CPR/Fire-safety cable

CPR Introduction

3. Relevant Euro Classes for different Environments & EU countries.

The regulation assigns seven (7) “EuroClass/reaction to fire” levels, ranging from ‘Aca’ to ‘Fca’ The CPR ranking highest to lowest are: Aca; B1ca; B2ca; Cca; Dca; Eca and Fca. The ‘ca’ tag on the letter indicates cable. Classes are listed from the most stringent ‘A’, non-combustible, to ‘F’. For telecommunication cables, the best performance you’re likely to see is B2ca. Typically, EuroClasses are assigned based on the application space/structure type. Structures with a high density of people (public spaces) or limited evacuation routes (hospitals/high rise) may specify a higher rated classification e.g. hospitals may be rated as B2ca or Cca; commercial properties may be Cca or Dca; while a single family dwelling may be Dca or Eca. This varies from country to country and even within country regions.

Euroclass Level	Description	Environments
B2ca	Very High fire protection (self-extinguishing)	High density of people or individuals with limited mobility (Fire exits in public building, Airports and Hospitals)
Cca	High Fire protection (self-extinguishing)	Medium density of people (Public buildings, schools, hotels, and office buildings)
Dca	Moderate Fire Protection (Limited emissions)	In some regions this is used a minimum cable requirement.
Eca	Basic Fire Protection	In some regions this is used a minimum cable requirement.

CPR is mandatory for all European countries, but the minimum CPR requirements may vary from country to country. Some countries have implemented a minimum classification and some countries have adopted a risk assessment methodology based on the type of installation or its fire suppression system.

Different classes require different criteria to be applied. Therefore, cables will be made and tested to achieve the requirements of a particular class. It is not just the way they’re made and tested, it involves who tested them and how the manufacturing process is controlled. Cable cannot simply “jump up class” by tweaking the manufacturing or doing some more tests. Class B1ca cable could be sold as Class Cca (as Class B1ca is superior to Class Cca), but Class Cca cannot be sold as.

Class B1ca.

Countries	Installation Conditions	CPR Requirement as of 1st July 2017
Belgium	F2:Cables in bundles and in vertical position which do not propagate the flame in the test conditions.	Cca, S1, a1
Belgium	F1: Cables simply laid and in the test conditions that do not propagate the flame and extinguish themselves within a short distance of the fire that has ignited them	Eca minimum
Denmark	All areas	Eca
Finland	Local Wiring Regulations	Eca
Finland	Buildings with a high density of people	Dca
France	Underground stations and tunnels	B2ca, s1a,d1,a1
	Very high rise buildings	Cca,s1,d1,a1
	Offices with height >28m
	Offices having >700 people
	Data Centers and Server/Routing Rooms
	All others	Dca,s2,d2,a2
Germany	All evacuation routes	B2ca,s1,d1,a1
	Data Centers & Server Rooms
	Rail / Road tunnels
	Hospitals
	All others	Cca,s1,d2,a1
Iceland	All evacuation routes	Cca,s1,d1,a1
	All others	Dca,s2,d2
	Spaces equipped with a fire alarm or an automatic fire suppression system, a cable class of one step lower than required may be used
Ireland	Likely to follow UK
Italy	Train and Underground Stations	B2ca,s1a,d1,a1
	Airports, Seaports	Cca,s1b,d1,a1
	Hospitals
	Hotels
	Schools
	Offices having >300 people
	Retail, Conference centres
	Government Buildings >24m
	All others	Cca,s3,d1,a3
Netherlands	Hospitals >500m2	B2ca,s1,d1,a1
	Tunnels >500m2	B2ca,s1,d1,a1
	Protected evacuation routes	Cca,s1,d1,a1
	Buildings with >500 people	Cca,s1,d1,a1
	All others	Dca,s3,d2,a3
Norway	All areas	Dca
Norway	With automatic fire suppression installed	Eca

Countries	Installation Conditions	CPR Requirement as of 1st July 2017
Poland (patch cords are included in CPR)	Public Buildings	Dca,s2,d2,a1
Poland (patch cords are included in CPR)	Non-public buildings	Eca
Spain	All areas	Cca,s1b,d1,a1
Sweden	All areas	Dca
Switzerland	Government buildings escape routes	Cca,s2,d1,a2
	Government buildings other areas	Dca
	Non-government buildings escape routes	Dca,s2,d1,a2
	Non-government buildings other areas	Eca
Turkey	Data Centers	B2ca,s1,d0,a1
	Exhibition Centers	B2ca,s1,d0,a1
	Rail/Road tunnels	B2ca,s1,d1,a1
	Hospitals
	All escape routes
	Hotels, height >30.5m
	High rise buildings ≥ 21.5 m
	All others	Cca,s1,d2,a1
UK	BS 7671: IET wiring Regulations, 18th Edition	CPR is referred to in an annex
	Escape Routes	BS 6701 for data cables & Dca,s2,d2,a2 for power cables
	BS 6701: Bundled telecommunications “installation cables”	Cca,s1,d2,a2
	BS 6701: All other telecommunications cables	Eca

Note: Always check with local building control authorities and refer to national regulations.

CPR/Fire-safety cable

CPR Introduction

3. Relevant Euro Classes for different Environments & EU countries.

certifications