EN 50290-2-20:2016

Communication cables - Part 2-20: Common design rules and construction - General

EN 50290-2-NN contains, in its various parts, the requirements for polymeric insulating, sheathing and covering materials that are used for metallic and optical fibre cables (Table 1). The materials to be used for EN standardised communication cables are not, and will not be, restricted only to those defined (Table 1). New materials for cables will be described in further parts of the series. The current structure of the EN 50290-2-NN series is outlined in Annex A. Furthermore, the use of materials described in the EN 50290-2-NN series for other cable applications outside those defined (Table 1) is not prohibited, but it is strongly recommended that expert advice be taken before such use, or before any proposal for incorporation into another standard.

Kommunikationskabel - Teil 2-20: Gemeinsame Regeln für Entwicklung und Konstruktion - Allgemeines

Câbles de communication - Partie 2-20: Règles de conception communes et construction - Généralités

L'EN 50290-2-X contient, dans ses différentes parties, les exigences relatives à l'isolation, au gainage et aux matériaux de revêtement par polymères utilisés pour les câbles métalliques et les câbles à fibres optiques (voir Tableau 1). Les matériaux à utiliser pour les câbles de communication normalisés EN ne sont et ne seront pas limités aux matériaux définis dans le Tableau 1. De nouveaux matériaux pour les câbles seront décrits dans d'autres parties de la série. La structure actuelle de la série EN 50290-2-NN est présentée dans l'Annexe A. De plus, l'utilisation des matériaux décrits dans la série EN 50290-2-NN pour des applications de câbles différentes de celles définies dans le Tableau 1 n'est pas interdite, mais il est fortement recommandé d'avoir l'avis d'un expert avant une telle utilisation, ou avant toute proposition d'incorporation dans une autre norme.

Komunikacijski kabli - 2-20. del: Skupna pravila načtovanja in konstrukcija - Splošno

Standard EN 50290-2-NN v različnih delih vsebuje zahteve za polimerno izolacijo, oplaščenje in pokrivne materiale, ki se uporabljajo za kovinske kable in kable z optičnimi vlakni (preglednica 1).
Materiali, ki se uporabljajo za komunikacijske kable, standardizirane po EN, niso in ne bodo omejeni samo na tiste, ki so opredeljeni (preglednica 1). Novi materiali za kable bodo opisani v nadaljnjih delih skupine standardov. Trenutna struktura skupine standardov EN 50290-2-NN je navedena v dodatku A.
Poleg tega uporaba materialov, opisanih v skupini standardov EN 50290-2-NN, za druge vrste uporabe kablov zunaj tistih, ki so opredeljeni (preglednica 1), ni prepovedana, vendar se močno priporoča, da se pred takšno uporabo ali pred predlogom za vključitev v drug standard pridobi nasvet strokovnjaka.

General Information

• Status: Published
• Publication Date: 06-Oct-2016
• ICS: 29.035.20 - Plastics and rubber insulating materials
• ICS: 33.120.10 - Coaxial cables. Waveguides
• Technical Committee: CLC/TC 46X - Communication cables
• Drafting Committee: CLC/TC 46X - Communication cables
• Current Stage: 9093 - Decision to confirm - Review Enquiry
• Start Date: 26-May-2021
• Completion Date: 23-Sep-2025
• Directive: 2006/95/EC - Directive 2006/95/EC of the European Parliament and of the Council of 12 December 2006 on the harmonisation of the laws of Member States relating to electrical equipment designed for use within certain voltage limits (codified version)
• Directive: 2014/35/EU - Directive 2014/35/EU of the European Parliament and of the Council of 26 February 2014 on the harmonisation of the laws of the Member States relating to the making available on the market of electrical equipment designed for use within certain voltage limits
• Mandate: M/212 - ICT - metallic and optical cables and cabling systems
• Mandate: M/511 - Mandate to CEN, CENELEC and ETSI relating to harmonised standards in the field of the Low Voltage Directive
• Ref Project: SIST EN 50290-2-20:2016 - Communication cables - Part 2-20: Common design rules and construction - General

Relations

• Replaces: EN 50290-2-20:2001 - Communication cables - Part 2-20: Common design rules and construction - General
• Effective Date: 26-Jan-2023

Overview

EN 50290-2-20:2016 - "Communication cables - Part 2-20: Common design rules and construction - General" is a CENELEC European standard that defines general design rules, material nomenclature and construction guidance for polymeric insulating, sheathing and covering materials used in metallic and optical fibre communication cables. It sits at the head of the EN 50290-2‑X series and sets the framework for subsequent, material‑specific parts (see Annex A of the standard). The standard also addresses reporting and testing conventions, quality assurance, fire hazard considerations and regulatory compliance (REACH, RoHS, POPs).

