 Deterring Copper Theft with FST™ Foam |
More fabulous news for high-flying FST Foam Duct Sealant! Draka Cableteq USA now recommends it as a best-option copper cable theft deterrent. Draka is a leading manufacturer of a broad range of cables, including factory pre-installed cable-in-conduit (CIC), a popular choice for primary and secondary utility distribution lines, highway lighting, airport lighting, parking lots, and sports complexes. CIC customers have been plagued by pernicious thieves who devise tricky schemes to steal the cable in these ducts and salvage the copper at its elevated commodity price, which has nearly quadrupled since 2009. Such thefts are far costlier than the replacement value; the lost transmissions disrupt business or government services, exponentially increasing the economic damage--sometimes even putting lives at risk. In search of a deterrent, Draka visited the Polywater laboratory facility in Minnesota, spending three days testing FST Foam's effectiveness. Draka's CIC is a polyethylene duct with a factory coated lubricant to allow the cable to move as it's reeled and unreeled. Polyethylene is a notoriously difficult material to seal; nothing seems to want to stick to it. The lubricant on the duct walls increases the challenge. Nevertheless, the results were conclusive: testing proved that FST Foam provides good adhesion and decent pull-out strength for Draka CIC. "It looks like we are going to go ahead and tell our customers that this is the best problem solver for theft," says Draka's Paul Sedillo. Draka's CIC isn't the only target. A CBS affiliate reports: PG&E Hit Hard by Copper Thefts. The City of St. Paul has had terrible thefts in street lighting. The Kansas City Parks Department spent over $100,000 to repair and replace copper last year. Virtually every major metropolitan area has experienced theft of copper infrastructure. And Draka isn't the first to recognize the FST solution. The City of Herriman, Utah specified FST for theft deterrent. Jacobs Engineering specified FST on a Space Center job. CH2M Hill specified it on the Orange County Sanitation job. If FST is good enough for these companies and many others, it's good enough for your customers. Spread the word. FST Foam prevents infiltration from water, bugs, dirt, fire ants, rodents, and snakes in the grass--of both reptilian and human variety. |
