Counterfeiting in the cabling industry is a serious challenge which has prompted cable manufacturer, Nexans to partner with Authentic Vision, a provider of mobile authentication solutions, applying Authentic Vision’s Holographic Fingerprint labels to Nexans’ cable products.
The strategic alliance partnership is based on consumer safety and improving the customer experience, said Nexans. Authentic Vision’s patented Holographic Fingerprint labels have already been applied to Nexans products packaging in Peru and Lebanon and are deployed in other countries. The labels make it easy for customers or distributors to scan and verify the authenticity of a product with any smartphone. According to Nexans, this approach provides value-added services to its customers and protects them from potentially harmful, sub-standard products.
The most important risk associated with counterfeit cable is cheating on the quantity of copper, which can have dramatic consequences. By reducing the diameter of the copper conductor, counterfeit cables can become abnormally hot when current is passed through them and cause a short circuit and can lead to fire breaking out.
“Through our partnership with Authentic Vision, digital innovation plays a key role in our customers’ safety,” said Jérôme Fournier, vice president of innovation at Nexans. “It helps Nexans guarantee its products’ conformity in terms of manufacturing and safety standards”, he added.
The Group is now planning to roll out and deploy Authentic Vision’s solution in products around the world.
Authentic Vision’s security labels are secure, easy to use and instantly provides clear positive / negative verification results, said Thomas Weiss, CEO of Authentic Vision. No additional training or specialised equipment is required for use. They cannot be copied, due to the physical randomness used in the production process, revealed Weiss. “Even we are not able to duplicate or copy the labels ourselves”, he said. “Our solution provides customers with proof of authenticity, and in the event a fake attempt occurs, precise geo-location provides brands with actionable data.”
The labels are based on Meta-Anchor technology which provides every product with a physically and digitally unique identifier (UID) and tracks counterfeiting attempts. This provides valuable data for companies to prosecute counterfeiters and fraudsters, said Nexans.
The holographic label means anyone can differentiate a genuine product that respects standards in force and one that is manufactured in the frame of the Group Sustainability action plan. “By fighting against counterfeit products, we create value for our customers”, added Elyette Roux, chief sales and marketing, communications officer at Nexans.
“Beyond ensuring the authenticity of the product, making these products unique and connectable also represents an added value for our customers in terms of information exchange with Nexans, such as installation guide videos or product features brochures,” she added.
Nexans is driving the change towards a safer, more sustainable, renewable, carbon-free world, accessible to all. The Group is a leader in the design and manufacturing of cable systems and services across five main business areas: energy generation and transmission, distribution, usages, industry and solutions and telecomms and data.
Nexans was the first company in its industry to create a foundation supporting sustainable initiatives bringing energy to disadvantaged communities worldwide. The Group pledged to contribute to carbon neutrality by 2030.
http://www.nexans.com
