Abstract: This disclosure relates to a system for the continuous high speed production of non-metallic (NM) sheath cable from bare and insulated single strand conductors continuously produced in a high-speed tandem wire drawing and insulation operation. An automated material handling system is provided for transporting and conveying wire pack containers from coiling strands where the bare and insulated single strand wires are coiled into the containers to a station where the wires are continuously paid-out overhead from the wire pack containers and brought together in a jacketing line where PVC coating compound is extruded thereon. A sheathed cable is then coiled and packaged in a continuous manner. The depleted wire pack containers are then transported back to the coiling stands to close the material handling loop. The system is controlled by a programmable computer which controls the delivery of wire pack containers to various ones of a plurality of conveyor lines on a demand basis.

Abstract: This disclosure relates to a method and apparatus for paying-out wire from a horizontally disposed coil. The wire is disposed in a stemless wire pack container and payed-out therefrom substantially vertically overhead. The wire is guided about a sheave disposed a substantial distance above the stemless pack at a point disposed on the vertical axis of the coil for substantially reducing the magnitude of the inward component of force acting along the wire as it is withdrawn from the container. A substantially frictionless plastic dish-shaped element rides downwardly and is freely movable on the top of the coil as the wire is payed-out therefrom. The dish-shaped element functions to break up each loop of wire from the remainder of the coil as it is payed-out therefrom without exerting any substantial friction force thereagainst which would tend to mar the finish of the wire.