Preformed Line Fittings Production Line: What Information Is Required?

When planning to manufacture OPGW/ADSS grips, protection rods, guy grips or other preformed line fittings, customers often start with a simple request:

“We want to manufacture OPGW/ADSS grips, protection rods and guy grips. Please quote a complete production line.”

However, the product names alone are not enough to determine the correct equipment configuration.

Before recommending machines, it is important to understand the cable specifications, raw wire diameter and material, finished product specifications and production requirements.

Different preformed products require different manufacturing processes, and not every project requires every machine.

This guide explains the key information manufacturers should prepare before selecting equipment for a preformed line fittings production project.

1. Start With the Finished Product

The first step is to identify exactly which preformed products will be manufactured.

Typical products include:

• OPGW dead-end grips
• ADSS dead-end grips
• Protection rods / armor rods
• Guy grips
• Suspension preformed fittings
• Other helical fittings for overhead transmission and communication lines

Although these products are all manufactured from preformed helical wires, their production processes are not necessarily the same.

For example, protection rods are generally formed as individual helical rods, while many dead-end grips and guy grips require multiple preformed wires to be assembled or stranded together.

Therefore, the equipment configuration should start from the finished product, rather than from a standard list of machines.

If several products will be manufactured on the same production line, all intended product types and specification ranges should be provided during the initial technical evaluation.

2. OPGW/ADSS Cable Diameter and Breaking Strength

For OPGW and ADSS preformed fittings, the cable specifications are important information when evaluating the production requirements.

Customers should provide available information such as:

• OPGW or ADSS cable outside diameter
• Required breaking strength
• Type of preformed fitting
• Applicable cable specification range

If the project covers several cable sizes, providing the complete range is more useful than providing only one diameter.

This helps the equipment manufacturer understand the intended product range and evaluate whether the proposed production equipment can accommodate different specifications.

Cable information alone, however, is still not enough. The raw wire used to manufacture the preformed fitting must also be confirmed.

3. Confirm the Single Wire Diameter and Material

Two of the most important raw material parameters are:

Single wire diameter
Wire material

Depending on the product design, the raw material may include:

• Galvanized steel wire
• Aluminum-clad steel wire
• Aluminum alloy wire
• Other wire materials specified by the product design

The equipment supplier should know the actual wire diameter or required diameter range.

This information can affect the forming process, tooling and overall machine configuration.

For this reason, when requesting equipment for an OPGW/ADSS grip or other preformed fitting, it is important to distinguish between:

Cable diameter – the outside diameter of the cable or conductor on which the fitting will be installed.

Single wire diameter – the diameter of the individual wire used to manufacture the preformed fitting.

These are two different parameters, and both may be required during technical evaluation.

4. Provide the Finished Product Drawing and Helical Specifications

Whenever possible, a finished product drawing should be provided.

A drawing allows the equipment manufacturer to evaluate the product more accurately than the product name alone.

Useful information may include:

• Finished product length
• Single wire diameter
• Helical pitch
• Helix direction
• Number of rods or strands per set
• Finished product diameter
• End shape
• Wire material

For an existing preformed fittings manufacturer, these parameters can normally be obtained from current product drawings or production specifications.

For a new manufacturing project, customers can provide the available product specifications first. The remaining technical information can then be clarified during project evaluation.

5. Determine Which Manufacturing Processes Are Actually Required

After the finished product, cable specifications and raw material have been confirmed, the required production processes can be evaluated.

Depending on the product, a production solution may involve several stages.

Straightening and Cutting

Raw wire may first need to be straightened and cut to the required processing length before forming.

Helical Forming

The wire is formed into the required helical profile according to the finished product specifications.XINGANG’s automatic preformed armor rod forming line is designed for continuous helical forming and cutting of preformed rods.

This is a core process for manufacturing products such as armor rods and protection rods.

Stranding

For products made from multiple preformed wires, a preformed strand stranding machine may be required to assemble the individual helical wires into the required configuration.

This process is commonly associated with the production of different types of dead-end grips, guy grips and other multi-strand preformed fittings.

Single-Head Preformed Strand Stranding Machine in Operation

Sanding and Gluing

Some preformed products require abrasive material and adhesive to be applied according to their product design and production process.

Whether sanding and gluing equipment is required should therefore be determined according to the actual finished product.

End Forming and Other Processing

Depending on the product design, additional processes may include:

• End forming
• Bending
• Folding
• Labeling
• Other customized processing operations

This is why a machine list should not be determined simply by copying the configuration of another production line.

Not every preformed fittings project requires every machine.

The appropriate equipment combination should be based on the actual product and manufacturing process.

If you would like to understand the complete forming and downstream processing sequence for armor rods, see our guide: How Does the Preformed Armor Rods Manufacturing Process Work?

6. Consider Production Capacity and Existing Equipment

After confirming technical compatibility, production capacity should also be considered.

A new factory and an existing preformed fittings manufacturer may have very different investment requirements.

Useful information includes:

• Current production volume
• Target daily or monthly output
• Number of product specifications
• Frequency of specification changes
• Existing production equipment
• Planned future product range

For an existing manufacturer, the objective may be to increase production capacity, replace older equipment, reduce manual operations or add new product specifications.

For a new production project, the priority may be to establish the necessary manufacturing processes first and expand automation as production volume increases.

Providing this information helps the equipment manufacturer recommend a configuration that matches the actual production plan instead of simply supplying the largest possible machine package.

7. Preformed Fittings Production Line Checklist

Before requesting a quotation, preparing the following information can make technical evaluation much more efficient:

If product drawings are available, providing them together with this information can make the equipment evaluation more accurate and efficient.

8. How XINGANG Configures Preformed Line Fittings Production Equipment

At XINGANG Machinery, we manufacture equipment for producing preformed line products such as armor rods, protection rods, guy grips, dead ends and OPGW/ADSS preformed fittings.

Depending on the finished product and manufacturing process, an equipment solution may include:

• Straightening and cutting equipment
• Automatic helical forming equipment
• Single-head or double-head stranding machines
• Sanding and gluing equipment
• End-forming equipment
• Bending equipment
• Folding and labeling equipment
• Other customized processing equipment

Rather than recommending the same machine package for every project, we first review the customer’s finished product specifications, cable parameters, raw wire diameter, wire material and production requirements.

From there, the required manufacturing processes and equipment configuration can be evaluated according to the actual project.

If you are planning a new preformed line fittings production line, or expanding an existing production facility for OPGW/ADSS grips, protection rods or guy grips, you can send us your product drawings and available technical specifications for evaluation.

Send Your Product Specifications