El Salvador AIES Airport Expansion

As a manufacturer focusing on high-quality wire exports, Dongguan Greater Wire & Cable Co., Ltd. has always won the trust of global customers with UL certification, stable quality and professional services. From 2022 to 2023, we successfully partnered with the expansion project of San Oscar Arnulfo Romero y Galdámez International Airport (AIES) in El Salvador, providing a complete set of UL-certified wire solutions for this national key infrastructure project. We perfectly solved the core pain points of customers in international project procurement, becoming a high-quality case of Chinese wire exports to El Salvador.

Different from ordinary commercial projects, airport expansion, as a critical infrastructure, has extremely high requirements for the safety, durability and compliance of wires. The El Salvador market has even stricter regulations on the certification standards and delivery timeliness of imported electrical products—this is the core reason why we successfully stood out with our own advantages. For this project, we focused on the core needs of customers, tailor-matched THHN, MC Cable and Type TC-ER Power Cables, and escorted the smooth implementation of the project with professional strength.

1. Core Difficulties in International Project Procurement

The AIES airport expansion project was led by El Salvador’s Executive Port Authority (CEPA) with a total investment of $56 million. Its core goal was to increase the airport’s annual passenger throughput to 5 million, which is a key initiative for El Salvador to promote the development of the aviation industry. In the wire procurement link, customers faced three core difficulties, which are also common pain points in the procurement of most overseas infrastructure projects:

First, high compliance thresholds. El Salvador’s key infrastructure projects clearly require that electrical products must have UL certification to ensure compliance with international safety standards. However, most suppliers on the market either lack complete UL certification or their certification qualifications are not recognized locally, making it impossible to pass project audits. Second, insufficient product adaptability. Different areas of the airport (terminal buildings, boarding bridges, power distribution systems) have great differences in requirements for wire specifications and protection performance. Customers need suppliers who can accurately recommend products according to scenarios, rather than simply providing standardized products. Third, insufficient delivery and service guarantees. The project had a tight construction period, requiring wires to be delivered on time and cleared smoothly. At the same time, full-process services such as pre-sales sample testing and after-sales installation guidance were needed, which most suppliers could not meet.

After multiple rounds of screening and comparison, the customer finally chose to cooperate with us, mainly recognizing our three major advantages: complete UL certification qualifications, rich experience in overseas infrastructure projects, and full-process service capabilities including "pre-sales sampling + customized recommendation + on-time delivery + after-sales guidance".

2. Accurately Matching Airport Scenarios and Highlighting Core Product Advantages

In response to the different scenario needs of the AIES airport expansion project, we abandoned the "one-size-fits-all" product supply model. Combining the operation characteristics of the airport’s electrical system, we accurately matched three core UL-certified wires for customers. Each product specifically solved the pain points of specific scenarios, and clearly distinguished the differences from similar products, allowing customers to clearly perceive the value of choice.

2. 1 THHN nylon insulated copper wire: The Preferred Solution for Core Areas of Terminal Buildings

For the control circuits, lighting systems and low-power electrical equipment of the airport terminal buildings, we recommended THHN nylon insulated copper wire with specifications of 12 AWG, 10 AWG and 8 AWG—which is also one of the core products of this project. As a UL 83 certified product, this wire adopts a double-layer insulation design: the inner PVC layer ensures insulation performance, and the outer nylon layer enhances mechanical strength and oil resistance, with a rated temperature of up to 90°C, perfectly adapting to the scenarios of heat generation from electrical components and narrow wiring space in terminal buildings.

Compared with similar BVV cables, the core advantage of THHN electrical cable UL listed lies in its "thin, light, durable and easy to install": the insulation layer is thinner, which can effectively save space in cable trays and junction boxes, adapting to the dense wiring needs of terminal buildings; the nylon sheath is smooth and wear-resistant, easy to pull through conduits, greatly improving construction efficiency, especially suitable for the needs of "efficient construction and rapid completion" during airport expansion. In addition, the high-purity copper conductor (complying with ASTM B-3 standard) ensures excellent electrical conductivity and low resistance, avoiding unstable power supply caused by line loss, and ensuring the continuous operation of the terminal’s lighting and control systems.

2. 2 MC Cable: A Safety Protection Tool for Exposed Areas

For exposed areas such as boarding bridges and luggage handling areas that are vulnerable to physical damage and have high pedestrian traffic, we matched MC Cable (Metal-Clad Cable) with specifications of 4 AWG to 1/0 AWG. This product has passed UL 1569 certification, and its core advantage is "strong protection and high safety".

MC Cable is composed of insulated copper conductors and a flexible interlocking aluminum sheath, which can effectively resist physical damage such as collisions and friction during construction. At the same time, it has good electromagnetic interference (EMI) resistance, avoiding external interference affecting line operation. Compared with ordinary RVV flexible cables, MC Cable has a built-in full-size grounding wire, eliminating the need for additional grounding wire laying, which not only saves construction costs but also improves the safety level, perfectly adapting to the wiring needs of exposed airport areas. In addition, its high and low temperature resistance and moisture resistance can adapt to El Salvador’s climate conditions, ensuring long-term stable operation.

