Starting out focused on photoelectric and vacuum tube controls nearly a century ago, Ripley is no stranger to change. As our customers’ challenges and expectations have evolved, so have the product lines from Ripley and our brands: Cablematic®, Miller®, MultiWave Sensors, ODM®, and UtilityTool®. We know that our customers love these brands – a pair of Millers has been a staple in any fiber technicians’ toolkit for decades and even the biggest tool companies can’t compete with UtilityTool’s range of wire stripping bushings. We’ve noticed a trend in recent years though – linemen carrying Miller fiber strippers, fiber technicians carrying 4×4s or coring tools, and tower installers who need to connect the power, terminate fiber with clean connections and align antennas to exacting standards. Everyone needs the job done faster, safer, and preferably with a custom tool kit to take them from start to finish.

Since joining the Hubbell family in 2022 this need for application-based solutions regardless of brand has only grown. That’s why today we are thrilled to share some exciting news for Ripley – a significant evolution of our brand that promises not only a streamlined experience for our valued customers but also a continuation of both our much-loved products and the high-quality service from our teams that you’ve come to expect.

Ripley Tools has decided to bring together its diverse product offerings previously housed under the separate product brand names of Miller, ODM, Cablematic, UtilityTool and MultiWave Sensors. Going forward, these names will become product lines, unified under the Ripley brand.

Miller, Cablematic, and UtilityTool will transition from brand names to product series under Ripley, while MultiWave Sensors, ODM and any legacy Abeco products will now simply be Ripley products.

This move is driven by the desire to simplify and enhance the customer experience. Instead of navigating through various sub-brands, all our products will now proudly bear the unified Ripley name, making it easier than ever for you to find the tools that solve your challenges.

What will the changes mean for the tools I’ve been buying?

Essentially, nothing. While the names may be changing, everything else about your favorite tools remains unchanged. The products you know and trust are still crafted with the same precision, care and expertise. Our manufacturing process, dedicated team and commitment to excellence all remain steadfast. In fact, this unification offers you a greater opportunity to explore our extensive range of tools – potentially discovering hidden gems that you may not have encountered before from previously different product brands.

In tandem with our brand unification, we’re excited to announce the launch of our new website. This redesign is specifically tailored to make it significantly easier for you to find the tools you need, organized by the job to be done rather than our product sub-brands, as well as introducing our latest tools from all our segments. The simplified interface ensures a seamless browsing experience, helping you locate the right tools effortlessly.

The story so far… and an exciting new chapter

Ripley’s long history reveals a company that’s been able to reinvent itself as times changed and opportunities arose to make a difference for customers. From our founding in 1936, through the acquisitions of UtilityTool Corporation in 1972 and K. Miller Tool Co in 1994, Ripley has always put innovation and a unique understanding of the customer first. Ripley added ODM in 2017 and MultiWave Sensors in 2022 to expand our tool expertise beyond cable preparation and into fiber inspection and antenna alignment, and now as part of Hubbell Ripley is able to support an ever-greater range of installations.

Now, in 2024, as we embark on this transformative journey we are filled with anticipation for the future and the exciting new chapter of each of those brands. 

Craig Tooker, Sr. Business Unit Manager, Ripley Tools, said: “We are really excited to bring all of our tools together under the Ripley name to create the right solutions for our customers. This move is a testament to our commitment to evolving with the needs of fiber techs, linemen and all of our customers, providing them with a more tailored product set so they can tackle the entire job. Ripley’s industry-leading quality and performance will remain the same – and in fact customers will have even more opportunities to find tools that will make their work lives easier, safer and more efficient than ever before.”

How can I contact Ripley if I have any questions?

If you have any questions or concerns about the changes, please reach out to our support team through our Contact us page. 

The post Ripley Tools unveils updated branding to reflect Ripley’s solutions leadership first appeared on Ripley Tools.

