BHS, Inc. Spool Winding Trolley Upgrades Cut-to-Length Wire Distribution

June 4, 2019 — St. Louis, MO — BHS, Inc., a leading manufacturer of material handling equipment for the electrical industry, recently released a new type of spooling and reeling machine that significantly cuts time and labor costs for cable, wire, and flexible material distribution.

The Spool Winding Trolley (SWT) differs from most respooling machines in that it fills distribution reels directly, without removing them from existing jack stands. Adjustable-height roller arms terminate in an overhead rim drive system that spins take-up reels wherever they stand.

“Traditionally, respooling a cut-to-length order of cable was a multi-step process,” said Melissa Bowen of BHS Marketing. “You had to take the delivery reel off the jack stand, remove the shaft, somehow get it safely over to the reeling machine, and fill it — and you still weren’t done! You have to get the filled reel back onto a jack stand at some point. The SWT cuts all that down to a single step.”

The difference lies in the SWT’s overhead rim drive. Rather than loading take-up reels into the SWT, users roll the SWT into place above the reel. Hydraulic-actuated roller arms lower the rim-drive rollers into contact with the reel rim. Then the user activates simple, push-button controls to complete spooling.

Not only does the SWT cut out time-consuming, dangerous steps while filling take-up reels, it also provides precise control to eliminate waste. This is thanks to an integrated cable counter that tracks linear footage at the rate of one revolution per single foot of cable.

“Thanks to advances in BIM technology, construction electricians get incredibly precise orders for conductor measurements,” said Bowen. “The SWT ensures the measurement is exactly right, every time.”

With more efficient cut-to-length respooling, operations will quickly see a return on their investment in the SWT, said Bowen.

“If you provide cut-to-length wire distribution, the SWT will give you an edge,” said Bowen.