The M24640 vs M24643 Cables for Shipboard Applications

Marine cable come in different types and they are designed to meet the harsh conditions exhibited in these environments. You may have tinned or bare copper marine cables and these serve specific applications depending on where they are used and their engineering process. Marine wire may be used for different applications ranging from brake to general circuit wiring.

M24640 mil spec standards 
In designing cables for shipboard applications, they may have to meet the M24640 or M24643 mil specs standards. The mil specs were introduced to allow manufacturers of cables to respond to demands of smoke, flammability, and toxicity concerns. The main reason shipboard cables meet the M24640 or M24643 mil spec standards is to ensure extra safety of people and the equipment or vessels. These standards are used in the naval ships because the Navy demands that in all new ship constructions and other modernization projects, the cables should meet these specifications. The M24640 cable specifications try to address issues of lightweight and low smoke. These cables release little smoke and their low weight allows them to reduce drag caused by unnecessary weight on ships.

M24643 mil specs standards 
With the M24643 mil specifications, they allow the cables to be low smoke, zero halogen. The cables don’t release toxic fumes even after they come in contact with fire. They also emit little smoke and allow for easy evacuation or firefighting should a fire outbreak occur. These qualities make the M24643 cables safer when used on manned ships. However, these cables do not necessarily have to be lightweight.

For example RSCC Aerodefense MIL-DTL-24643/2 Low Smoke Flexing Service Shipboard Cables are lightweight, low smoke cables with great flame retardant feature. They are considered some of the safest to use on shipboards. These cables are used to do wiring for electronic equipment, lighting, power, and controls. They may be used as instrumentation and communication cables in shipboards. MIL-DTL-24643/2 shipboard cables are insulated with polyolefin and jacketed with cross- linked low smoke polyolefin thus ensuring protection from sunlight, chemicals, flame, and fire. The non-halogen low smoke polyolefin ensures that the jacketing material won’t release toxic fumes when burned.

Where the issue of weight is not much a problem, but you need cables with low smoke, zero halogen properties, you may opt for M24643 but if you are concerned about the weight of the vessel, then M24640 may be the better choice. Both of these cables have safety in mind in their design so, you can decide, which one to use depending on the specific area of use.

For instance, manned ships or passenger ships demand a lot of safety of people. The cables used in these applications should be halogen free and emit little smoke. However, in passenger ships or other vessels where you need to reduce the dragging caused by weight, you should look for lightweight, low smoke, halogen free cables. This way, the vessels can move faster, but still ensure safety of people if there happens to be a fire disaster.Knowing the features of the M24640 and M24643 puts you in a better position to know what cable to go for.