Is A Wire Harness Different From An Electrical Harness?

Ah, the age-old question. The quick answer is no, there is no difference between a wire harness and an electrical harness. Wire harnesses and cable assemblies themselves are often used interchangeably but these two components each play their own critical part in the overall system.

In today's deep dive, we'll highlight the humble wire harness however you refer to it to see just how intense the engineering can be behind these workhorses that make today's ultra-complex technology possible.

Wire Harness, Cable Harness, Wiring Harness – What's the Difference?

No matter what name you call it by, the wire harness is the infrastructure behind some of mankind's most technologically advanced machines in the modern age. A wire harness is made up of various components that support, protect, and simplify electrical design within a wide variety of industries. KINKONG produces wire harnesses for industrial control systems and the military, for cutting edge medical units, automotive assemblies, telecommunications, and so much more.

From fighter jets to sports cars, wiring harnesses are almost literally the glue that holds everything together. However, if you ask the average buyer what's the difference between a wire harness and a cable harness assembly, they may be hard-pressed to answer.

That's because cable assembly and wire harness are so often used interchangeably that they have spawned all manner of different name combinations that are still incorrectly referring to different things. While there is no difference between a wire harness and an electrical harness, a cable assembly and a wire harness are two distinct engineering marvels.

So, What is a Wire Harness Exactly?

A wire harness, also commonly referred to as a wiring harness, is an exterior sheath used to cover some types of electronic wires. Generally, wiring harnesses are made of thermoplastic or thermoset materials that can help protect the cables from the environment. It is a low-cost, simple method for technicians to keep wires organized, protected, and easy to navigate. Although most wires come with their own exterior sleeves, those sleeves seldom are thick enough to protect the wires from dust, debris, and moisture. The thicker the wire is, the more risk there is of it sustaining damage due to a burned fuse.

The term “wire harness” is often used interchangeably with the term “cable assembly.” However, these are actually two different products. While both are exterior sheaths used to protect wires or cables, the cable assembly is made of a more durable material and is created to offer a higher level of protection in the most extreme conditions. Wiring harnesses and cable assemblies each have a distinct purpose in the electrical field. Selecting the right one is based on the application needed and is an important part of the success of your product. Ensuring that you have experienced, and informed members of your team help ensure that you are using the correct components for your project.

Why are Wire Harnesses Important?

A wiring harness is crucial for the protection of your electronics. Some of the main functions they serve include:

ㆍHelping to increase the lifespan of your electronic device by protecting it from compromised wires and heat damage.

ㆍIt serves as a backbone when connecting digital components to each other or to other components.

ㆍImproving airflow within the chassis.

ㆍProtecting technicians from electric shock.

ㆍProviding a more organized work environment.

ㆍReducing damage to your electronics from dust and debris.

The Many Benefits of Using a Custom Wire Harness

Ease of Integration

The typical car, truck, van, or SUV is going to have many feet of cables in order to connect all of the important components. The custom wire harness is one that has been specifically made to OEM standards in order to easily integrate into the vehicle either during manufacturing or when repairs are necessary. As you might expect, each manufacturer has its own specifications for exactly how each component should fit within the system. With high standards, automotive manufacturers and OEMs look for specialized custom cable and wire harness manufacturers that have proven capability in this field.

Built to Spec

The automotive sector is only one industry where ease of integration is a major benefit of custom wire harnesses. Advanced medical equipment that have special concerns like bio-medical jacks and strain reliefs all require specific engineering to meet the demands of the application. That's where a custom cable harness helps provide the stout engineering needed to meet the needs of each individual project.  

Perfectly Suited for the Environment

A custom wire harness provides protection against excessive vibrations, moisture, dust, humidity, caustic chemicals, temperature, and a wide range of additional variables. A custom component has also been engineered just for the space it's going in, which means consideration for size optimization.

How Our Team Designs a Complex Wire Harness

The very first part of a custom wire harness design is looking at the requirements of the client. That means our engineers are busy calculating geometric, as well as, electric components to meet the needs of the project. The design is established in a virtual computer aided design (CAD) 3D system that allows the engineer a chance to build and test different components under different scenarios all before a physical assembly board is ever even utilized.

Once the engineer finalizes the design that works best based on the models, we'll usually move forward with a schematic that tells our skilled manufacturing team where everything goes on the assembly board for the wire harness.

The assembly board provides a life-sized mapping of the entire harness assembly and each individual component of the overall design. With everything ready to begin manufacturing, our team can move forward in the production process.

Manufacturing the Most Advanced Wire Harnesses on the Planet

Every wire in a wire harness starts out as a single strand of a conductor, usually copper. At KINKONG, we extrude our own wires and can get them incredibly small and incredibly exact, depending on the needs of the project. Wires are cut to length and all labeled according to a master plan provided by our engineers. Wire management is a crucial component of any cable manufacturer's repertoire and another benefit to using an experienced team of the best in the business. Conductors can be fitted with whatever connector or terminals are required because we have such a massive tool crib to tap throughout the process.

Even better, if we don't have the tooling required for a really custom job, we have the advanced machinery to make, test, and retest the component on the spot. Better still, we are a UL-approved manufacturing facility so we can even help get a harness certified through various agencies when that's what our clients need.

Are Wire Harnesses Assembled Manually?

Yes, even with the incredibly sophisticated machines we have at our disposal, a lot of the wiring harness assembly process is done manually by very skilled hands. There are a great many different processes throughout the process that benefit from semi-automation or even fully-automated processes, but there is still quite a bit that is done by hand because it's simply more efficient.

Some of the processes done by hand include:

Incorporating a terminated wire or wires that are different lengths into the assembly board.

Make sure the cable assemblies are appropriately placed through sleeves and/or conduits.

Ensuring cable breakouts are appropriately taped and marked.

Manually crimping where required.

Installing various binding methods such as cable ties throughout the system.

When it's a small batch such as for testing or prototyping, the hands-on process can really pay off with efficiency and quality; however, as we mentioned above we'll use automation wherever it saves time and money in the process.

KINKONG is Your Source for Custom Wire Harnesses

We are a reliable supplier of automotive connectors, enclosures, casings, terminals & silicon rubber sealings, fuse boxes and the entire wiring/cable assembly, in global automotive top tuning market and after market.

Our mission is to customize solutions for both individual customers and companies to help them gain a worldwide competitive market by providing outstanding technologies and supreme qualified products with a total effective cost.

Whether you're in search of an integrated wiring assembly or an individual component, our innovative engineer team and adavanced ultra precision tooling technology will provide simple but efficient solutions, increase your profitability. In the meanwhile, it keeps us active and expanding in the related industry area. Contact our team now to start reviewing your project specs and get started.