You need to follow the regulations, conditions of use and the manufacturer’s instructions when choosing cables (Elektriala)
The Construction Products Regulation (CPR) – a set of rules issued in the European Union laying down the harmonized rules for the marketing of construction products in the European Union – is an important starting point for choosing construction products, including cables. The regulation applies to all construction products for incorporation in a permanent manner in buildings and general construction. One of the aims of the regulation is to regulate the way construction products react to fire, and the use of dangerous substances. For cables, the legislation concerns all power cables, installation cables, control cables as well as telecommunication and data communication cables.
It is important to consider that each European Union member state can set its own required product characteristics and CPR-classes – the Baltics' materials for the Draka and Prysmian brand of cables manufactured by the Prysmian Group Baltics in Keila are made considering the requirements in Estonia, Latvia, Lithuania.
When choosing a cable, the first thing is to understand why you need the cable and what needs to be achieved by making the cable connection. Then, the environment where you will install the cable needs to be evaluated. It is especially important to choose the right type of cable as well as to follow the installation conditions. Failure to take these into account can result in great material damage.
Cable marking
The Construction Products Regulation requires one to choose the cable type based on the risk level of the type of building, that is, for the cables of high-risk level buildings, the safety requirements are more stringent.
The Construction Products Regulation includes seven protection classes from A to F, where A stands for a non-flammable product, and F stands for a product with unspecified fire reaction characteristics. Cables are classified under B, C, D, and E. Additional criteria lay down the requirements for the amount of smoke emitted (values s1, s2, s3), burning droplets during combustion (values d1, d2, d3), and the acidity and electrolytic conductivity of the smoke emitted (values a1, a2, a3), where the higher the value, the poorer the result. The CE-marking affixed to the product shows that the product meets the requirements of all applicable directives and has passed the testing for proving the protection class.
Prysmian Group has a selection of cables suitable for buildings with all risk levels. The C-class cables, with a minimum level of reaction to fire of Cca-s1, d1, a2, can be installed in all buildings, i.e. in high-risk buildings as well as in buildings where a lower level of reaction to fire is allowed.
Help with choosing a cable
Different information materials can help you choose the right cable – the home page of Prysmian Group Baltics has the manufacturer’s materials as well as instructions by the Europacable association on how to check for the requirements of the regulation in the cable label and declaration of performance. To help you better make an informed choice of cable, Prysmian Group created a free application called CableApp for home markets. The application considers various aspects, and, in addition to providing a minimal technical solution, shows how much you can save on money and CO2 emissions by using a cable with a larger cross-section. By choosing the Draka and Prysmian brand of cables you can be sure that they meet the requirements of the regulation, the product sheet has CPR-markings, and you can find the CPR products’ declarations of performance with the DoP Finder.
Better choices
People sometimes make the mistake of thinking that a fire-resistant cable can be installed in extremely hot places. This is not true because these cables also have a maximum working temperature which is generally like other cables. Fire-resistant cables are meant to ensure the functioning of the electric circuit for a specific amount of time in case of a fire. The fire resistance is achieved by using varied materials and constructions, and all plastics in cable can burn in case of a fire. Also, the right fixings need to be used for a fire-resistant cable – even regular metal cable ladders may not withstand the cable load in case of a fire, not to mention plastic cable ties.
On the other hand, the cable’s ability to resist cold needs to be considered. The cable handling temperature applies to installation as well as transport. A few hours of intense cold are enough to turn the plastics in the cable very frail. For example, if someone carelessly threw a roll of cable that has endured cold into a trunk of a car or if a light object were to fell on the cable, it could result in the cable being damaged, even though the damage may be hard to see. We recommend to warm up the cable before use to make installation easier and minimize risks.
Also, you should take care to check cables that were not manufactured in Northern Europe. This is because various materials often used in Central and Southern Europe are not as resilient to cold. The cables manufactured by Prysmian Group Baltics have an installation temperature of –15 °C, whereas for manufacturers in other regions it could be –5 °C or +5 °C at best.
Observe the information in the cable manufacturer’s product sheet and take care to note where and how the type of cable is to be installed in order to achieve the best results.
The article was published in the magazine Elektriala. See more about CPR and our infomaterials.