Project record · Singapore · Data center power connection

(N)TMCGCW11Y 12/20 kV Flexible Medium Voltage Cable for a Data Center — Singapore

A cable trading company supplying a data center in Singapore needed a data center power cable that most buyers would not think of first: a flexible, screened, single-core 12/20 kV cable, originally designed for crane energy chains and shore power. The specification was (N)TMCGCW11Y 1×120/16, based on DIN VDE 0250-813, with a black PUR sheath. The previous source was European and slow. TEBAOFLEX built the cable with a braided tinned-copper concentric conductor instead of the spiral version shown in the buyer’s reference datasheet. Four caliper readings on the finished cable came in between 34.38 mm and 34.96 mm, inside the 32–35 mm reference window. The drums left Shekou on 26 August 2026.

Project record

Why a data center would use a flexible medium voltage cable

Most medium voltage cable in a data center is fixed distribution cable: XLPE, armoured or not, pulled once into a tray or duct and never moved again. That works for long straight runs. It works much less well for the last few metres, where the cable has to turn tightly into a switchgear panel, a transformer terminal box or a connection point with almost no room to bend.

That last stretch is where a flexible medium voltage cable earns its price:

• Tight turns in small rooms. A Class 5 finely stranded conductor and EPR insulation take a smaller bend radius than a solid-construction XLPE cable of the same rating, so the cable can be dressed into a cabinet instead of being forced into it.
• Many bends along one route. A data center power route is rarely straight. Every change of direction is a bend the cable has to survive during pulling and dressing.
• Installation speed. A flexible single core is easier to handle, cut and terminate in a crowded electrical room than a stiff cable of the same size.
• A sheath that tolerates the building. The PUR sheath is halogen-free and flame-retardant, and it resists abrasion and oil. Those properties matter in a building full of expensive equipment and people.

None of this makes (N)TMCGCW11Y a replacement for the main distribution cable. It is a connection cable, and that is how it was used here.

“Is this cable OK for a data center?”

The buyer asked two questions before anything else. First: what is (N)TMCGCW11Y actually used for? They planned to offer the cable more widely in Singapore and needed to explain it to their own customers. Second: is it suitable for a power connection in a data center?

Our answer to the first question is the standard application field of the type. (N)TMCGCW11Y cable is a flexible single-core medium voltage cable for short connections: mobile transformer substations to overhead lines, railway vehicles, switching stations and control panels, and connections inside switchgear or transformer houses where a small bending radius is required. It also runs in onshore power supply, in energy chains, on reeling operations and on port and intermodal cranes.

Reading the designation: (N)TMCGCW11Y 1×120/16 12/20 (24) kV

The full type code is defined in DIN VDE 0250-813, and the standard is the reference for every letter. For ordering, the parts an installer checks first are these:

The buyer’s question about the “16” matters more than it looks. The 16 mm² is the protective conductor that carries fault current to earth, and the reference datasheet also asks for about 85% coverage. Those two numbers together decide how the concentric layer has to be built, which leads to the one real design choice in this order.

Braided or spiral concentric conductor: the decision behind this order

A concentric conductor can be made in two ways:

• Spiral (helical): tinned copper wires laid side by side in a helix around the insulation screen. The buyer’s reference datasheet showed this version.
• Braided: tinned copper wires woven into a braid, like a sleeve.

DIN VDE 0250-813 allows both. Clause 4.8 lets the concentric protective conductor be made as a spiral layer or as a braid, and sets a minimum individual wire diameter of 0.3 mm for the braided or spiral construction. It also allows a conductive, non-metallic layer under the concentric conductor and a tape or thread binder over it. Both options can therefore comply with the type designation. The choice is about how the cable will be used.

We did not pick for the buyer. We photographed both constructions on real samples and sent them side by side:

Our recommendation was the braid. With 16 mm² and about 85% coverage required, and a route with many bends, a braided tinned copper conductor keeps its geometry better. The buyer agreed, and the order was built braided.

The trade-off is diameter. A braid is a little thicker than a spiral layer with the same copper, and that shows up in the measurement results below.

Does the cable fully comply with the type designation?

The buyer’s customer asked this directly, and asked for evidence on the braid in particular. Two things answer it.

The construction follows DIN VDE 0250-813 and its referenced material standards. Clause 4.8, described above, covers the braided concentric conductor.

The cable carries its identity on the sheath. The inkjet print on the delivered cable reads (N)TMCGCW11Y 1x120/16mm² DIN VDE 0250-813 2026. The type, size, standard and year of manufacture are legible along the whole length.

Construction, layer by layer

Measured, not declared: overall diameter

The buyer asked how we make sure the finished cable really has the right diameter. We measured it on the finished cable and sent the photographs. The reference window for 1×120/16 at 12/20 kV is 32–35 mm.

All four readings are inside the window, and all four sit in its upper third. That is the braid showing up in the numbers: woven wires take slightly more room than a spiral layer with the same copper. The margin at the top is small, and we would rather show that honestly than quote a nominal figure. If a gland or cable cleat is sized close to 35 mm, check it against these measured values before installation.

Electrical and mechanical data, 12/20 kV 1×120/16

The current reference assumes the published reference conditions. In a data center electrical room, apply the derating for grouping and ambient temperature required by the project method before sizing the circuit.

Neutral packing, container loading and shipment

A cable trader supplying its own customer usually does not want another manufacturer’s name on the drum. The buyer asked for exactly that: no brand name or logo stencilled on the wooden drums. The cable was wound onto plain wooden drums, and the traceability sits on the cable sheath itself.

The buyer then asked for photos of the packed drums inside the container and of the finished loading, followed by the vessel’s location. We sent all three.

Four days from Shekou to Singapore. For a buyer used to waiting on a European supply chain, the transit time is part of the argument.

Why the order came to a Chinese factory

The buyer was frank about how their customer buys: every supplier is met separately, prices are negotiated down, and the lowest offer wins. So the order had to be won on price without losing anything on the specification.

What we review for a data center MV connection cable

The two items that change a quotation most are the screen construction (braided or spiral) and the maximum overall diameter.

Related constructions

Questions on this application

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