—

—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings
Philip Allington, Product Management – Oct 2019
—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Functional Description
—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Functional Description

Standard PMA fittings

Are designed to provide a stable connection to corrugated conduits ensuring the resulting closed system of conduit
and fitting can fulfil the following functions.
1. Protection of cables against mechanical stresses such as compression forces, high energy impacts, abrasion etc
2. Protection of cables against environmental influences such as UV radiation, exposure to chemicals, ingress of water
and dust, damage caused by birds or rodents.

PMA Strain relief fittings

Include an integrated cable gland.
They provide all the same functions as the standard fittings mentioned above plus two additional functions.
3. They fix the position of cables within the fitting preventing mechanical forces being applied to cable connections
4. They provide an additional seal against water and dust along the path of the cable into other parts of the electrical
system. So that if damage does occur to a conduit while performing its function of protecting cables, water which
enters the cable protection system can be prevented from going further into other parts of the electrical system.

November 6, 2019 Slide 3

—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Functional Description

Standard Fitting Strain Relief Fitting

November 6, 2019 Slide 4

—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Cable Gland Performance Data
—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Cable Gland Performance Data

PMA integrates cable glands from two specialist manufacturers into fittings. Pflitsch and Jacob.

The specification for the cable gland is not changed through the integration into a PMA fitting.

All performance characteristics quoted by Pflitsch and Jacob on their data sheets still apply when the cable
gland is integrated into a PMA fitting.

Performance characteristics quoted on PMA fitting data sheets for the cable gland functions within the strain
relief fittings match the values quoted by Pflitsch and Jacob.

November 6, 2019 Slide 6

—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Range Overview
—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Range Overview

▪ Pflitsch

▪ Jacob

▪ PMAFIX Pro

▪ PMAFIX IP68

▪ PMAFIX IP66

▪ Polyamide and Metal threads

▪ Metric, PG and NPT thread types

▪ Straight and 90° Elbow Fittings

▪ IEC Ex versions

▪ Fire Barrier Solution

November 6, 2019 Slide 8

—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Pflitsch
—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Pflitsch Range

▪ PMAFIX Pro

▪ PMAFIX IP68

▪ Metal threads only

▪ Metric and PG thread types

▪ Straight and 90° Elbow Fittings

▪ IEC Ex versions

▪ Fire Barrier Solution

November 6, 2019 Slide 10

—
PMAFIX Pro (Pflitsch) Strain Relief Fittings – Metal Thread
NKNZ-M***/P*

November 6, 2019 Slide 11

—
PMAFIX IP68 (Pflitsch) Strain Relief Fittings – Metal Thread
NVNZ-M***S/P*

November 6, 2019 Slide 12

—
PMAFIX IP68 (Pflitsch) Strain Relief Fittings – Metal Thread
NENZ-M***/P* ATEX & IECEx Approved for use in Hazardous Areas

November 6, 2019 Slide 13

—
PMAFIX IP68 (Pflitsch) Strain Relief Fittings – Metal Thread
NKNZ-M***/P* NVNZ-M***S/P*

November 6, 2019 Slide 14

—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Jacob
—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Jacob Range

▪ PMAFIX Pro

▪ PMAFIX IP68

▪ PMAFIX IP66

▪ Polyamide and Metal threads

▪ Metric, PG and NPT thread types

▪ Straight Fittings only

November 6, 2019 Slide 16

—
PMAFIX IP68 (Jacob) Strain Relief Fittings – Metal Thread
NVNZ-M***S-**

November 6, 2019 Slide 17

—
PMAFIX IP68 (Jacob) Strain Relief Fittings – Polyamide Thread
BVNZ-M***S-**

November 6, 2019 Slide 18

—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Sealing Specification
—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Sealing Specification
It is important to understand that there are two different sealing
functions performed by PMA Strain Relief fittings

1. PMA cable protection systems prevent water and dust from

entering from the outside

• PMA conduits are water and dust tight

• The junction between conduit and fitting is water and
dust tight
• and with careful selection of the correct thread sealing
element the junction between the fitting and the customers
casing or connector is also water and dust tight

2. Strain relief fittings including a cable gland element provide

an additional sealing function. They can prevent water from
travelling through the fitting into the casing or connector
it is attached to along the same path as the cables.

