Adoption of light materials priority in automotive wire harnesses R&D

Copper alloy conductors provide an alternative to mainstream copper types of automotive wire harnesses, while the next-generation aluminum alloy category is on the agenda.

As a key component in vehicles, wire harnesses have trended toward lightweight designs because these help improve fuel or energy efficiency. This is amid the increase in the number of onboard electronics as today's gas-powered, and hybrid and electric cars are designed to provide greater safety and comfort.

In a wire harness, the conductor accounts for 75 percent of the total weight, followed by connectors and the outer jacket respectively with 15 and 10 percent shares.

To deliver weight reduction, leading global players such as Delphi, Furukawa and Sumitomo have shifted to the use of aluminum alloy instead of conventional copper conductors. Such products target mainly storage batteries.

This is expected to gather momentum, especially as standards specific to this type are already in place. There are Japan's JASO D603 and the ISO 6722-2. The latter covers dimensions, test methods and requirements for the manufacture of aluminum conductor cables.

In mainland China, copper remains the widely adopted material but to accommodate requests for lighter and smaller wiring, suppliers turn to copper alloy. They look to follow the development roadmap toward aluminum alloy in the future. At present, a few large local companies, including the THB Group, have picked up this lead and started offering aluminum alloy-based wire harnesses.

Besides lightweight features, there remains equal emphasis on reliability. Domestic makers ensure products meet international standards such as CCC, CE, CSA, UL and VDE, in addition to the RoHS Directive, and those specific to the automotive industry. The latter includes IATF 169494, QC/T 29106 and CQC16-463424-2018.

Most mainland companies plan to continue increasing production, anticipating healthy demand with the development toward connected cars. One impetus is the action plan issued by the Ministry of Industry and Information Technology, which will help propagate the Internet of Vehicles from 2020 onward.

Local suppliers are counting on maintaining growth within 5 to 10 percent in the next one or two years. The same rate of increase is forecast for the mainland's automotive wire harnesses industry, which had a $9.1 billion market scale in 2018.

For interviewed Taiwan company Juscom Inc., the prospects are bright. It achieved a 13 percent rise in sales in the past year and is confident of sustaining this at more than 10 percent in the near term. The maker foresees export revenue will keep climbing by 5 to 10 percent. Its main overseas markets are Germany and the US.

The global industry is dominated by suppliers from Japan, the US and Europe, which include Yazaki, Sumitomo, Delphi, Leoni, Furukawa, Fujikura and Lear. The first four are responsible for more than 70 percent of worldwide shipments.

In the mainland, the THB Group, Kunshan Huguang, Nantong Friend Star and Liuzhou Shuangfei are among the key players in the line. There are also some local automotive makers such as Great Wall, BYD and Geely that operate their own factories for wire harnesses.

Overall, up to a thousand companies make up the category in the mainland. Small and midsize local enterprises form the majority, and midsize and large foreign suppliers make up less than 30 percent. Most also offer other wire harnesses types, cables and connectors.

The key cities playing hosts to these makers include Shenzhen and Dongguan in Guangdong province, Ningbo in Zhejiang, Changzhou in Jiangsu and Weihai in Shandong.

Copper-based line

The typical automotive wire harnesses from mainland makers have copper conductors with a cross sectional area ranging from 0.5 to 6sqmm. These are terminated with plugs usually from foreign companies, including JST, Delphi, Molex, Aptiv, TE, Deustch, ITT, Amphenol, Bosch, Yazaki, Sumitomo, JAE, JST, KUM and KET.

Custom-made products represent more than 80 percent of shipments.

Manufacturers turn to the local supply for copper wires and PVC jackets, sourcing from overseas when required.

The cost of production inputs has remained flat, keeping prices of automotive wire harnesses unchanged. A few suppliers, however, lowered their quotes by about 5 percent to counter fierce competition in the line. In the year ahead, outlay for materials and components is expected to stay the same.

The products in this gallery have been handpicked by our mainland China-based market analyst for representing current trends in automotive wire harnesses from mainland China and Taiwan makers.

Automotive wire harness uses AVS or AVSS wires

In custom colors and lengths, the model LS-FL252 automotive wire harness from Dongguan Liushi Electronics Co. Ltd adopts AVS or AVSS wires and Tyco, JAE, Molex or other connectors. Its cross sectional area is 0.05 to 5.5sqmm. The unit meets IATF 16949 and RoHS requirements.

The 100-set minimum order is delivered within 5 days.

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Automotive wire harness has up to 22AWG wires

For automotive use, the UTVs Wiring Harnesses model from Huizhou Olink Technology Co. Ltd has Aptiv, TE, Molex, Deustch, ITT, Amphenol, Bosch, Yazaki, Sumitomo, JAE, JST, KUM or KET connectors and up to 22AWG wires of any type to suit requirements. The unit meets CCC, DIN, JASO, SAE, UL and VDE standards.

The minimum order is 1,000 units for delivery within 7 days.

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Automotive wire harness with watertight connectors

Adopting watertight connectors, grommets and German-class crimping, the model 1160-213-241 automotive wire harness from Juscom Inc. conforms to IPC Class 2 and higher standards.

The negotiable minimum order has a 7-day delivery lead time.

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Automotive wire harness suits new energy, hybrid vehicles

For new energy and hybrid vehicles, the model 53 automotive wire harness consists of TE 170366-1 or 3M 3E206-0100K plugs and black or red wires with PVC jackets.

A minimum order of 500 units is for delivery within 30 days.

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