Industry 4.0 is here – and so is Laselec's brand-new family of high-performance laser wire strippers: ILC Bench Top. It's a timely arrival, as companies in many industries, from automotive and datacom/telecom to aerospace and beyond, are looking for ways to modernize and optimize their production. And when it comes to wire stripping, laser solutions are becoming more and more popular, as they offer a high-quality and operator-independent alternative to scalpels and blades.

What it takes: A strong foundation… 

Laselec's Sylade 7 range of laser wire strippers has already proven its worth in highly demanding aerospace applications, mainly for stripping the outer jacket of shielded cables. And now, to complete its portfolio – and to greatly enlarge its range of applications –, the Toulouse-based company has just released the ILC Bench Top, a new range of high-precision laser wire strippers for critical applications involving complex and non-round wires/cables.

…premium stripping quality 

The ILC Bench Top family, thanks to its rotary laser design, provides a high-precision cut on a very broad range of wire insulations, with no risk of damaging the shield or conductor. It ensures maximum accuracy and reliable high-quality results. Operating the ILC Bench Top units is safe and straightforward: Simply select the stripping program manually or scan a bar code and insert a wire. The stripping process starts automatically.

…productivity-enhancing features 

Each model of the ILC Bench Top range can process multiple wire gauges. Running pre-programmed recipes and requiring no wire holders, Laselec's advanced new wire strippers make wire (i.e., gauge, design) changes fast and simple. The high-power, high-stability infrared laser source effortlessly tackles most insulation materials, including coaxial cable dielectric or multilayer composite outer jackets as used in the aerospace, automotive, industrial and telecom/datacom industries. Add to that the longitudinal (straight or spiral) slit feature (included in the BTS models), and you won't have to think twice about removing the insulation on even the most challenging wires and cables. Even window strips are possible. And here's a few more of the ILC Bench Top family's strengths in a nutshell:

• 100% repeatable quality, operator-independent process
• Suitable for non perfectly round wires/cables (e.g., aerospace coax cables)
• Large wire outer diameter range, great versatility with no compromise on the cut quality
• Poke and strip design (trigger sensor) – fast and easy
• No need for manual adjustment, super fast wire changeover
• Short wire insertion length, ergonomic design
• Maintenance limited to cleaning operations

…and a dauntless development team

Fabien Reversat, Laser Wire Stripper Product Manager and helming the ILC Bench Top project at Laselec, is justifiably excited about what his team has achieved, especially given the sometimes less-than-ideal circumstances of the recent past: “Based on the platform of the proven ILC-30 OEM module already in use in Komax automated machines, the ILC Bench Top line began taking shape in 2019, and the product launch was scheduled for 2020. In spite of the pandemic that hit the aerospace industry very severely in March 2020, Laselec’s management maintained this project at a high priority level. Although development work had to overcome a number of obstacles, the team adapted very quickly and rose to the challenge. I’m very proud of them and what we’ve achieved together.”

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