As any installer will testify, time is money when it comes to deploying personnel, kits, and materials in the field. It’s a temptation then perhaps to not test fiber cables – especially when installing from new, or if thought to be already ‘clean’…

Yet it’s a false economy according to technical fiber expert Stephan Searles, Business Manager at Miller (formerly ODM), part of the Hubbell Family:

 “With more than 80% of all optic fiber network failures caused by dirty or damaged connectors, you cannot overestimate the importance of testing,” he says. “Dirt can so easily and inadvertently be transferred into systems, from people and the exterior environment. A quick, efficient test every time a connector is installed or moved pays dividends. Downtime costs money, risks relationships with providers, and ultimately causes angry end users.”

A QUICK FIX

Inspection scopes, as the name implies, are highly sensitive, portable testers that inspect the connector on a fiber optic cable. Debris, defects, scratches, chips, or fractures on the end face can cause failures and many larger communications providers therefore specify test inspections and reports as part of their closeout package.

So with time pressing, client payments pending, and such intricate connections at play, here’s Stephan’s five quick (literally!) features to look out for from an inspection scope:

TRAVEL LIGHT

Choosing an inspection scope that’s wi-fi enabled and can interface with a phone means less equipment to carry – no separate screens or devices to plug into. It also reduces the unit cost – always an important consideration – and means inspection reports can be quickly created and easily transmitted from your phone.

It also means that whether you’re left-handed, right-handed, or simply short-handed, you can use it… yep, one-handed! Look for scopes that offer connection flexibility to Windows, Android and iOS devices.

BE ADAPTABLE

There’s a lot of fiber cables out there, and new tech arriving daily. Inspection scopes come with many adaptor tips (manufacturers typically offer 20+) for different connector styles. Ensure that you do your research in advance before purchasing a scope to make certain it will have the adaptability for any connectors you run into in the field. Don’t waste time by having insufficient options or carrying extra equipment unnecessarily.

GET NOSEY

Dense patch panels incorporating heavily populated cables can be tricky to explore. A long narrow-nozzle scope will give extra reach and allow better access. The need to disassemble and repackage multiple cables for testing should be avoided at all costs – and time.

ONE CLICK SIMPLICITY

The ceramic ferrule encasing fiber optic cables can be quite small, making manual focussing a frustrating and, once again, time-consuming task. Look for auto-focus simplicity to save time, with a wide field of view to see those 1.25mm connections in full glory. While you’re at it, throw in auto-centering and auto-analysis – that one click functionality can deliver a pass/fail light indication (hopefully green) in a matter of seconds for the fastest possible inspection process.

WALK THE TALK

Trusting in a manufacturer that understands life at the sharp end of a scope is important. Understanding the onsite, and offsite, issues you face will drive often simple, but oh-so-valuable functionality into a product. Who’s moving with the times? Listening to feedback? Making your working life easier? Look for a manufacturer that puts solutions in the palm of your hand!

Products mentioned in the article

VIS 500

Wireless Inspection Scope

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Yet with so many options available on the market, it can be overwhelming to try and find the right tool for your requirements, and how it compares with its competition. With so many tools on offer, what are the key considerations you need to bear in mind when trying to select the best tool to meet your needs?

Let’s start with the fundamental factors that need to be taken into account when choosing your next purchase

1) Ergonomic design

The importance of ergonomic design in a tool cannot be overstated. For workers using these tools again and again, day-in and day-out, the design and comfort of a product can make a noticeable difference to how quickly you’re able to undertake a task, how straightforward this process is, and how comfortable the action itself is. This final point is particularly crucial, as using tools that are not designed to be light and balanced to use can, over time, potentially cause harm in the long run.

Features such as angled handles, padded hand grips and non-slip coatings can all play a part in making sure a tool is easy and safe to use. With hands and fingers typically the most frequently injured at work, it’s critical to make sure tools involving repetitive motion actions have been designed by a trusted manufacturer, who has the design credentials to prove its products are simple, intuitive and practical to use.

2) Assured safety

Following on from ergonomic design is safety. These two are fairly interlinked, as most solutions that have paid attention to factoring in ergonomic design will have typically also considered how safety elements and features can be incorporated into their products.

From cuts and abrasions, to repetitive motion injuries, eye injuries and even broken bones and bruises, any hand tool worth your time should take every possible step to reduce the possibility of hand tool injury to an absolute minimum. For cable engineers, common safety features might include shielded blades, and automating tasks wherever possible.

