After several highly visible infrastructure upgrade jobs, some performed on identified terrorist targets, Hardwire© materials have become a hot topic in the press. Several recent articles in leading infrastructure magazines have hit the streets with articles focusing on Hardwires unique abilities.

Engineers have been building and reinforcing structures with steel for years, so the concept of Hardwire® composites, or the ability to put very high tensile strength steel into a fabric that can then be incorporated into composites was one of particular interest. Once the engineering community began to look at the actual properties that Hardwire® composites provided, they immediately turned their attention to reinforcing existing structures utilizing Hardwire®. The ability to cast a product on an existing floor that provides up to 8000 lbs per linear inch of tensile strength, to do it in a single layer (saving valuable labor), and to do it in 75 mils (no shaving of doors, no adjusting door jams) and simply reinstall the carpet the next day was extremely appealing. This process has been performed on numerous sites with underground parking to counter the threat of a potential blast occurring and causing a progressive collapse of the floors.

Because of the global economies of scale afforded from mass production of these steel cords, Hardwire® is produced at a small fraction of the cost of typical aramid and carbon reinforcements. The innovative system uses high-strength steel wires twisted together to form reinforcing steel cords that are twice as strong as the cables holding up the Golden Gate Bridge. Hardwire® may be used on the sides of beams and girders to provide additional shear strength or wrapped around columns and beam/column joints to provide confinement and additional ductility to provide increased flexural strength. The material may also be used on structural steel components to increase their tension and bending capacity. Hardwire, LLC also recently developed a highly-anticipated Hardwire® reinforced plywood product that is expected to find extensive use in homeland security, SCIF (safe room), and military applications.

For more information, contact Skip Ebaugh at skip.ebaugh@hardwirellc.com, or (410) 957-3669.

Hardwire® products may be purchased directly via this web site or though distribution at Composites One.