What is the difference between a cable tray and a busway?

The electrical distribution in various industries and commercial places involves the cable organizer system that provides efficient storing of different cables and wires and provides them safety from any kind of dust, debris, and other external factors. There are different types of cable management systems used widely but the two most popular are the cable trays and busways. Both of them might sound similar and have the same purpose of providing an organized pathway to the cables or wires, but they still differ in many aspects. Thus to help you know more about it and make informed choices we are here to give deep insight into what is a cable tray, what is a busway and what is the difference between a cable tray and a busway.

What is a cable tray?

A cable tray is a widely used cable management system that has a robust structure and open design to provide an organized pathway for the cables along with a cooling or heat dissipation environment. Cable trays are used in different industries or commercial places to accommodate different loads of cables. The different types of cable trays to fit the various requirements are:

1. Solid Bottom trays: These have a robust bottom to provide excellent security for the cables and a flat bottom to support them but the ventilation here is quite minimal.
2. Ladder trays: These have two parallel rails connected with rungs in between providing an open design and high ventilation for the cables ensuring their proper safety and a straight pathway to the ladder-like structures.
3. Channel trays: They are the enclosed system best for the accommodation of cables in smaller runs and providing them with a secure environment.
4. Trough trays: They have bottoms with pores and perfect ventilation to avoid overheating the cables and forming a perfect balance of ventilation and safety for the cables.
5. Wire Mesh trays: These are made of wires and have proper ventilation for the cables running through them, while it allows the accommodation of lightweight cables only.

What is a Busway?

A busway is used in major industrial setups to provide compact and secure wire paths for the cables in the long run. This is the most preferred cable distributing system for its enclosed structures and more efficient cable distribution systems. Unlike other cable distribution systems, they have no open structures but provide the most secure path for long runs. These busways thus find their application in areas where very high-voltage cables with high loads are to be organized and distributed over a long area. The different types of busways to meet all the needs are:

1. Feeder: They are used to connect the center source to a different location in the particular facility and distribute electricity in them.
2. Segregated: These work to separate each part of the facility into different and separate compartments thus providing overall security and reliability for the users.
3. Plug-in: To get plug-in points in different facilities you can use the plug-in busways which provide this particular feature and allow easy electricity distribution.
4. Isolated: To improve the loss systems and increase the overall efficiency of the facilities, these isolated phase busways separate and desolate each of the facilities to provide easy use and retarded loss.

What is the Difference Between a cable tray and a busway?

After learning about both of the cable distribution systems individually let us know what are the differences between cable trays and busways.

1. Structure: The busways provide a closed and compact structure for the cable organization, while the cable trays provide an open structure for the cables and provide them with a straight path.
2. Modification: The busways are very less flexible as they do not allow the easy rerouting of cables once installed, while the cable trays provide easy modification in the routes of cables and their addition in the future.
3. Installation: The busways require professional installation as they are more complex, while the cable trays are easy to install due to their open structures.
4. Ventilation: The busways due to their enclosure structure do not provide natural cooling, while the cable trays due to their pen design provide excellent natural cooling of the wires.
5. Space Efficiency: The busways require very minimal space for installation due to their compact design, while the cable trays require huge space for installation due to their enlarged and open structures.
6. Maintenance: The busways do not provide easy access to cables thus making it tough for regular inspection and maintenance, while the cable trays have an open design providing easy access and proper regular maintenance throughout.
7. Current-Bearing: the busways allow the carrying of current at a higher -level thus making it fit for extra power distribution, while the cable trays provide light current capacities as per the individual cables.
8. Cost: The busways are costlier in initial terms of installation but their long-term use is quite cost-effective, while the cable trays are more cost-saving solutions for both installation as well as long-term use.
9. Safety: The busways have closed design protecting wires from external factors like dust, moisture, rain, etc while the cable trays tend to expose wires to environmental factors prone to risks and damages.
10. Appearance: The busways provide clean appearances to the environment due to their closed structure to store cables, while the cable trays have cluttered and messed appearances because of cables being visible due to open design.

FAQs on the difference between cable tray and busway?

Q1: What are the main structural and design differences between cable trays and busways?

Ans: The main differences between the cable trays’ and busways’ design are cable trays’ open structure provides excellent ventilation naturally, while the busways have an enclosed structure requiring an additional ventilation chamber.

Q2: How do cable trays and busways differ in terms of installation and maintenance?

Ans: The cable trays are way easier to install and maintain due to their open designs as compared to that of the busways due to their closed and compact design providing minimal accessibility and complex producers of installation.

Q3: In which specific applications or environments is it more advantageous to use a busway rather than a cable tray?

Ans: Busways are used in areas that require high-current carrying capacity, with compact spaces, and require increased protection of the cables from external factors such as in industries with lasts, factories, or commercial paces with crowded areas to install cables.

Therefore, learning about the cable trays and busways individually is very important to make informed decisions at the time of requirement. Thus, knowing about the differences both of them share helps in considering the requirements and factors that will help you choose between them. So for further inquiries about the cost of installation for either of these cable management systems, you can call our customer support team at SimcoSteel and make decisions as per your requirements and budget.