which can pull off the wire and/or jacket
  • Ensures against over-crimping, which can damage the wire and the jacket

Your All-In-One Solution

We serve customers in many industries, such as industrial controls, scientific instrumentation, aerospace, medical, agriculture, water purification and monitoring, high-density mobile storage systems and HVACR building controls. Rigorous, reliable and responsive, we exceed expectations through continuous improvement, personalized service and ISO 9001:2015 quality management.

What Is A Custom Cable Assembly?

A cable harness or assembly is a grouping of several wires and/or cables that are bundled together by a single, highly protective sleeve and installed in a larger product. No two custom cable assembly projects are alike—each assembly is unique in its length, quantity, complexity and application. In many cases, we are tasked with manufacturing a complete harness set, such as all the different cable assemblies that go into a wrecker or a cement boom, which could mean 12 or 14 different assemblies for a single end product.

How Are Cable Assemblies Different From Wire Harnesses?

A cable assembly is generally more durable and intended to withstand tough environmental hazards such as moisture, friction and heat. Cable assemblies are often used in heavy equipment or in high-speed data transfer for the medical industry, and they incorporate heavy-duty materials like vinyl, thermoplastic rubber or shrink-wrapped thermoplastic. We can help you determine whether the assembly you need is called a cable assembly or a wire harness. We manufacture both.

Custom Cable Assembly Industries & Applications

Our customer is typically an integrator who has access to many cable assembly manufacturers but relies on our custom capabilities to serve their customers, from large corporations to smaller OEMs. Here are just a few of the applications and industries we serve, from cable assemblies used for data transfer in medical applications to heavy equipment cable assemblies that withstand rugged outdoor conditions in agriculture, construction, forestry and other industries.