In an exclusive interview with Wire & Cable India, Mr. Guido Kellmann, Head of Global R&D, Application Engineering, Traxit (Klüber Lubrication GmbH), highlights the critical role of lubrication in modern wire drawing. He explains how process-specific lubricant selection directly influences drawing efficiency, die life, and surface quality, particularly in high-speed and high-stress applications. Emphasising a shift toward tailored solutions and sustainable practices, Mr. Kellmann notes that advanced lubricant technologies, combined with optimised usage approaches such as “total use,” are helping manufacturers reduce resource consumption, improve operational stability, and achieve consistent, high-quality output across increasingly demanding production environments.
Wire & Cable India: Lubrication plays a crucial role in reducing friction and protecting the wire surface. How does lubricant selection influence drawing efficiency and product quality?
Guido Kellmann: Lubrication is a key success factor in the wire drawing process: it reduces friction between the wire and the die, lowers drawing forces and temperatures, and therefore directly affects process stability, tool life, and the wire surface. Selecting the right lubricant determines how reliably a stable lubricating film is formed and whether high drawing speeds and consistent conditions can be maintained across multiple drawing passes.
What matters is a process-specific match to the wire material and its pre-treatment, the machine concept, drawing speed, and the individual reductions. Standard solutions often reach their limits here. Traxit Wire Lubrication, a brand of Klüber Lubrication therefore follows a holistic approach: based on an analysis of the production conditions and in close cooperation with the user and local partners (e.g., in India with M/s. Kemtree Enterprises Pvt. Ltd.), drawing lubricants are specifically designed for the real process, providing the basis for reproducible quality and economic efficiency.
Watch: Top Cable Companies in India
WCI: Wire manufacturers use various lubricants, including dry soaps, wet lubricants, and synthetic formulations. How do these different systems serve different wire drawing applications?
GK: Depending on the wire type, drawing stage, and downstream requirements, different lubricant systems are used. In general, a distinction is made between dry drawing lubricants and wet drawing lubricants, each offering specific strengths in terms of pressure absorption, temperature behavior, surface cleanliness, and process speed.
- Low-carbon wires (e.g. wire mesh, nails, simple formed parts): often use dry-drawing or wet-drawing systems that enable uniform formation of a lubricating film across multiple stages, supporting consistent diameters, clean surfaces, and economical run times.
- High-carbon wires (e.g. spring wire, rope wire): high deformation levels and drawing speeds require dry drawing lubricants with high load-carrying capacity, adhesion, and thermal stability. The goal is a robust lubricating film that reduces drawing forces, lowers wire breaks, and protects drawing dies even under extreme tribological conditions. Traxit Wire Lubrication formulates process- and material-specific solutions for this purpose.
- Bead wire: surface quality, dimensional accuracy, and process reliability are the key priorities. At the same time, residues must be defined so that downstream processes (e.g. cleaning/brass coating) function reliably and do not negatively impact rubber adhesion. Accordingly, specially tailored dry drawing lubricants are used, with pre-treatment, lubricant, and process parameters closely coordinated.
- PC strand / prestressing steel wires: very high tensile strengths and tight tolerances require high-performance dry drawing lubricants (often in combination with suitable pre-coatings) that perform reproducibly across all drawing stages, prevent wire breaks during drawing and stranding, and maximize tool life.
Wet drawing lubricants are used primarily in fine and ultra-fine drawing, or wherever an especially clean surface and/or defined residues are required. Due to their composition, lubrication, cooling, and cleanliness can be controlled very effectively, particularly on modern high-speed lines.
Regardless of the system, the rule is: a drawing lubricant delivers its best performance only when it is matched to the material, the machine, and the process parameters.
On the manufacturing side, Traxit Wire Lubrication focuses, among other things, on reduced water and plastic use, fewer transport movements, and the use of renewable energy. Central to sustainable wire production is Traxit’s total-use approach: the lubricant is not replaced at fixed intervals but replenished as needed, as long as its original properties are maintained.
WCI: Proper lubrication can significantly influence die wear and wire surface quality. How do lubricant formulations contribute to improving these aspects?
GK: Lubricant formulations improve die life and wire surface quality by building a robust, uniform lubricating film that prevents metal-to-metal contact, reduces friction peaks, and limits temperature buildup in the drawing die. This lowers wear, increases process reliability, and reduces wire breaks, especially in demanding drawing stages.
A lubrication system formulated to match the process also promotes homogeneous deformation and therefore less wear, an advantage for downstream steps such as coating, galvanizing, or rubberizing. In addition, Traxit applies the total use approach: instead of changing drawing lubricants at fixed intervals, they are topped up as needed as long as product properties remain stable, which can reduce consumption, downtime, and waste.
WCI: In high-speed drawing operations, process stability becomes critical. What role do lubricants play in preventing wire breakage and maintaining stable drawing conditions?
GK: In high-speed wire drawing processes, the lubricant is a key factor for stability. It must form a continuous, stable lubricating film across all drawing stages, limiting friction peaks and temperature increases and thereby keeping drawing forces controllable.
If the film becomes locally unstable, drawing resistance and heat rise very quickly; uneven distributions of stress, strain, and strength are among the most common causes of wire breaks. For this reason, high-performance formulations are designed for adhesion, shear strength, and thermal stability and are matched to the specific process, material, speed, reductions, and machine concept. The result is more uniform drawing forces, fewer wire breaks, and reproducible operating conditions.
WCI: Sustainability and environmental compliance are becoming increasingly important in manufacturing. How are lubricant technologies evolving to address these concerns?
GK: Lubricant technologies are evolving toward higher efficiency and improved environmental compatibility, both through product and manufacturing concepts and through their impact on energy and resource consumption in the wire drawing process. Reduced friction and stable processes lower drawing forces, wire breaks, and tool wear, thereby improving both profitability and environmental performance.
On the manufacturing side, Traxit Wire Lubrication focuses, among other things, on reduced water and plastic use, fewer transport movements, and the use of renewable energy. Central to sustainable wire production is Traxit’s total-use approach: the lubricant is not replaced at fixed intervals but replenished as needed, as long as its original properties are maintained. Depending on the process, this production-optimised way of working can achieve savings in drawing-lubricant consumption of up to around 20% and in optimized applications, even significantly higher. Lower lubricant consumption also means less waste, reduced transport effort, and lower CO₂ emissions across the entire supply chain.
As a result, drawing lubricants are increasingly shifting from a pure consumable to an active lever for meeting environmental requirements while simultaneously improving process performance.
Also Read: Metalube India on Lubrication Innovation Driving Efficiency and Quality in Wire Drawing
WCI: What innovations in lubricant chemistry or application methods do you see shaping the future of wire drawing processes?
GK: Future innovations in wire drawing aim to reduce energy consumption, material usage, waste, and downtime without compromising process stability or quality. The focus is shifting from individual products to integrated system solutions that combine lubricant, application, and process control.
In the wire drawing industry, drawing lubricants already play a significant role today, ensuring a longer service life for drawing dies, higher wire quality and more stable production processes. Their importance is set to grow even further in the future. Usage concepts such as total use (top-up replenishment instead of scheduled change-outs as long as performance remains stable) support this goal by saving resources while promoting consistent drawing conditions.
On the application side, digitalisation and automation are gaining importance: sensors and data-driven process monitoring enable demand-based, reproducible lubricant application (less overdosing, more stable processes). In addition, packaging and logistics concepts are being further optimized; shorter supply chains and more regional production can reduce emissions without neglecting quality and compliance requirements.