2. 3 Type TC-ER Power Cables: A Reliable Guarantee for the Main Power Distribution System

The airport’s main power distribution system is responsible for power transmission throughout the airport, which has extremely high requirements for the voltage resistance and environmental stress resistance of wires. We provided customers withType TC-ER Power Cables with specifications of 2/0 AWG to 4/0 AWG, which have passed UL 1277 certification, with a rated voltage of 600/1000V, and can adapt to various complex environments such as humidity and outdoors.

This cable adopts cross-linked polyethylene (XLPE) insulation layer and PVC sheath, with excellent moisture resistance, chemical corrosion resistance and UV resistance. It is suitable for cable tray installation and direct burial, making it an ideal choice for connecting the airport’s main electrical room to various terminal buildings and supporting facilities. Compared with MC cables, Type TC-ER Power Cables are more flexible, suitable for long-distance wiring, and have stronger resistance to environmental stress cracking, which can effectively avoid line failures caused by outdoor temperature differences and soil corrosion, ensuring the stable power supply of the entire airport’s power system.

3. Sample Testing for Customer Confidence in Procurement

Considering the customer’s concerns about the quality of imported products, we took the initiative to provide pre-sales sample services, sending samples of the three core products to the AIES project site in El Salvador for strict testing by the customer’s engineering team. The test results showed that all products met UL certification standards and project technical requirements. In particular, the heat resistance of THHN nylon insulated copper wire and the protection performance of MC Cable exceeded the customer’s expectations, completely eliminating the customer’s procurement concerns and laying a solid foundation for subsequent cooperation.

4. Full-Process Guarantee of Project Progress from Production to Delivery

One of the core pain points of overseas projects is delivery timeliness and customs clearance efficiency. For this project, the customer required all wires to be delivered in three batches from June to October 2022 to ensure that the airport expansion schedule was not delayed. With our mature export experience, we formulated a full-process delivery plan and efficiently promoted the production and logistics links.

In the production link, we prioritized the allocation of production resources, set up a dedicated production team, and produced strictly in accordance with UL standards and project specifications. We conducted 100% quality inspection (voltage resistance test, insulation resistance test, mechanical strength test) on each batch of products to ensure a 100% product qualification rate. In the logistics link, we cooperated closely with professional international logistics partners, sorted out the El Salvador customs clearance process in advance, and prepared complete export qualification documents to ensure the smooth customs clearance of goods and timely delivery to the project site.

For this project, we delivered a total of 50,000 meters of THHN nylon insulated copper wire, 30,000 meters of MC Cable, and 20,000 meters of Type TC-ER Power Cables. All goods were delivered on time without any delay, which was highly recognized by the customer. At the same time, we also provided detailed product installation guidelines and arranged professional technical personnel to answer installation questions online, helping customers efficiently complete wiring construction.

5. Establishing an Export Benchmark with Strength

In February 2023, the AIES airport expansion project was successfully completed and put into use, with the annual passenger throughput successfully increased to 5 million, becoming a new milestone in the development of El Salvador’s aviation industry. The three types of wires we provided performed stably during the project operation without any quality problems. In particular, the THHN nylon insulated copper wire still maintained good insulation performance and electrical conductivity under long-term high-load operation in the terminal building. The MC Cable and Type TC-ER Power Cables also perfectly adapted to their respective scenarios, providing a strong guarantee for the safe and stable operation of the airport.

The customer highly praised our products and services, believing that we not only solved their core pain points in UL certification, product adaptability and delivery timeliness, but also provided professional full-process support, making international project procurement simple and efficient. The customer stated that for future infrastructure projects in El Salvador, they will give priority to cooperating with us and are willing to recommend us to other partners in need.

6. GERITEL: Your Preferred Partner for Wire Exports in Overseas Projects

The success of the El Salvador AIES airport expansion project is not only a proof of our strength, but also a microcosm of our deep cultivation in the overseas market and focus on high-quality wire exports. As a wire manufacturer with years of experience in overseas projects, we have complete UL certification qualifications, mainly engaging in various high-performance products such as THHN nylon insulated copper wire, MC Cable, and Type TC-ER Power Cables. We can provide customized solutions according to the different needs of overseas projects.

Whether you are engaged in infrastructure projects such as airports, commercial buildings, industrial plants, or have various wire export needs, we can provide you with full-process services including: UL certification guarantee, pre-sales sample testing, customized product recommendation, on-time delivery, customs clearance assistance, and after-sales technical guidance, allowing you to have no worries about overseas procurement.

Choose Dongguan GERITEL, choose a reliable and professional wire export partner to help your overseas projects land smoothly!

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Dongguan Greater Wire & Cable Co., Ltd.

Tel/WhatsApp/WeChat: +86 135 1078 4550 / +86 136 6257 9592

Email: manager01@greaterwire.com