Complying with Spreading ‘Low Smoke, Zero Halogen’
Standards for Safer Insulation Materials
COLORADO SPRINGS, CO, Mar. 20, 2008 — Liberty Wire & Cable, worldwide supplier of a broad and expanding range of wire and cable products for the audio/video trade, offers a wide selection of environmentally friendly Halogen-Free wire and cable products. The products comply with spreading Green Market requirements for eliminating potentially dangerous chemicals from common insulation materials like PVC. When burned, the chemicals produce heavy smoke, corrosive gases and hazardous fumes.
Liberty’s Halogen-Free wire and cable products also comply with spreading legislation requiring the use of so-called Low Smoke, Zero Halogen (LSZH) materials, and reflect the company’s role as a leader in the manufacture of socially responsible, environmentally friendly products.
Examples of Liberty’s Halogen-Free products include:
• LibertyLinx 24 AWG control cable for professional installation needs.
• Individually shielded paired wire for audio, instrumentation and control applications.
• 14 and 16 AWG multi-conductor control and speaker wire for distributed audio.
• A full and diverse line of coaxial cables for video, RF and data transmission.
• Precision coaxial cables ideal for digital and analog A/V, HDTV, broadcast, broadband and baseband video, and head end applications.
• Stranded UTP patch cable for high-speed data transmissions, LANs and voice installations.
Liberty’s voluntary initiative comes as many governments, particularly in Europe and Japan, are considering LSZH legislation requiring the elimination of halogen as well as chlorine, fluorine, bromine and iodine. All are present in the PVC compounds widely used for more than half a century as insulation for wire and cable products.
While PVC has many valuable qualities, it also releases corrosive gases and hazardous fumes when burned. This can create dangerous situations even in otherwise minor fires. As a result, Liberty is increasingly replacing PVC with Halogen-Free insulation that complies with LSZH requirements by minimizing toxic smoke and fumes, and eliminating corrosive gases.
In other areas as well, Liberty has demonstrated its industry-leading commitment to manufacturng environmentally friendly, socially responsible products. More than 90 percent of Liberty’s 6,000-plus products, for example, already also comply with the Restriction on Hazardous Substances (RoHS) directive, a major initiative that mandates reductions in lead and five other harmful chemicals.
About Liberty Wire & Cable
Liberty, a division of Communications Supply Corp. (CSC), is headquartered in Colorado Springs, Colo., and is in its 14th year of operation. Its core goods, sold primarily for audio/video and security applications, consist of a complete line of wire and cable products along with connectors and connector systems, cable assemblies, interconnects, and a broad range of related accessories. Liberty principally serves the residential, commercial, broadcast, and rental and staging segments of the pro/AV industry. It also enjoys long-term relationships with a number of prominent OEMs. Liberty manufactures and markets the PanelCrafters line of custom and stock plates and panels. The company, which sells in 49 countries, has other facilities in Charlotte, N.C., and Phoenix, Ariz., and holds memberships in CEDIA, ICIA, and NSCA.
