Gala Shrink Fit - Cable Accessories

In the cable-entry box of a ring main unit the phase-to-phase clearance is small, and air alone does not always give enough insulation. Humidity, dust, reptiles, rodents and birds can then trigger a flashover or a short circuit across the terminations. Gala's GTPE-500 cable terminal protector puts an insulating barrier around each terminal.

It is a one-piece moulded elastomer elbow with a C-type interface. It fits over the RMU's epoxy bushing and the cable termination and is closed at the front by a separate insulating plug. With the RMU de-energised and locked out, the installer cleans the termination, lug and bushing, greases the protector's inner sealing surface and the bushing with silicone grease, pushes the protector onto the bushing, feeds the cable and lug up through the lower leg, bolts the lug to the bushing through the front opening and presses the plug in until flush. The plug can be removed again, so the joint can be re-opened, voltage-tested directly and the protector re-used.

One size takes cables from 25 to 400 sq mm, including sector-shaped cores, and suits RMUs with compact C-type bushings for 11 kV systems. The moulded material is UV and track resistant, and every protector is factory tested. The GTPE-500 is an insulating barrier, not a touch-proof (screened) connector.

Manufactured by Gala in India. Datasheet and size selection on request.

Where a multi-core cable is terminated, its cores fan out of the sheath at the crutch, and that is where moisture gets in. The Gala cold shrink breakout (GCEB) seals the crutch without heat: a black EPDM rubber body with one finger per core, expanded at the factory onto removable spiral support cores.

Installation needs no torch and no tools. Cut the cable end straight, remove any serving and armour, clean and degrease the sheath, slide the breakout over the cable end with one core through each finger, then unwind the spiral core from the body and then from each finger. The rubber recovers onto the sheath and the cores and forms the seal. No mastic or tape is needed. The compound contains no chloride or sulphur.

Four sizes are made: two for 2-core cable and two for 4-core cable, covering cable sheath diameters from 17 mm to 50 mm and core diameters from 10 mm to 17 mm. Pick the size whose body range covers the cable's outside diameter and whose finger range covers the core diameter.

It is a natural partner to Gala's cold shrink tube for torch-free LV terminations.

Typical buyers are electrical contractors, panel builders and maintenance teams terminating multi-core LV cable where open flame is unwelcome.

Manufactured by Gala in India. Datasheet and size selection on request.

Gas keeps evolving inside high-voltage and extra-high-voltage cables while drums are transported and stored, especially in hot climates. With an ordinary sealed cap that gas is trapped in the cable. Gala's INSULCAP De-gassing cap seals the cable end and lets the gas out.

The cap is a heat-shrinkable cross-linked polyolefin end cap with a brass-and-steel relief valve through its domed tip. It is shrunk over the outer sheath with a gas torch, on both ends of the cable. As gas pressure inside the cable rises above 1 psi, the valve opens and releases the excess; because the valve is non-return, moisture, water and dirt cannot enter.

Cable makers use these caps on HV and EHV power cables (33 kV and above) between the factory and installation, during transport and storage. Relieving the gas while the cable is on the drum may shorten the time it needs in the de-gassing (heating) chamber.

Fourteen sizes cover cable outside diameters from 12 mm to 200 mm, most in a standard and a long version. The cap material has a minimum tensile strength of 12 N/mm2, minimum elongation of 350 % and a continuous temperature limit of -40 to +100 °C. Gala is an ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 certified manufacturer.

Manufactured by Gala in India. Datasheet and size selection on request.

A cut cable end lets water and moisture travel into the conductor and insulation, whether the cable is on a drum in the yard, waiting in a trench or left as a spare end after jointing. The Gala INSULCAP end cap closes that end permanently.

The cap is a closed-end moulding of cross-linked polyolefin, supplied expanded, with a hot-melt adhesive lining inside. When heated it shrinks onto the cable sheath and the adhesive melts into the irregularities of the jacket, forming a watertight seal. It suits XLPE, PVC, PILC and rubber-sheathed cables.

Fitting takes a few minutes: cut the cable end straight, remove any serving and armour, clean and degrease the sheath, push the cap over the end and shrink it with a propane (preferred) or butane torch, working from the closed end towards the cable until adhesive shows at the open end. The cap recovers above 125 °C. Let it cool before the cable is handled.

Sizes are chosen by cable outside diameter: each code covers a cable range, and most sizes come in a standard and a long version, plus A versions for a wider range. The smallest cap fits 2.5 mm cable and the largest takes cables up to 460 mm across, so one family covers control cables, LV and MV power cables and large multicore cables on export drums.

Related Gala caps are listed separately: end caps with a cable pulling eye, de-gassing caps with a relief valve, caps with a pressure valve, conductive caps, live end cap kits and tamper-proof printed caps. Gala is an ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 certified manufacturer.

Manufactured by Gala in India. Datasheet and size selection on request.

Where the outer sheath of a multi-core cable is stripped back and the cores fan out, the crutch is the weakest point for water entry. Gala's INSULCORE LV breakout seals it.

The breakout is a moulded cross-linked polyolefin boot with a body that fits over the cable sheath and one finger for each core. It is lined with hot-melt adhesive and supplied expanded. Slide it over the crutch with one core through each finger, then shrink it with a propane (preferred) or butane torch, starting at the centre of the body and working out towards the fingers. It recovers above 125 °C. When fitted correctly the surface is smooth and adhesive shows at the ends of the body and fingers, giving a permanent moisture-proof seal at the crutch. Work only on de-energised circuits.

