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2.1.4 Electrical Fire Safety(27) Report issued by
the US Fire Safety Administration
The Problem: During a typical year, home electrical
problems account for 26,100 fires and more than
$2 billion in property losses. About half of all
residential electrical fires involve electrical wiring.
Statistically, December and January are the most
dangerous months for electrical fires.
Fire deaths are highest in winter months with more
indoor activities, and increases in lighting, heating,
and appliance use. The bedroom is the leading
area of fire origin for residential building electrical
fires. However, electrical fires that begin in the living
room/family room/den areas result in the most
deaths.
The Causes of Electrical Fires: Most electrical
distribution fires result from problems with “fixed
wiring” such as faulty electrical outlets and old
wiring. Problems with cords (such as extension and
appliance cords), plugs, receptacles, and switches
also cause many home electrical fires.
Light fixtures and lamps/light bulbs are also
leading causes of electrical fires. Many avoidable
electrical fires can be traced to misuse of electric
cords. These include overloaded circuits, poor
maintenance, and running the cords under rugs or in
high traffic areas for example.
2.1.5 Marketing Considerations
Standards are necessary for business success.
Having people who are standards experts in
your organisation is essential. Many of our cable
businesses are international. Therefore companies
need standards experts who are intimately familiar
with several national standards.
New materials must meet the same performance
criteria of developed materials, and receive temperature
ratings based upon standards performance protocols such
as relative thermal index. The issued standard creates
a level performance playing field for manufacturers.
This enables companies to act by investing in product
development resources(28) .
3 Standards Development Organizations
(SDO)
• ASTM International develops both Standard Test
Methods and Product Standards
• UL and CSA related to the respective country National
Electric Code in the US and Canada
• Insulated Conductor Engineers Association
• ISO and IEC, discussed previously
• Other international organisations include GB/T (China),
NOM (Mexico), and BS (Great Britain)
ASTM International is a globally recognised leader in
the development and delivery of international voluntary
consensus standards(29). Today, some 12,000 ASTM
standards are used around the world to improve product
quality, enhance safety, facilitate market access and trade,
and build consumer confidence.
Test Type Test Test Comment
D1929(17) Ignition Temperature Measures ignition
temperature of plastics
D2863(18) Oxygen Index Percent of oxygen
needed to sustain flame
D3801(19) Extinguishing
Vertical flame,
extinguishing
characteristics
D3874(20) Ignition Ignition of material by
hot wire sources
D5424(21) Smoke Vertical cable tray
smoke measurement
D5485(22) Corrosion Cone calorimeter
corrosion test
D5537(23) Fire Load Heat release, flame
spread, mass loss
E 662 (24) Smoke Spread Amount of smoke
UL 1685(25) Cable Vertical Tray Vertical tray fire spread,smoke release
UL 2196(26) Fire Resistive Cable Tests for fire resistivecable, (fire stop)
❍
❍ Table 1: Standards examples of ASTM and UL wire and cable fire and
smoke tests(7)
ASTM’s leadership in international standards develop-
ment is driven by the contributions of its members, who
include more than 30,000 of the world’s top technical
experts and business professionals representing 135
countries.
Working in an open and transparent process and using
ASTM’s advanced electronic infrastructure, ASTM
members deliver the test methods, specifications, guides,
and practices that support industries and products
worldwide. UL and Canadian Standards Association (CSA)
undertake development of safety standards(7) in the United
States and Canada, respectively.
These two organisations make a significant contribution to
the national electrical code of their country. In the United
States, the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA)
issues the National Electric Code. Materials suppliers and
cable manufacturers can propose changes to the UL and
CSA standards and subsequently obtain changes in the
national electrical code.
This occurs after demonstrating that new materials
or cables product meet rigorous and demanding
performance capability. For North America, UL and CSA
have a significant stake in assuring the safety of products
that provide expected performance.