This paper describes a new method to determine the equivalent transverse heat transfer coefficient between the helium flow in the cable bundle and the flow in the central space of a CICC's with parallel cooling channel. The method is based on the analysis of the temperature traces during a heat pulse experiment. The equations for the average temperature distribution in the cable are solved analytically to obtain a closed-form expression of the characteristic rise time of the temperature front as a function of the transverse heat transfer coefficient. The value of the equivalent transverse heat transfer coefficient from the bundle to the hole is then obtained as the best fit of the experimental rise time. We show the results of the method by application to short cable sample experiments in SULTAN. (C) 2006 Elsevier Ltd. All rights reserved.