Recently it was brought to our attention that communication bundle sizes may have increased in Quick Pole since the introduction of Spaced Aerial cables. To investigate this we made comparisons with communication bundles in projects from version 6.74 and the 7.02 series. While these are merely estimates with the user being able to override any calculation, it does appear that the older versions made a slightly better estimate of the bundle size that could exist in the field.
To this end, an adjustment has been recently made to utilize the more accurate estimation, for which you may notice a slight decrease in the bundle size for larger bundles.
The intent of this calculation is to make the best prediction of how the cables may be assembled around the supporting messenger, in a way that approximates an appropriate average over the span, for which wind and ice accretion can be estimated. In reality various factors such as the order of cable placement and line technician choices during installation can impact the actual formed cable bundle in the field. Strong winds near open areas can also have an impact by stretching the cable bundle into more of a rectangle than a circle. This is one big reason why Designers are enabled to enter their own bundle size estimates.
The formation of ice around a bundle is known to not always be perfectly circular around the cable bundle and filling all gaps. It largely depends on wind speed and how the ice accretion formed (via rain, ice fog, etc..). However, the current method has been serving the utility industry well for predicting probable events. Analysis of actual storm events would be based on actual measurements.