Integrated Wiring: Plan for fire prevention

Integrated WiringWith the constant expansion of the application field, cabling products are gradually used in every corner of life. With the rapid development of smart buildings, smart buildings are built on the ground, and intelligent applications are becoming more and more common. As a network infrastructure, network cabling systems deployed in the walls, vertical shafts, ceilings, and floors of a building should not only consider their own electrical properties and functions, fire safety of the system is another important consideration.

Integrated Wiring is the most basic part of smart buildings, and applications in various buildings are constantly growing, especially for large volumes of communication.CableApplications lead to more and more communication cables in Different Spaces of ceiling or under-floor and corridor channels. Some cables have poor fireproof performance. Therefore, we must strengthen security awareness to avoid serious accidents caused by fire. In the event of a fire, wiring networks that do not consider the fire prevention requirements will become an accomplice. The fire will be carried to every corner of the building, and toxic gases will be emitted at the same time, endangering people's lives.

Different countries have different requirements on the fireproof standards of cables. However, no matter which standard, the goal is the same: to ensure the Fire Safety of the cabling system in intelligent buildings. The fire prevention of data communication cables mainly focuses on three issues: the burning speed of cables, the density of smoke and the intensity of toxic gases.

The sheath of a data cable is physically divided into two parts: insulation and jacket. Whether the cable has a fireproof function depends on the material of the outermost sheath. In general, there are four types of data communication cables:

1. polyvinyl chloride (PVC) materials are easy to burn and produce toxic gases.

2. fire-proof PVC, which is also flammable and produces toxic gases, is higher than ordinary PVC material.

3. Forced ventilation level cables release halogen gas during combustion, but their burning points are higher than fire-proof PVC and LSZH.

4. Low smoke halogen-free (LSZH or LS0H) type, very few toxic gases are generated during combustion, and the combustion speed is very slow.

Currently, the power and communication cables laid in most regions in China contain halogen. The annual direct economic loss caused by fire is at least 0.65% of GDP and 5000 deaths. Looking at several major fire accidents in China in recent years, 90% of the victims are unable to escape. The burning of decorative materials and cables emits toxic gases and acidic gases, in addition, the burning of a large amount of heat and smoke, resulting in difficulties in the victims, leading to a tragedy! Recognizing this hazard, there are more and more domestic engineering projects, especially in areas with high pedestrian density, such as railway stations, airports, conference and exhibition centers, hospitals, and high-end office buildings, communication cables with special materials are required for high-rise buildings.

One of the most important requirements of communication cables in integrated cabling is fire safety. How can we improve the security of cable applications in fire scenarios? We advocate that communication cables should be considered as "essential security performance of cables" during integrated cabling. In the face of this security performance, there are new options for cables.

In the selection of fireproof cables for fire integrated wiring systems, North America and Europe have different opinions like shielded and unshielded integrated wiring systems. In consideration of environmental requirements, EU countries will use halogen-free and unleaded shielded cables as the selection criteria for power and communication cables. In order to reduce the fire hazard, EU construction regulations stipulate that cables must be installed in metal casings. However, the US National Electrical Regulation (NEC) clearly stipulates that the communication network must use unshielded twisted pair wires containing halogen material. This is because although halogen-containing cables have important environmental defects, halogen cables have strong fire resistance and high burning points. If the cables do not catch fire or are difficult to catch fire, then it will not cause combustion, so it will not emit toxic smoke.

China's national conditions are different from those in Europe and the United States. For different buildings, the following factors should be taken into account based on the actual conditions of the building site, such as cable Trough (PIPE) materials, air conditioning and ventilation system installation, and cable installation methods:

1. Vertical Shaft

If the vertical shaft of a building is PVC Cable trough/pipe, cables or optical cables of a level above CMR or OFNR should be used; if the vertical shaft is a metal cable trough/pipe (or flame retardant PVC Cable trough/pipe ), any type of (CM/CMG/CMR/CMP or OFN/OFNG/OFNR/OFNP) cable or optical cable can be used in the vertical shaft.

2. Overhead floor or ceiling

Fill cables (CMP or OFNP) must be used in the overhead floor or ceiling if PVC Cable trough/pipe is installed and the air conditioning and ventilation system is installed; if metal trough/pipe or fireproof PVC Cable trough/pipe are used in the overhead floor or ceiling of a building, you can use any type of (CM/CMG/CMR/CMP or OFN/OFNG/OFNR/OFNP) cable.

3. for buildings with environmental protection requirements, cables conforming to LSZH level should be used in the design of integrated wiring projects, and metal cable trough/pipe with fireproof function or flame retardant PVC Cable trough/pipe should be used.