The Ducab plant in Jebel Ali. The cable manufacturer has tested imported cables and found some to be dangerously substandard. Jeff Topping / The National
The Ducab plant in Jebel Ali. The cable manufacturer has tested imported cables and found some to be dangerously substandard. Jeff Topping / The National

Fake copper wire found in UAE



Substandard flex cables are putting lives at risk as foreign manufacturers cut corners and seek cheaper alternatives to copper, which has soared in cost this year.

Copper used in the cables on home appliances and extension cords is being padded out with plastic or replaced with cheaper metals such as steel, which do not conduct electricity as well and are prone to dangerous heating, according to the manufacturer Ducab, which has surveyed the local market.

"What's happening is [as] soon as you start putting it on load, it's getting really hot," said Colin McKay, the head of sales and marketing at Ducab, a cable-making joint venture between Abu Dhabi and Dubai. "And it's causing fires. A lot of the wholesalers that stock this stuff keep a magnet on their desk now to check. The steel sticks and they know the cable's not safe."

Although copper prices fell sharply last week, the metal has been trading at record highs this year. Aluminium is about a third of the price, while steel is even cheaper.

"If [a cable manufacturer] is going to pass specification on a cable, he has to put a certain amount of copper in. He has to buy PVC from pretty much the same place as everybody," said Andrew Shaw, the managing director of Ducab.

"The equipment is quite expensive. You need the facilities … You have to buy copper, and that's set externally, and your raw materials are all set, so there is a temptation, particularly in smaller grades of cable, for people to start to cut corners," he said.

Ducab conducted the survey after distributors asked its salesmen whether the company would make substandard flex.

Staff from Ducab bought samples of appliance cable at electrical-supplies souqs in Abu Dhabi and Dubai made by manufacturers with European-sounding brand names that were found to be bogus. All 20 samples in the first test failed. "We have seen no examples of products manufactured in the UAE. It's all coming from abroad and outside the GCC, and it's coming in at the request of the importers who are in the UAE," said Mr McKay.

Ducab estimates that 80 per cent of the flex for sale in the UAE is substandard in some form. "I have seen the experiments conducted [by Ducab], and I have also seen some samples, and as an electrical engineer I agree with [Ducab]," says Ravinder Bhan, the principal consultant for TPS Management Consultants and a representative of the International Copper Association.

He says "strong and sensible" regulation is required to monitor imported flex.

Ducab has raised the issue with various government authorities, including Civil Defence. "There is not a big problem, but some people bring cable that is not approved or not good quality … from outside, because we have a free market," said Major Jamal Ahmed, the director of the Preventive Safety Department of Dubai Civil Defence.

Maj Ahmedsaid a number of authorities must work together to solve the problem.

Temple numbers

Expected completion: 2022

Height: 24 meters

Ground floor banquet hall: 370 square metres to accommodate about 750 people

Ground floor multipurpose hall: 92 square metres for up to 200 people

First floor main Prayer Hall: 465 square metres to hold 1,500 people at a time

First floor terrace areas: 2,30 square metres  

Temple will be spread over 6,900 square metres

Structure includes two basements, ground and first floor 

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COMPANY PROFILE
Name: HyperSpace
 
Started: 2020
 
Founders: Alexander Heller, Rama Allen and Desi Gonzalez
 
Based: Dubai, UAE
 
Sector: Entertainment 
 
Number of staff: 210 
 
Investment raised: $75 million from investors including Galaxy Interactive, Riyadh Season, Sega Ventures and Apis Venture Partners
 
 
 
 
 
 
 
COMPANY PROFILE
Name: ARDH Collective
Based: Dubai
Founders: Alhaan Ahmed, Alyina Ahmed and Maximo Tettamanzi
Sector: Sustainability
Total funding: Self funded
Number of employees: 4
Company%20Profile
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RESULT

Bayern Munich 5 Eintrracht Frankfurt 2
Bayern:
 Goretzka (17'), Müller (41'), Lewandowski (46'), Davies (61'), Hinteregger (74' og)    
Frankfurt: Hinteregger (52', 55')

PROFILE OF SWVL

Started: April 2017

Founders: Mostafa Kandil, Ahmed Sabbah and Mahmoud Nouh

Based: Cairo, Egypt

Sector: transport

Size: 450 employees

Investment: approximately $80 million

Investors include: Dubai’s Beco Capital, US’s Endeavor Catalyst, China’s MSA, Egypt’s Sawari Ventures, Sweden’s Vostok New Ventures, Property Finder CEO Michael Lahyani

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