Electrical harness terminal testing

Case study

Electrical harness crimp testing on site

Electrical harness crimp testing equipment and fixtures

Solution

Software-controlled motor-driven tensile test stand
Wire terminal crimp grips

Benefits

Automated testing for maximum repeatability
Stored programs comply with international test standards
Cost savings through in-house QC testing

We have been very satisfied with our purchase of the Mecmesin MultiTest 1-x, it has become an essential part of our quality control, system and allows us to calibrate our tooling and ensure our product is as reliable as possible in the severe environment of motorsport.

Nigel Barber, Senior Engineer
Cyprium Motorsports

Requirement

Cyprium Motorsports based in Diss, UK, design and produce customised wiring harness systems for sports cars, including Formula 1, Le Mans Prototype, Grand Touring and rally cars. Cyprium required a force testing system to carry out fast and accurate checks of electrical harness terminals, ensuring terminals and wires are securely crimped together.

Solution

Mecmesin supplied Cyprium with a MultiTest 1-x console-controlled force testing system. The Multi-test 1-x is used to perform a pull test at a controlled speed on electrical harness terminals, to determine that the load at which they fail is above a recognised value. Using the MultiTest 1-x, Cyprium are able to check their terminal crimps to a very high degree of accuracy and repeatability. Tests are performed to a guide supplied by Mecmesin conforming to industry standard BS 5G 178, Part 2.

To facilitate quick testing and ease-of-use, the MultiTest 1-x has been set up with stored programmes to test specific wire sizes and give an immediate pass/fail message to the operator. These automated test procedures and calculations reduce test times, leading to considerable cost savings both in man hours and rework.