Application
Overhead ground wire, shield wire protecting transmission lines against lightning damage.

Construction
Alumoclad steel wire and strand is used by power utilities as well as formed wire and optical ground wire manufacturers. Alumoclad steel wire outlasts other options by as much as 200 % in corrosive environments, significantly lowering maintenance and replacement costs. When compared to solid aluminum wire, aluminum clad steel wire offers tremendous savings.

Alumoclad steel wire overhead ground wire has excellent corrosion resistance. Its strength and conductivity remain unchanged in any atmosphere where aluminum is satisfactory, especially those known to be corrosive from industrial or atmospheric conditions.

This assurance against corrosion is obtained through the application of a thick covering of pure aluminum which provides a substantial barrier of protective metal. The minimum cladding thickness of Alumoclad steel wire is 10 % of the radius of the wire. the cladding has a continuous, strong metallic bond to the steel core that will not crack or flake.

Alumoclad steel wire also provides strength greater than or equal to other overhead ground wires. For commonly used wire sizes, the tensile strength of the individual wire can approach 200,000 pounds per square inch. When used in a strand for overhead ground wire, this high strength permits greater span lengths, less sag and heavier loads under storm loading conditions.

Directly related to strength and sag performance is the lighter weight of aluminum clad steel wire. Due to its thick cladding of aluminum, Alumoclad steel wire is 15% lighter that a steel strand of equivalent size. This lighter weight, combined with high strength, permits aluminum clad steel wire to be installed to the same sags as steel with correspondingly lower tensions and tower stresses on the towers or supporting structures.