November 6, 2019 Slide 20

—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Sealing Specification

If no water or dust is present inside the cable protection system the additional sealing function the cable gland provides is
not required.

The cable gland only needs to mechanically fix the cables preventing forces being applied to cable connections inside
the customer casing or connector.

However, if water or dust does enter the system this additional seal may be critical

Possible reasons for water or dust within the cable protection system could be
• Mechanical damage to the conduit in performing its primary function of protecting cables
• Condensation caused by the transport of air along the cable protection system from a warm area to a cold area.
• Incorrect installation or poor system design.

A strain relief fitting can help to prevent condensation within a cable protection system because it prevents air being
transported along its length from a warm area to a cold area.

November 6, 2019 Slide 21

—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Single Round Cables
—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Single Round Cables

Both Pflitsch and Jacob quote high Ingress Protection levels for their cable glands if certain application conditions are met.

The specified Ingress Protection level can be achieved for single, round cables with an outside diameter within the specified
clamping range for the sealing grommet used.

Various sealing grommets are available for each gland size. The clamping ranges for the cable gland grommets overlap
ensuring that an optimal grommet is available for all cable diameters.

4.0 – 6.5mm
5.0 – 8.0mm 6.5mm cable is in the middle of the clamping range
6.5 – 9.5mm

For a cable with outside diameter 6.5mm if the clamping ranges did not overlap it would be necessary to select a grommet at
either the extreme upper end or the extreme lower end of the clamping range.

4.0 – 6.5mm
6.5 – 9.5mm

November 6, 2019 Slide 23

—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Single Round Cables

If the cable diameter is below the specified clamping range for the sealing grommet even when the compression thread
is screwed in until it can turn no further insufficient pressure will be applied to the sealing grommet to seal and clamp the
cable.

Overtightening the compression screw due to incorrect cable size may distort the fitting causing permanent damage.

If the cable diameter is above the specified clamping range for the sealing grommet it may not be possible to feed the
cable through the hole.

When a cable with correct diameter is used optimal sealing and clamping ill be achieved at the recommended tightening
torque

November 6, 2019 Slide 24

—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Multiple Cables
—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Multiple Cables

Multiple Hole Sealing Grommets

If multiple cables are used within a single cable gland a high level of sealing performance through the gland along the
path of the cables can only be guaranteed when a multiple hole sealing insert is used.

If a single hole sealing grommet is used with multiple cables there will be cavities between the cables and there will be uneven
pressure build up around the circumference of the grommet.

Water may leak in through the compression thread and around the outside of the grommet.

Water can be prevented from entering via the compression thread by applying a locking and sealing compound to the thread.

November 6, 2019 Slide 26

—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Multiple Cables

Pflitsch Multiple Hole Sealing Grommets

Customer specific hole configurations can be designed on request.

For multiple hole sealing inserts Pflitsch quote

• IP 68 if the diameter of the cable and the hole size are the same
• IP 65, when the difference between the cable diameter and the hole in the
sealing grommet is less than 10 %.

Please remember this is the sealing performance through the gland along the
path of the cables NOT the sealing performance of the cable protection
system from outside to inside.

The sealing performance and cable retention force depend also upon the
type of cable used. The characteristics of the insulation material affect the
pressure build up within the gland

November 6, 2019 Slide 27

—
PMA Strain Relief Fittings – Multiple Cables

Jacob Multiple Hole Sealing Grommets

For multiple hole sealing inserts Jacob quote

• IP 65 if the diameter of the cable and the hole size are the same

November 6, 2019 Slide 28