Learn
From the first connection list to a quote you can stand behind.
Our guides on five paths: quoting, documentation, formboards, parts and wires, engineering. Each one starts with the short answer and ends with its sources. Free, no account needed.
01 · Guides: 3 · 22 min
Quoting
Material, labour, setup and margin; what to ask the customer for.
- How to quote a wire harness: material, labour, setup, marginA harness quote is material, labour from counted operations, setup per batch, one-off NRE and margin. Step by step, with a worked example from a default table.9 min
- Wire harness RFQ checklist: what to get before you quoteWhat a harness quote needs — drawing, revision, connection list, part numbers, quantities, test and marking needs — as a checklist to send back to the customer.6 min
- Labour times for wire harness work: crimp, insert, tape, testTimes per operation for harness assembly — cutting, crimping, seals, inserting, taping, testing — with sources and honest labels, and how to time your own.7 min
02 · Guides: 6 · 35 min
Documentation
Cut lengths, strip lengths, revisions, cables and harnesses.
- How to calculate wire cut lengths from branch lengthsCut length = the route through the branches + an allowance at each end + loops and slack, rounded up. The rule, an example, and why bundle sums come out short.7 min
- Strip lengths for crimp terminals: where to find the right valueThe strip length comes from the terminal maker's application specification for that terminal and wire size. Where to find it and how a cut list should show it.5 min
- Revision control for wire harnesses: one change, every documentHandle customer changes without the cut list, BOM, labels, board and quote drifting apart: frozen revisions, stable IDs and a diff of what changed downstream.6 min
- Cable assemblies vs wire harnesses: what changes for the shopA cable assembly is jacketed cable with connectors at the ends, usually unbranched; a harness is a branched bundle built on a board. What changes for the shop.5 min
- A cut-list CSV your wire-processing machine can importKomax and Schleuniger publish no cut-list file format: lists go in through a converter you set up once. Export one row per wire, in mm, and map the columns.6 min
- A from-to list in Excel that imports without retypingOne row per wire: wire, from connector and pin, to connector and pin, cross-section, colour, length. The header names, units and sheets that import cleanly.6 min
03 · Guides: 1 · 7 min
Formboards
Printing at 1:1, tiling, checking the scale.
04 · Guides: 2 · 11 min
Parts and wires
Gauges and colour codes, as lists really write them.
- Wire gauge: AWG to mm² and back, for harness workAWG to mm² conversion table for harness wire (28 to 4 AWG), the formula behind it, and why there is no exact 'nearest metric size'. Mixed units in one harness, handled.5 min
- Wire colour codes: IEC 60757, DIN 47100 and how lists write themIEC 60757 two-letter colour codes, the DIN 47100 core sequence, and how connection lists write a base colour with a stripe — BK/WH, sw/ws, BKWH — read right.6 min
05 · Guides: 2 · 15 min
Engineering
Fuses and voltage drop: the method, with its sources and limits.
- Choosing a fuse for a wire: the checks, step by stepA fuse protects the wire, not the load. Check the load against the fuse's derated rating, the fuse against the wire's derated capacity, and short-circuit I²t.8 min
- Voltage drop in wire harnesses: formula, limits, exampleVoltage drop = current × resistance per metre × loop length, corrected for temperature. Published limits by sector, and an FLRY-B example: 1.5 vs 2.5 mm² at 10 A.7 min
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