Employers also have a responsibility to regularly inspect hand tools to ensure they are still in good working condition, and replace them if this is not the case.

It should also go without saying that engineers should always use the right tool for the right job.

3) Precise performance

A product’s quality and the reliability is an absolutely key component of any solution – without it, even the greatest cable technician would not be able to perform their job properly.

For the fiber industry, precision is only set to become more important in years to come, as cables are more densely packed and the air gap between cables and other components gets smaller and smaller. Quality of performance should never be compromised on, and the best solutions on the market will deliver consistent performance over extended periods of time, with a strong reputation within the industry for having done so.

Testing provides essential evidence of a product’s claims. Keep a lookout for the number of testing cycles a hand tool has undergone, illustrating its performance over time, as well as any standards or regulations a solution has been accredited to.

4) Speedy efficiency

Nowadays, fiber technicians are under more pressure than ever before to complete jobs in a quick and timely manner. With ambitious targets to extend cabling networks, and serious repercussions if a network was to go down or a job not completed according to timescales, the need for fast and efficient tooling solutions has never been more prominent.

The latest innovations will consider how a job can be completed more efficiently. New products will come with automated functions that previous iterations did not have, in a bid to make the engineer’s life easier, or they may come with a range of predefined options for different cabling measurements, improving accuracy and enabling the technician to quickly select the one they need.

5) Built to last

There’s no getting away from the fact that cost will always be a factor when choosing a product. As a result, decision-makers want products that are as cost-effective as possible, without compromising on quality. It’s understandable that when investing in a tool, you want a product that’s built to last, delivering value for money throughout its service life.

You want a long-lasting solution, which has been designed to stand the test of time. Factors such as materials used and testing will provide evidence of how much effort has gone into creating a product that’s designed to be durable and robust, so you can have every confidence that you won’t be replacing your new tool anytime soon.

The in-house knowledge, experience and expertise of a tool’s manufacturer will influence this, too. A brand will no doubt have needed to evolve and enhance their hand tool products over time, to continue impressing the cabling market with the latest innovations, designed to operate as expected again and again and again.

The post The best tool for… first appeared on Ripley Tools.

Without the right tools, it’s usually impossible to get the job done – let alone get it done right.

Nowhere is this more obvious than when testing fiber networks. This complex and delicate technology means installers not only need to possess an incredible amount of practical and theoretical knowledge, but also have the right tools to put that knowledge into action.

Whether it’s power meters or identifying optical light sources, if you haven’t got the right toolkit, you can’t do the job.

Why Do Fiber Cables Need to be Tested?

Fiber cables must be tested when they are first deployed, and require regular maintenance due to industry standards and warranty requirements – but there’s more to it than that.

With an ever-increasing demand for bandwidth, and with speeds reaching record levels, fiber networks have increased in size and complexity. New technologies such as Dense Wavelength Division Multiplexing have created faster connections but led to more cable segments and loss locations, meaning there are more areas than ever where failure may occur.

Despite advances in technology and contamination protocols, fiber optic cables remain highly sensitive to contamination from dirt and dust, bending, and light damage. Regular testing allows issues to be identified before they can cause trouble.

Finally, in an always-online world, crucial functions such as banking, health, and finance rely on an effective network to function. Millions of citizens around the world utilize fiber optic networks every day to speak to loved ones, do their jobs, and socialize. It’s vital that these networks can continue to handle the load.

Tools for Fiber Optic Testing

To ensure you can carry out the right tests without damaging the sensitive fiber cables themselves, you need the right tools.

If you’re beginning a new fiber project, or are looking to move into the industry, there are a few basic tools you should invest in to ensure you can do the job right.

Inspection Microscope

Dirty fiber optic endfaces is the biggest cause of issues in singlemode and multimode fiber optic systems. Inspection microscopes are a simple, effective way to identify faults and overcome this.

As the name implies, inspection microscopes magnify the image of the optical fiber connector, usually around 100x, 200x, or 400x, allowing the technician to inspect the endface for faults. These are often used in conjunction with display screens for easier examination. Some models, like our VIS 300C system, include a screen as standard.

