The 'Made in the UAE' cables' journey to innovation, success

Dubai - The cable industry has little room to innovate with the kind of specifications and standards applied globally. It's rare to find a utility company that wants to request an new specification from what's currently available in the market, especially when it comes to electrical solutions.
Trust is placed in tried, tested and certified cables that have proven reliability over years, even decades. This leaves little wiggle-room for changing designs and specifications. But Ducab has proven several times over that it doesn't mean innovation is not possible.
We've learnt to be innovative by looking at new industries for opportunities to meet their needs. The clean energy sector is an ideal example of this.
Markets such as power and transmission have a large number of players, intense competition, and ever-diminishing margins. When you want to be seen as an innovator, you need to approach the market in a new way.
This is why our strategic plan over the next 10-15 years is to invest in new technology, backward integration, and continued expansion into new sectors. Our NuBICC cables are an ideal example of exploring new avenues.
When the UAE announced its intentions to develop nuclear energy, we considered it to be our duty to develop a line of cables that would enable the project to use 'Made in the UAE' cables in its construction and the consequent delivery of power.
NuBICC draws on 40 years of our cable-making experience. Newly built nuclear power plants require 60++ years of operating life, safe and reliable cables to generate the cleanest and most efficient form of electrical energy.
We needed to combine this necessity with our existing expertise, thus resulting in the creation of the world's first certified 60++ year sustainable halogen-free Non-Class 1E nuclear grade cables.
The Ducab NuBICC range was designed with an extended operating life covering high, medium and low voltage cables that can perform 24x7, 365 days of the year, and that are dependable during emergency situations.
These cables are suitable for the harshest environments and can withstand heat and humidity in the Middle East. The cables have successfully passed various tests, including long-term thermal ageing, exposure to radiation, and IEEE 1202 vertical tray flame test. 
Ashish Chaturvedy is head of marketing at Ducab.

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