Control panel assemblers and educators can save time by using pre-cut and ferruled wires. It’s a simple argument that suggests we work faster when concentrating on a single task. For example, we are faster when we collect the tools, the required materials, and then focus on assembling wires of specific lengths. This deliberate work promises to be faster than intermittently cutting wires as they are required.
Once the wires are cut and terminated, they need to be stored. The PVC pipe such as pictured below provides an elegant solution. The contents of each pipe are readily apparent. This allows multiple wires colors to be stored in the same pipe such as the blue and white with blue stripe shown in the picture. You can then remove single wires quickly without tangling. It’s been my experience that lengths up to 4 feet are easily handled with this method.
Best Wishes,
APDahlen
This article is part of the DigiKey Field Guide for Industrial Automation
Location: Teach It → Lab & Trainer Builds
Difficulty: 
Engineer — difficulty levels explained
Author: Aaron Dahlen | MSEE | Senior Applications Engineer, DigiKey
Last update: 13 Mar 2026
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About This Author
Aaron Dahlen, LCDR USCG (Ret.), is a Senior Applications Engineer at DigiKey in Thief River Falls. His background in electronics and industrial automation was shaped by a 27-year military career as both technician and engineer, followed by over a decade of teaching.
Dahlen holds an MSEE from Minnesota State University, Mankato. He has taught in an ABET-accredited electrical engineering program, served as coordinator of an electronic engineering technology program, and instructed military technicians in component-level repair.
Today, he has returned to his home in northern Minnesota, completing a decades-long journey that began with a search for capacitors. Read his story here.