The range covers 2, 3, 4, 5, 6 and 7-core PVC, XLPE, rubber and PILC cables rated up to 1.1 kV, including five sizes with two different finger sizes for cables whose cores are not all the same size. Each code states supplied and recovered body and finger diameters, so the breakout is chosen from the sheath diameter and the core diameter of the cable. Custom dimensions can be made on request.

Breakouts are used in LV cable terminations and at cable entries into panels, motors and equipment. The material is cross-linked polyolefin with a guaranteed 12 N/mm2 tensile strength and a continuous temperature limit of -40 to +100 °C. Gala is an ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 certified manufacturer.

Manufactured by Gala in India. Datasheet and size selection on request.

On an outdoor cable termination, rain forms a continuous film of water along the insulated core. Leakage current along that wet surface causes tracking and, in the worst case, flashover. A longer surface path, or one interrupted by a skirt, reduces that risk. Gala's INSULSHED rain shed adds that skirt without lengthening the core.

Each shed is a bell-shaped skirt with a short collar, moulded in non-tracking cross-linked polyolefin and coated inside with water-resistant mastic. The collar is shrunk onto the core of the termination at 125 °C; the skirt stands off the core and sheds water, increasing the surface creepage distance and breaking the continuous water film in the rainy season. Several sheds can be fitted along one core where more creepage is needed.

Sizes are chosen by core diameter: ten sizes from GRS 130-1 to GRS 130-6, with collars recovering to 15 to 50 mm and skirt diameters from 90 to 200 mm. The sheds suit indoor and outdoor terminations.

The material is tracking-resistant: Gala guarantees no tracking, erosion or flame failure at 3.25 kV for 20 minutes in the ASTM D2303 inclined-plane test. Other guaranteed values include 15 kV/mm minimum dielectric strength, 12 N/mm2 minimum tensile strength and a continuous temperature limit of -40 to +100 °C. Gala is an ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 certified manufacturer.

Manufactured by Gala in India. Datasheet and size selection on request.

A three-core PILC belted cable has one belt of insulation and one screen around all three cores, and no screen on each individual core. When the cable is terminated or jointed, each core needs its own screen continued up from the crutch. Gala's INSULCORE semi-conductive breakout does both jobs: it seals the crutch and puts a semi-conductive layer around each core.

The breakout is moulded from cross-linked semi-conductive polyolefin, printed "CONDUCTIVE", and coated inside with water-resistant red mastic. It is supplied expanded with three fingers, slid over the crutch with one core through each finger and shrunk with a gas torch. The recovered breakout grips the cable sheath and the three cores, sealing the crutch against moisture and continuing the screen over each core.

Its defining property is low volume resistivity: Gala guarantees a maximum of 1 x 10^7 ohm-cm, so the material conducts rather than insulates. Other guaranteed values are 12 N/mm2 minimum tensile strength, 300 % minimum elongation and a continuous temperature limit of -40 to +100 °C.

Seven sizes cover cable sheaths that recover to 20 to 56 mm and cores that recover to 8 to 29 mm. The breakout is used in PILC cable terminations and joints, typically as part of a termination or jointing kit. Gala is an ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 certified manufacturer.

Manufactured by Gala in India. Datasheet and size selection on request.

On a three-core outdoor termination each core needs extra surface creepage distance in wet weather. Single-core sheds do this one core at a time. Gala's tri-core rain shed does it with one part: a flat, rounded-triangle skirt carrying three short collars, so a single shed sits across all three cores where they leave the crutch.

The shed is moulded from non-tracking cross-linked polyolefin and coated inside with water-resistant mastic. Each core passes through its own collar and the collars are heat-shrunk onto the cores (shrink temperature 125 °C). The skirt then stands across the three cores, increasing the surface creepage path and breaking the continuous film of water that forms along wet cores, without any increase in tail length. It suits indoor and outdoor terminations.

Three sizes are made, all with a 152 mm skirt; collars recover to 16 mm (GRST-1) or 22 mm (GRST-2 and GRST-3). Gala's guaranteed values include tracking resistance (no tracking, erosion or flame failure at 3.25 kV for 20 minutes, ASTM D2303), 15 kV/mm minimum dielectric strength, 12 N/mm2 minimum tensile strength and a continuous temperature limit of -40 to +100 °C. Gala is an ISO 9001, ISO 14001 and ISO 45001 certified manufacturer.

Manufactured by Gala in India. Datasheet and size selection on request.

The Gala cold shrink end cap (GCCE) seals the cut end of a power or control cable against water and moisture, for cables in storage, on drums, awaiting termination or left spare in a trench. It is a closed-ended black EPDM rubber cap that is expanded at the factory onto a removable spiral support core.

Fitting needs no torch, no tools, no mastic or tape, and no special training, which makes it the natural choice where open flame is not allowed or not practical. Cut the cable end square, remove any serving and armour, clean and degrease the sheath, place the cap over the end, then pull and unwind the spiral core. As the core comes out, the rubber recovers onto the cable and grips it. The used core is then discarded under local recycling rules.

The cap works on the common cable jackets: XLPE, PVC, PILC and rubber sheathed cable. Five sizes cover cable outside diameters from 13 mm to 80 mm; choose the size whose application range contains the cable's outside diameter.

A version with a built-in relief valve for de-gassing cables in storage is also made (see the de-gassing end cap listing).

Typical buyers are cable manufacturers and stockists, contractors, utilities and plant maintenance teams.

Manufactured by Gala in India. Datasheet and size selection on request.