Power cables are used in many lighting applications, both permanent and temporary. Stage lighting cables, however, are often different from the cables used in commercial lighting fixtures. They closely resemble lighting fixtures used in industrial environments since they need to hold heavy and strong lights. The cables also need to be durable, as they are often run throughout sets and tend to get walked on by cast and crew members.
Stage lighting cables normally have bare copper conductors and voltage ratings of 600V. They are also usually available in larger gauge sizes. Insulation and jacketing material for these cables can vary, however, from PVC to CPE depending on the cable's environment. Lighting Cables in the entertainment industry are often held to high specifications since they come into contact with numerous people.
Our Custom Stage Lighting Solution
One customer in the business of designing, building, and installing stage lighting contacted Allied Wire and Cable to help design a cable that would be used to hang accent lighting on a stage. The customer knew they needed a 20 AWG, five conductor cable, but needed help designing the rest of the cable so it would meet certain specifications. Since the stage lighting cable would be used in a mobile light display, there were two components the customer needed to be made custom.
First, the cable needed to be more flexible than the standard lightning cable. The overall outer diameter of the cable was reduced and the bare copper conductors were highly stranded. Second, since the lighting fixture was heavy, the cable needed to be designed so that all of the weight would not be placed on the conductor while the fixture was in motion. In order to do this, a stainless steel strength member was incorporated into the cable. Despite this 20 AWG cable being smaller than standard stage lighting cables, it still had a voltage rating of 600V. It also ended up being UL/CSA compliant, ensuring it was for use around people.
Allied Wire and Cable’s custom cable experts are experienced in designing and manufacturing custom cables for all types of industries, including the entertainment industry. If you need a cable that requires more than a stock product can provide, visit our Custom Cable Design Center or Contact Us to start designing your custom cable.