Optical Power Meter

Optical Power Meters, or OPMs, can be used to measure the power of an optical signal. You might also hear them called radiometers, photometers, laser power meters, light meters or lux meters.

Optical power meters usually consist of a calibrated sensor, measuring amplifier, and connected display. The sensor, usually a photodiode, detects light at the required wavelength and power level and displays it, allowing the engineer to identify power faults.

At Ripley, we offer a range of handheld optical power meters to suit every job and budget.

Visual Fault Locator

Fiber optic networks rely on the right light connections being made to function properly. As they utilize infrared (IR) light, which is beyond the range of the human eye, you can’t see when connections aren’t being made.

Visual Fault Identifiers/Locators (VFI/VFL) overcome this by using a visible light source – either an LED or laser diode – to shoot light on the visible spectrum into the fiber, highlighting any potential problems and allowing the engineer to fix the fault.

VFLs are crucial for identifying bends, breaks, and fault connectors. They often look like flashlights or pens with a small LED or laser light at one end, just like our FO-VFL series model.

The Basics

The tools listed above are the very basic tools you’ll need to carry out fiber optic testing.

There’s a range of tools available to make testing fiber optic cables easier and more efficient. Depending on your budget, investing in additional tools can simplify your job, increase your working speed, and allow you to get more done with less effort.

To learn more about fiber optic testing, click here, or visit our shop page to view the full range of fiber tools available from Ripley Tools.

The post Is your toolkit fit for fiber testing? first appeared on Ripley Tools.

Businesses love fiber optic broadband for its bigger bandwidth and its stability; something that’s important to facilitating remote working patterns and making sure corporate communications networks can extend beyond the office. Emergency services love it for providing speed and reliability when it matters most, and households love it because it can support multiple entertainment devices and provide unrivaled download and streaming speeds.

The roll-out of fiber optic cable networks is happening fast

Little wonder then that service providers are under such pressure to provide what is fast becoming an essential service. Fiber optic roll-out programs are ramping up across the USA, UK and Europe, with initiatives including the FCC’s Rural Digital Opportunity Fund in the US and the UK’s Project Gigabit gaining pace. Wide-scale fiber roll-out is a complex task where mistakes can be costly –  and what all providers understand is that the speed and success of any roll-out will depend on two things: powerful technology and capable teams.

Thankfully, advancements in network automation now mean that one can support the other. For the fiber technicians who are working hard to install, monitor and maintain our fiber optic infrastructure, network automation technology means fewer repetitive tasks, more time to focus on complex issues and fast access to the insights needed to fix potential problems before they cause disruption on the network. Let’s take a closer look at how network automation is helping fiber optic technicians work smarter.

• Fast fault identification

Fiber optic cable presents technicians with very different issues to copper wire cable. The installation process is very different, as is the troubleshooting process – cables are much more fragile and faults can be harder to fix. When broken fibers, faulty splices or damaged connectors cause signal loss, technicians need to be able to quickly identify where the problem has occurred. Cables can span long distances, meaning locating the problem might create a real logistical challenge, even with the best cable testing tools on the market. 

Network automation changes this. It empowers service providers to locate and identify network faults as they happen, meaning technicians can be dispatched to the right place first time, armed with the correct information and right tools they need to do their job quickly and effectively.

• Getting ahead of the problem

Proactive maintenance of fiber optic cable networks is the best way to give users the experience they desire – one free of interruption or inconvenience. Unfortunately, cable testing and maintenance programs are time-consuming and expensive to execute, creating a burden for already overstretched teams of technicians. 

Network automation changes this. It improves network availability and makes disruption-free service levels a possibility by providing the ability to continually monitor entire networks in real-time. Once issues are flagged, they can often be dealt with remotely. This frees up valuable time for technicians to deal with the jobs where their skills are most needed – and makes sure that they’re on the scene just-in-time, before smaller maintenance jobs become much bigger problems.

