EuroWire March 2017

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News
Corporate
March 2017 17
MANUFACTURERS risk losing out on
trade opportunities with Europe without
appropriate CE marking for their cable
products, says UK company BRE Global,
which specialises in fire, security and
environmental testing and certification of
construction products.
The warning comes with just months to
go to the 1st July 2017 deadline when CE
marking becomes mandatory for power,
control and communication cables placed
on the European market.
The company is a long-serving notified
body for the testing and certification of a
wide portfolio of construction products
and systems and is well versed with
the requirements of the Construction
Products Regulation (CPR).
With the publication of EN 50575, the
EU’s harmonised product standard for
power, control and communication
cables for permanent use in buildings,
manufacturers entered a window of
transition to comply with regulation.
But despite a deadline extension from
December 2016 to July 2017, some
manufacturers are still holding back,
either daunted by the process or hesitant
in the current state of uncertainty
following the UK’s vote to leave the EU.
Classification Fca can be self-declared by
the manufacturer, while classifications
Dca and Eca require testing by a notified
test laboratory. However, Aca, Bca and
Cca follow a more complex certification
process which must be undertaken by a
notified certification body such as BRE
Global.
This process mainly involves testing
to two fire performance standards, EN
50399 and EN 60332-1-2, followed by
classification to EN 13501-6 based on the
outcome of the tests.
The EN 50575 standard also includes the
use of new extended field of application
(EXAP) rules that allow for the testing of
a family of products to be classified to a
certain fire property without testing all of
the individual members of the family.
The safety testing requirement for cable
CE marking is exclusively focused on fire
performance.
With its resources in fire testing, research
and investigation, BRE Global says that
clients can be fully confident of the
integrity of its cable testing and CE
marking services.
The company is encouraging
manufacturers to contact its cables
certification team for information on
their CE marking and product testing
requirements, however small, large or
technically complex.
BRE Global Ltd – UK
Website:
BRE Global turns up heat on cable CE marking
On the move!
Allied Wire & Cable, USA, has relocated its
New Hampshire office from Merrimack,
to Bedford, New Hampshire. This move
gives Allied the ability to reach a larger
audience in the New England area.
New Hampshire branch manager Mike
Reardon said: “I’m very excited about our
move to Bedford. It’s incredible to think
this is our third facility in ten years.“
AlliedWire & Cable – USA
Website: