Products and Divisions

Single-End Wire

Single end wire consists of one strand, drawn to specific size from copper rod. International Wire offers bare copper wire, tin-plated copper wire, nickel-plated copper wire, silver-plated copper wire, stainless steel wire and wire from copper-based alloys. Bare round copper wires are commonly used in telecommunication cables, conductors for building wires, and grounding wires, but there are countless other uses based on wire type, including:

• Tinned or tin-plated Copper Wire: The tin coating prevents copper wire from corroding or experiencing premature cable failure. Buss Wire is usually tin-plated wire with annealed temper. It offers quick soldering and is suitable for point-to-point connection, grounding, distribution applications.
• Nickel-plated Wire: Nickel plating provides good resistance to corrosion, which allows nickel-plated wires to be durable and stable at high temperatures. Nickel is used over tin because tin can only be heated to temperatures around 150 degrees Celsius. Both silver and nickel can be used at temperatures above 200 degrees Celsius, but nickel is less expensive and more practical to use.
• Silver-plated Wire: Silver plating offers the highest electrical and thermal conductivity of all the metals, silver-plated wire is ideal for high-friction applications and widely used in medical, electronic, aerospace and defense industries.

Stranded Wire

Stranded conductors consist of several single end wires twisted together. Stranded wires are commonly used in cable assemblies, electronic devices, and more. They can be produced in a range of configurations, with the most common arrangements including the following:

Concentric Strand

This type of stranded wire is comprised of a wire core surrounded by one or more layers of helically laid wires. Concentric strands come in three different forms with varying lay directions and lengths. They are:

• Equilay: The core is surrounded by layers of laid wires in a geometric pattern with an alternately reversed lay direction and the same lay length.
• Unidirectional: The core is surrounded by layers of laid wire in a geometric pattern with the same lay direction and increasing lay lengths.
• Unilay: The core is surrounded by layers of laid wire in a geometric pattern with the same lay direction and lay length.

Bunch Strand

Wire strands are laid in the same direction and bundled together with a random pattern. Twisted in one operation, all strands have the same lay direction and same lay length, however, the result is a rougher surface and lower dimensional tolerance than the concentric constructions. Bunch strands often used in automotive industry and in consumer appliance industry for such applications as headphone cables and appliance cables.

Rope Strand

Rope stranding offers the advantage of high flexibility by using a larger number of finer strands while maintaining a tighter diameter tolerance than bunched construction. Rope constructions consist of concentric or bunched members stranded together into the final concentric or bunched configuration. The flexibility of rope strands makes them ideal for high-movement applications.

Applications

Copper wire products are flexible, highly conductive, and malleable, making them valuable across a range of applications. The following are common examples of stranded copper wire applications:

• Military and naval applications
• Automotive wire harnesses
• Speaker wire and other audio wiring

Braided Wire

Braided wires are extremely versatile wire constructions that possess excellent shielding capabilities and physical resistance. They are commonly used for flexible connections, grounding applications, RFI and EMI shielding applications and for mechanical protection of cables.

Infographic: How Wire Braid is Made

Flat Braid

Using a pressure roller, tubular braids are flattened to create flat braids. This style of construction features reduced resistance, enhanced flexibility, and increased surface area compared to other braided wires. Flat braids are popular in both commercial and industrial applications.

Tubular Braid

In very tight cross-sectional areas, tubular braids optimize the space available, allowing circular wires and cable to fit within machine cavities and panels. Tubular braids can be constructed in the largest array of materials of the wire products, including tinned copper, silver- or nickel-plated copper, stainless steel, and bare copper.

Applications:

Braiding is used for concealment and shielding. They shield the wires and electrical conductors from interference, enabling secure data transfer. Common applications include:

• Flexible connections
• Grounding applications
• Mechanical protection of cables
• Protection against interference

Wire Materials

International Wire Group offers the following materials to fit your application:

• Bare Copper Wire
• Tin-Plated Copper Wire
• Nickel-Plated Copper Wire
• Silver-Plated Copper Wire
• Aluminum
• Bronze
• Stainless steel
• Alloys