A major expansion at Dubai Cable Company (Ducab), the leading cable manufacturer in the region, has been completed.

The Dh45 million ($12 million) expansion at Ducab's massive facility close to Jebel Ali Free Zone covers installation of a second medium-voltage line together with increased capacity for low-voltage cables.

The size of the overall manufacturing facility has also been extended by some 35 per cent.

The new Powerplus medium-voltage line will more than double output capacity for this range of power cables. Other new plant also includes rod breakdown, stranding, sheathing and laying up machines

The last major expansion at Ducab was completed just two years ago and included the commissioning of a state-of-the-art medium-voltage insulation line that has been 100 per cent loaded since being commissioned in June 1999.

Ducab is enjoying a period of robust sales and last year the company received the largest single order in its history when Abu Dhabi Water and Electricity Authority (Adwea) placed orders for $32 million (Dh120 million) of power cables, according to its managing director Walter Bailey.

''A major aspect of the Ducab success story in recent years has been the company's close partnership with Adwea,'' he says.

He continues: ''A joint Adwea/Ducab technical committee evaluated distribution cable designs and achieved substantial savings through more cost-effective designs for 11 and 33 kV power cables.

''Working with Adwea engineers, Ducab has adopted thinner insulation with improved and specified concentricity, improved short circuit ratings and upgraded the specifications of water-free retardant insulation for 33 kV cables.

''The close partnership with Adwea has also led to greater service provision by Ducab as the requirement for improved jointing procedures in the field was identified. Cables fail only rarely with the primary cause of faults in electrical distribution networks generally associated with joints and terminations.''

Set up in 1981, Ducab is owned by the governments of Dubai and Abu Dhabi with equal shares of 35 per cent, and the Balfour Beatty of the UK with 30 per cent.

Ducab's product range covers low-voltage power cables, control and auxiliary cables, wiring cables, lead-sheathed cables as well as Smokemaster LSF (low smoke and fume) cables for projects where safety is paramount.

Ducab also produces Powerplus medium-voltage cables up to 33 kV.

Massive investment in the latest production technology has given Ducab the most advanced cable manufacturing facility in the Middle East and Ducab's aim is to produce electric cables of the highest quality and provide customer service that is unequalled in the Gulf region. Quality and customer service are twin objectives for Ducab.

Ducab is certified to ISO 9001 quality management systems as well as ISO 14001 environmental management systems. Ducab's excellence in quality was recognised when the company was awarded the Dubai Quality Award in the very first year of its inception, in 1994, and again in 1998.

Ducab strives for excellence in customer service and has adopted a Value Edge programme which explicitly states the aims and objectives of key aspects of service including response levels to enquiries within 24 hours of receipt.

Ducab also sets itself to reply to all specific enquiries for special deliveries and stock availability within one hour of receipt. The company will even specify a delivery time at the time of placing the order.

It works closely with its major suppliers and its annual copper usage is estimated at 35,000 tonnes per year. As part of its environmental management, Ducab strives to minimise waste and, in the case of galvanised steel tape, has developed methods to rewind and weld tapes thereby reducing scrap.

The company also works closely with its wooden drum supplier and has developed a returnable system for steel despatch and process drums.

Safety has always been implicit to the culture of the Ducab organisation which received its tenth consecutive gold award for industrial health and safety from RoSPA in the UK.

Ducab is also the first company in the Middle East to achieve BS 8800, the British Standard for health and safety management.