Boost your efficiency with the best fiber tools in the business

While network automation supports technicians to work smarter, having the right tools for the job once they’re on site is still the best way to make sure they can work safely and efficiently. When you’re working on fiber optic cable, you need tools that are lightweight, easy to hold and able to provide pin-point accuracy. The Miller® range from Ripley Tools has been custom designed to do just that. Built for speed and precision, and recognised globally as a superior choice, they have been created in close collaboration with fiber optic cable manufacturers – and designed and manufactured by the skilled engineers at Ripley Labs, USA. Discover the Miller® range of fiber optic preparation tools.

The post How network automation helps fiber technicians work smarter first appeared on Ripley Tools.

Cromwell, Connecticut – Ripley Tools, LLC. – Ripley Tools is pleased to welcome Bruce Ratskoff as Director of Sales, Broadband, with responsibility for sales of Ripley cable prep and test tools to installers, telcos, and distributors serving the wireline, wireless, and MSO market segments.

Ratskoff has over 25 years of senior level leadership and strategic planning background most recently at VFP Inc., Roanoke, Virginia, a producer of mission-critical concrete equipment shelters for rural broadband, edge data center, and 5G buildouts. Between 2009-2020, he was Director, Utility Broadband & Communications for WESCO Distribution, Pittsburgh, PA, where he managed three direct reports and 8 staff members responsible for WESCO’s Utility branches and Datacom branches for OSP products, as well as servicing Google Fiber, Verizon One and ATT as major accounts.   Before WESCO, Ratskoff worked as an independent manufacturer’s rep for DCS Group, Chicago, Illinois, which carried 10 product lines for the structured cabling market.

For more information about Ripley Tools, please contact us at 1-860-635-2200 (toll-free in the USA 800-528-8665), or by email: info@ripley-tools.com. Ripley products and authorized distributors are located at www.ripley-tools.com.

The post Ripley welcomes Bruce Ratskoff, Director of Sales, Broadband first appeared on Ripley Tools.

It’s therefore important to ensure that your engineers are taking the correct approach when it comes to cleaning fibers. Here are our top three tips for maintaining a spotless network:

• Keep cleaning to a minimum

When you’re striving to keep your network clean and minimise attenuation, it’s vital that your engineers know when to clean the fibers. Whenever they install a new cable, for example, they must clean the fiber before they do so, as even brand-new fibers can pick up dust and dirt while being transported and installed. Your engineers will also need to clean the fiber whenever they cut into the cable, as even the smallest of cuts can lead to microscopic dirt entering the cable and contaminating the fiber. 

If fibers are properly cleaned and prepped at these crucial times, then there should be no need for preventative maintenance and cleaning. Of course, when faults occur your team will need to access the fibers to carry out repairs, but if your network is operating normally, avoid exposing your fibers to the air unnecessarily. Every time you do so, there’s a risk of contamination, which means your engineers must carry out the cleaning process once again.

• Combine wet and dry cleaning techniques

When cleaning fiber cables, you should only use lint-free wipes, as standard wipes and cloths could leave fibers and fluff on the cable. Using dry wipes alone, however – a practice known as ‘dry’ cleaning – is not an ideal approach to cleaning fiber, as rubbing the fiber with a dry wipe can create an electrostatic charge on the connector. A charged end face will attract dust particles, leaving the cable contaminated, so it’s best to wet the dry wipe with an optical-grade cleaning fluid and take a ‘combination’ approach to cleaning.

Solvent should be used sparingly, because too much solvent can leave a film on the surface of the fiber. We recommend providing your engineers with dispensing pumps to help them to use the optimum amount of solvent every time. Our Isopropanol Liquid Dispensing Pumps dispense around 2cc of liquid per squeeze, for example, and their one-handed pump operation design enables engineers to easily hold the cable and clean at the same time.  

• Carry out in-depth inspections

After cleaning the cable thoroughly, your engineers should always inspect the cable for any remaining dirt, as the process of cleaning can in itself contaminate the cable. They should be equipped with a fiber microscope in order to effectively inspect the fibers, as even dust particles that aren’t visible to the naked eye can cause attenuation.  

