What’s In Your Truck: Easily Pull Wire Through Conduit

pull wire through conduit

It’s hard to get ahead when your electricians have to spend time on unproductive, unsafe, and inefficient – but necessary – tasks.

To help you make the most of your time at work, we’ve compiled a blog series titled: “What’s in Your Truck?” The tools we reveal in these blogs will help make your job safer, easier, and faster – so you can save money, stay safe, and get more done. This is the first blog in the series.

As a former electrician, I feel your pain when it comes to the amount of time spent prepping, waiting on, cleaning, and moving materials. Through my years in the field, I learned about a few simple solutions that make a dramatic difference in time savings – and will help reduce overall installation costs for you.

So let’s find out … what’s in my truck to help pull wire? (And what should be in your truck, too?)

SAVE TIME

What do you have in your truck right now to help you pull wire through conduit?

If you keep Southwire’s SIMpull CoilPAK in your truck, you eliminate the need for wire spools altogether. Instead, you can use SIMpull NoLUBE wire (in a lightweight package) for a faster, easier, inertia-free, tangle-free pull. Lubrication isn’t required, so you save time by not having to apply lubricant. Transporting wire across a jobsite is also much easier and faster.

SAVE YOUR PEOPLE

the best way to pull wire through conduit

It also improves jobsite safety in a few ways. First, you save your fingers by not applying anything to a moving cable. Second, you prevent slippery worksite conditions from spilled or dripping lubricant. Lastly, moving, setting up and unwinding wire coils often requires handling heavy, cumbersome spools and trees. These can be hard to manage and transport, they take time and muscle to use (requiring more than one person), can potentially tangle or break and may cause injury if not handled correctly.

SAVE ENERGY

The effort required to pull wires is greatly reduced with the SIMpull CoilPAK, too, saving your back and preventing fatigue. Instead of 58 pounds of pulling tension required with wire spools, this solution requires around 18 pounds of pulling tension – you’re only pulling the weight of the wire (not of the entire spool).

With a built-in, ergonomic handle, one electrician can carry a SIMpull CoilPAK from location to location; it weighs in at 50 pounds or less. It’s also versatile, letting you pull directly from the package when it’s flat or stacked (up to three high), keeping the wire protected the entire time.

WATCH HOW TO PULL WIRE THROUGH CONDUIT USING THE SIMPULL COILPAK

Southwire CoilPAKs feature innovative packaging that allows wire to lay flat or be stacked. It also eliminates heavy, cumbersome spools and wire trees. At 50 pounds or less, CoilPAKs are designed with no pulling tension and include SIMpull NoLube jacket.

Simply put, I keep the SIMpull CoilPAK in my truck to pull wire through conduit because it:

  • Speeds up installation time and reduces labor requirements
  • Eliminates many of the lifting and pulling hazards associated with traditional wire spools
  • Allows electricians to work independently and carry the wire package around the jobsite as needed
  • Eliminates the need for lubrication during pulls
  • Reduces material waste with no reels, remnants, or plastic wrap

Does the SIMpull CoilPAK sound like something you want to keep in your truck? (Or do you want to try it out?) Van Meter has experts and specialists on staff who can meet you in your office or on the jobsite to show you how products like these work – and how they can truly save time, money, and resources to help you be as efficient as possible. While we’re there, we can also tell you about customers who are seeing great success after making the switch.

garry o'leary van meter

ARTICLE BY:

GARRY O'LEARY
EMPLOYEE-OWNER,  CONTRACTOR SERVICES MANAGER

O'Leary joined Van Meter in 2011 and has more than 22 years in the jobsite safety industry.