Abstract: A method of forming a branch-off seal between a heat-shrinkable sleeve and at least two substrates, which comprises the steps of: (a) positioning the substrates within the heat-shrinkable sleeve; (b) forming at least two heat-shrinkable terminal conduits by positioning a clip having at least three elongate legs over the outer surface of the heat-shrinkable sleeve at an open end thereof, wherein at least two of said legs are positioned externally of the sleeve, the substrates are within the terminal conduits and at least one of said legs is positioned internally of the sleeve, and (c) while the clip remains on the outer surface of the heat-shrinkable sleeve, applying heat so as to effect shrinkage of the sleeve and to form the desired seal; in which the leg positioned internally has a coating of heat-softenable sealing material that extends beyond its distal end, the extension being such that at least a portion of extending material does not flow significantly during step (c).

Abstract: The present invention provides a method of re-entering and reclosing a cable splice case enclosing a splice between first and second cables and comprising a wrap-around sleeve and a closure channel, the sleeve having opposing longitudinal edge portions, each bearing a rail, the edge portions having been brought together around the splice such that the rails are adjacent one another and the closure channel being positioned over the adjacent rails, which method comprises:(a) removing a portion of the sleeve from the splice, leaving an end portion of the sleeve attached to the first cable;(b) removing a portion of the channel from the rails of the remaining portion;(c) positioning over the rails of the end portion at a position where the portion of channel has been removed a hot-melt adhesive plug, the plug having a recess for receipt of the rails;(d) positioning a heat-shrinkable reclosure sleeve around the splice, the reclosure sleeve extending from the adhesive plug at the end portion; and(e) heating to cause

Abstract: A dimensionally heat-recoverable article carrying a heat curable adhesive coating on a surface thereof, the adhesive coating comprising (a) a mixture of substantially solid particles of a first reactive component with separate substantially solid particles of at least a second reactive component and (b) a water soluble polymeric binder having substantially no hydroxyl groups, the first and second reactive components being present in the adhesive coating as substantially unreacted separate particles capable of reacting together to effect curing when the article is heated to its heat recovery temperature.

Abstract: A dimensionally heat-recoverable article has on one of its surfaces a heat-curable adhesive coating. The coating has a mixture of substantially solid particles of a first reactive component with separate substantially solid particles of at least a second reactive component, the first and second components being capable of reacting together to effect curing of the coating when the heat-recoverable article is heated to its recovery temperature. The particles have a size distribution in which not more than 40% by weight of the particles are less than 50 micrometers in size and at least 90% by weight of the particles are less than 300 micrometers in size.

Abstract: Cohesive flexible curable adhesive coatings formed from a dispersion of first and second powdered curing components, preferably reactive at ambient temperatures, in a solution of a binder, the binder content being not more than 15%, preferably not more than 2.5% by weight of the dried composition. Also claimed are curable compositions having a specific advantageous reactive particle size distribution; specific epoxy-amine adduct curing agents; and specific polyalkylene oxide binders.

Abstract: An adhesive composition comprises(a) a thermoplastic polyamide having reactive amine groups;(b) a thermoplastic copolymer of an alkene with an ethylenically unsaturated ester of an alkanol and a carboxylic acid, e.g. vinyl acetate or ethyl acrylate, and optionally one or more acidic copolymers; and(c) a thermoplastic epoxy resin.The components (a) and (b) are present in a ratio of from 35:65 to 75:25 by weight and component (c) is present in an amount of from about 8 to 79 parts per hundred parts of components (a) and (b) by weight, components (a), (b) and (c) existing separately in the form of particles that are mixed together.