If they do spot any dust, dirt or other contaminants on the cable, they should carry out the entire combination cleaning process again. A new dry wipe should be used at this stage, as the used wipe could contain contaminants. Once they have cleaned the cable, it’s then crucial to reinspect the cable – and keep doing so until the inspection shows only pristine fiber. 

• Equip your engineers with optimum tools

Training your engineers in how to properly clean and inspect fiber cables is key, but you must also provide them with quality cleaning tools in order to empower them to do the job right first time, every time. If they have our OTDR 800 to hand, for example, then they can easily pinpoint where faults are located, which reduces the amount of fiber exposed to the air and the need for cleaning. 

We also provide a range of fiber optic cleaning and polishing tools, like our OneClick Cleaners, which are designed with a novel dry-cleaning strand to gently sweep and lift away dust and other contaminants from the fiber end face without causing any damage to the connector. And with our Fiber Optic Safety Kit, you can ensure that your engineers are fully protected while they’re working. Check out our full range of fiber optic cleaning tools here.

The post 4 top tips for keeping your fiber network clean first appeared on Ripley Tools.

At Ripley Tools, we are here to support fiber engineers now and in the future. So let’s take a look at some of the innovations set to change the industry over the coming years, and how they could impact engineers. Innovations like…

5G networks

As 5G mobile broadband networks are rolled out across the globe, these next-generation networks will significantly increase demand for optical fiber cables. 5G uses a high-frequency signal which does not travel over long distances, which means that a much greater number of fiber optic base stations will need to be developed and installed in order to support the 5G rollout.

Traditional copper-based networks will be unable to support the bandwidth 5G requires. Fiber optic cables will therefore be used to connect the new, more densely packed base stations, as fiber enables increased speeds of data transfer with lower attenuation, it can be densely packed into cables, and it can provide almost unlimited bandwidth. This means that demand for fiber engineers will increase significantly in line with 5G rollouts. 

Hollowcore fiber

Unlike traditional optical fiber, which sends light signals through solid glass, the light inside hollowcore fiber travels through the air in the fiber’s hollow core. Light travels more quickly through air than through glass, and this means that data signals can travel around 50% faster through hollowcore fiber cables.  

Hollowcore fiber has been in existence for around two decades, but it’s only In recent years that it has been developed to reduce previous performance issues. Last year, one of the UK’s leading operators, BT, trialled hollowcore fiber and found that it delivered a number of potential benefits, such as reduced latency and no crosstalk. While hollowcore fiber is likely to need further development before it is used in mainstream applications – the loss per kilometer is still around 1 decibel, for example, compared to 0.2 dB/km for traditional single mode fiber – it seems likely that engineers will be working with more hollowcore fiber cables in the future, and at Ripley® it’s a development we’ll be keeping a close eye on from a tool invention perspective.

Point-to-point cable runs 

One of the most pressing challenges facing carriers today is the need to install fiber within Multi-Dwelling Units (MDUs) like hotels and apartment buildings. Carriers need to be able to provide the same capacity and speeds to MDUs as they do to Single Dwelling Units (SDUs), but installing fiber optic cable within MDUs can be much more time-consuming and expensive.

So far, most carriers have tasked their engineers with blowing fiber optic cable from the basement of an MDU to each floor. They are then required to create a splice via the termination box, before running a separate fiber optic cable to each apartment on that floor. This not only takes a long time for engineers to carry out, but it often requires engineers to install new ducts and fiber termination equipment. Carriers are therefore beginning to switch to point-to-point installation, in which engineers run the fiber optic cable directly from the basement to each individual apartment. This removes the need to splice the cable at each floor, and eliminates the risk of a single point of failure causing issues for multiple customers. However, it does make cable management more intricate and complex. Depending on their ability to splice, engineers may differ on whether or not they welcome the adoption of this new installation technique. Either way, tools such as our MSAT-X have been specifically designed with MDU and FTTx work in mind – you can learn more here.

Pioneering tools

As installation methods, cables and network configurations change, fiber optic engineers are relying on their tools to evolve too, to help them to keep up with innovation across the industry. At Ripley Tools, our specialist engineers are constantly working to develop pioneering tools that empower fiber optic engineers to work efficiently, precisely and safely no matter what fresh challenges a project might present them with. 

