Frequently asked questions – flexible cables

Cables designed, manufactured and tested to work in applications subject to continuous/constant moving operations.

igus® does not manufacture cables in order to adhere to British Standards as these standards do not apply for cables for use in e-chains®, they are directed more for fixed installations. All igus chainflex® cables are manufactured to improve and optimise the life of the cable inside the e-chain®.

Depending on the specific product, chainflex® cables have a wide variety of approvals, including but not limited to:
DESINA
DNV
GL
UL
CSA
CEI
CE
CTP
EAC
NEK 606
Mud-resistance
NFPA
Flame Retardant
Clean Room
Halogen-Free
Silicon Free
RoHS Compliance

The current carrying capacity will depend on the nominal cross section of the core (mm²), the core insulation material, the ambient temperature of the environment and finally the number of loaded cores carry the current at any one time.
Use this chainflex® online configurator for more information.

The maximum temperature igus® chainflex® can be used in is 100 degrees Celsius, please check our TPE outer jacket products.
Find out more on our temperature resistant chainflex® page.

Cost is relative. Our chainflex® products are designed to work in the most arduous applications with guaranteed performance. In this way, they are highly engineered products that help remove risks to our customers and enable them to design high performing products as cost effectively as possible. Certain applications do not require this level of engineering and as such may use cheaper alternative products.

Each product type can have up to 6 different jacket materials, providing mechanically different options for the same electrical requirement. These products include PVC (standard), PVC (oil resistant), igus® PUR, PUR, TPE (halogen free), TPE (flame retardant).
See our jacket material page.

Our chainflex® guarantee, depending on the product, is up to 4 years or 40 million double strokes (whichever comes first). However, using our chainflex® lifetime calculation tools on our website you can gain non-binding lifetime information based on the parameters of your specific application, enabling you to select the most cost effective product that works.

At igus® we have the largest range of cable types, over 1,354+ for data, bus, control, drive and hybrid systems. These are availabe from stock, from 1m lengths and can be shipped within 24 hours.
Our chainflex® flexible cables are suited for any type of motion: such as horizontal, vertical, torsion, high speed. They are designed and manufactured for special environments and applications such as, cleanroom, oil-resistance, tempertature resistant and halogen-free cables.

At igus® we have over 25 years of experience in the field and due to continuous testing in our 3800m² laboratory we are confident in our cables. So confident that we offer up to 4 years guarantee.

igus® has a full range of cables designed for use in robotic (torsion) applications, please check our catalogue or website for CFROBOT. These cables utilize spiral screens in order to achieve up to 360° of torsion over 1m.

Enables continuous ethernet communication for the control cabinet to the very end of the machine.
Due to the new design and core configuration requirements, the cable is now 25% thinner than that of our Cat5e cables with the same data transmission rate.
Installation spaces can be 25% smaller than with, for example, CFBUS.PUR.045.
Costs are also reduced, up to 20% less than those of a four-paired Cat5e cable.

The igus® chainflex® product range includes control cables, servo cables, motor cables , and robot cables to bus cables, data cables, encoder cables and fibre optic cables. Find the entire range here.