Tools like our MBO7 RocketRibbon Cable Slitter, which has been engineered with a factory-set, highly precise blade depth that enables engineers to quickly and easily access fiber subunits and ripcords without damaging the delicate, densely-packed fibers. Engineers also love our cutting edge MB08 Fiber Jacket Shaving Tool, as its unique vertical handle gives them the ability to work efficiently even where space is restricted.

If you’re interested in investing in tools that will help you to carry out your best work as the industry continues to evolve, discover our full range of fiber optic cable tools today.

The post Spotlight on: innovations set to change the fiber industry first appeared on Ripley Tools.

When the term ‘lineman’ was first coined back in the 19th century, it referred to those working on telegraph lines, setting the poles and stringing the wires between them. Back then, it was an incredibly hazardous job – in fact, approximately one in three linemen were killed on the job. Fortunately, the job looks very different today, and with electrification set to increase as adoption of electric vehicles rises, there’s likely to be a growing demand for linemen over the coming years.

So, what does it mean to be a lineman in 2022? In recent years, working as a lineman has become…

…safer

As they work with high-powered electricity cables high above the ground, being a power lineman is an inherently dangerous job, but health and safety standards have improved significantly over the past few decades. Twenty years ago, US linemen weren’t required to wear flame-resistant clothing, for example, whereas today linemen rarely work without flame-resistant clothing to protect them from arcs. 

Utilities companies have also recognised the importance of ensuring their linemen’s gear equips them to work safely. While linemen were once expected to free climb up a pole with just a belt around the pole and foot spikes, over time overhead linemen have adopted new gear, like wood pole fall restrictive devices, to prevent them from falling from a height. Linemen’s tools have also evolved to improve their safety. They no longer need to rely on unwieldy, potentially dangerous utility knives to prepare cables, for example, as our cable prep tools are designed with safety in mind. With shielded blades and ergonomic handles, it’s never been easier for linemen to get the job done safely and efficiently.

…less physically taxing

Working as a lineman has also always been a physically demanding career, but understandably, over the years linemen have developed ways to make their roles less physically taxing. Data has shown that linemen in states like Texas and Florida are increasingly choosing to work for municipal and district electrical cooperatives, for example, to reduce the amount of travel they’re required to do as part of their jobs. 

There’s also a growing number of tools designed to make it easier for linemen to carry out their work – and some of them have even been designed by linemen themselves! Andy Selacek had been a lineman for twenty years when he developed a prototype for Ripley’s US16 Drill Operated Jacket Removal Tool, for example. After years of tackling the difficult job of jacket removal, which required him to make the same repetitive motions and was incredibly taxing, Andy decided to create a tool that would take the strain of jacket removal off linemen. The US16 has therefore been designed with handy features such as an open-ended, feed-through design and is easy to operate with one hand. It’s tools like the US16 that are helping journeymen to become more efficient on the job and reduce the physical impact of the work on their bodies. 

…a more varied & interesting job

Those working as linemen today will know that no two days are the same – every job presents new challenges, and requires them to use different skills and tools. And as cables evolve, the growing number of cable sizes can also pose challenges for the job. This means that one of the key traits any electrical lineman needs is adaptability. Those who have the flexibility to adapt to the different equipment and cable sizes involved in their work will be best suited to thrive in the complex world of power utilities. 

However, personal flexibility can only take linemen so far – they also need flexible tools in their kit to enable them to get the job done right first time, every time. At Ripley Labs, our specialist engineers understand that electrical linemen need adaptable tools, so they design all of our tools for use in as many applications as possible. Our US15 Cable Slitter, for example, is compatible not only large diameter power cables, it also works well with telecom and fiber optic cables, and it can be quickly adjusted to suit a range of sizes. 

Whether you’ve just finished lineschool or you’ve been a lineman for a long time, having UtilityTool’s tools in your kit can help to make your job easier and more enjoyable. Discover our full range of tools for power linemen in our UtilityTool range. 

The post Moving with the times: what it means to be a lineman in 2022 first appeared on Ripley Tools.