Key topics and requirements

• Scope and material lists: Identifies common polymer types used in telecom cables (PVC, PE, PP, XLPE, FEP, PA, PBT, TPE, HFFR‑LS, SiR, etc.) and clarifies that the EN series is extensible - new materials will be added in further parts.
• Rounding and reporting rules: Measurement and cable parameter rounding per EN 50396:2005.
• Polymer nomenclature: Adopts EN ISO 11469 abbreviations and provides a table of polymer abbreviations and classification rules (e.g., blends classified by dominant component).
• Maximum operating temperature: Typical telecom design uses 60 °C; series materials are generally suitable up to 70 °C, while certain formulations (PP, XLPE, SiR, FEP) allow higher service temperatures. Thermal ageing and Arrhenius methods (EN 60216) are noted for lifetime assessment.
• Quality assessment and documentation: Recommends Quality Assurance processes - Technical Delivery Specifications, Batch Quality Certificates, Type Approval statements - and identifies which tests are appropriate for batch vs type testing.
• Reprocessable material rules: Permits controlled reuse of clean, non‑reactive reprocessable materials; materials with reactive systems (crosslinkers, chemical foaming agents) must not be reprocessed.
• Fire hazard & LFH/HFFR‑LS: Discusses smoke and toxic gas hazards, ISO 13571 considerations and the industry move to Low Fire Hazard (LFH) cables using HFFR‑LS compounds.
• HSE and regulatory compliance: Confirms alignment with REACH, RoHS (2011/65/EU) and POPs (Reg. 850/2004) obligations.

Applications and who uses it

• Cable designers and manufacturers specifying insulation and sheath materials for metallic and optical fibre cables
• Material and compound suppliers preparing Technical Delivery Specifications and Batch Certificates
• Test laboratories and quality managers implementing acceptance and type tests
• Procurement, compliance and safety engineers ensuring REACH/RoHS/POPs conformity
• Standards committees and product specifiers aligning cable construction with LFH and HSE requirements

Related standards

• EN 50290-2‑X series (material‑specific parts)
• EN 50288 (multi‑element metallic cables)
• EN 60794 (optical fibre cables)
• EN ISO 11469 (polymer nomenclature)
• EN 50396 (rounding/reporting rules)
• ISO 13571 (fire tenability guidance)
• EN ISO 9001 (quality management)

Keywords: EN 50290-2-20, communication cables, polymeric materials, insulation, sheath, HFFR‑LS, LFH, REACH, RoHS, cable design, cable construction.

Standards Content (Sample)

2003-01.Slovenski inštitut za standardizacijo. Razmnoževanje celote ali delov tega standarda ni dovoljeno.6SORãQRKommunikationskabel - Teil 2-20: Gemeinsame Regeln für Entwicklung und Konstruktion - AllgemeinesCâbles de communication - Partie 2-20: Règles de conception communes et construction - GénéralitésCommunication cables - Part 2-20: Common design rules and construction - General33.120.10Koaksialni kabli. ValovodiCoaxial cables. WaveguidesICS:Ta slovenski standard je istoveten z:EN 50290-2-20:2016SIST EN 50290-2-20:2016en01-december-2016SIST EN 50290-2-20:2016SLOVENSKI
STANDARDSIST EN 50290-2-20:20021DGRPHãþD

EUROPEAN STANDARD NORME EUROPÉENNE EUROPÄISCHE NORM
EN 50290-2-20
October 2016 ICS 33.120.10
Supersedes
EN 50290-2-20:2001
English Version
Communication cables - Part 2-20: Common design rules and construction - General
Câbles de communication - Partie 2-20: Règles de conception communes et construction - Généralités
Kommunikationskabel - Teil 2-20: Gemeinsame Regeln für Entwicklung und Konstruktion - Allgemeines This European Standard was approved by CENELEC on 2016-07-22. CENELEC members are bound to comply with the CEN/CENELEC Internal Regulations which stipulate the conditions for giving this European Standard the status of a national standard without any alteration. Up-to-date lists and bibliographical references concerning such national standards may be obtained on application to the CEN-CENELEC Management Centre or to any CENELEC member.
This European Standard exists in three official versions (English, French, German). A version in any other language made by translation under the responsibility of a CENELEC member into its own language and notified to the CEN-CENELEC Management Centre has the same status as the official versions. CENELEC members are the national electrotechnical committees of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, the Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, Former Yugoslav Republic of Macedonia, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and the United Kingdom. European Committee for Electrotechnical Standardization
Comité Européen de Normalisation Electrotechnique Europäisches Komitee für Elektrotechnische Normung CEN-CENELEC Management Centre: Avenue Marnix 17,
B-1000 Brussels © 2016 CENELEC All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means reserved worldwide for CENELEC Members.
Ref. No. EN 50290-2-20:2016 E SIST EN 50290-2-20:2016

Structure of EN 50290-2-X series of standards . 8 Bibliography . 9
3 European foreword This document (EN 50290-2-20:2016) has been prepared by a joint working group of the Technical Committees CENELEC TC 46X, "Communication cables", and CENELEC TC 86A, "Optical fibres and optical fibre cables". The following dates are fixed: • latest date by which this document has to be implemented at national level by publication of an identical national standard or by endorsement (dop) 2017-07-22 • latest date by which the national standards conflicting with this document have to be withdrawn (dow) 2019-07-22 Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of patent rights. CENELEC [and/or CEN] shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. This document supersedes EN 50290-2-20:2001. SIST EN 50290-2-20:2016

5 Table 2 — Polymers used for Communication Cables (informative) EN 50290-2-X abbreviation EN ISO 11469 abbreviation Material Comments PVC PVC Polyvinylchloride Compound containing polymer, plasticiser and filler. LLDPE, LDPE, MDPE, HDPE PE-LLD, -LD, -MD, -HD Polyethylene
PP PP Polypropylene
PA PA-6, -12, -66 Polyamide (Nylon)
SiR FMQ Silicone elastomer (rubber)
PU PU Polyurethane Under consideration PBT PBT Poly(butylene terephthalate)
TPE TPA, TPC, TPO, TPS, TPU, TPV, TPZ Thermoplastic elastomer
FEP E/PF Fluorinated ethylene propylene
HFFR-LS na Polyolefin based compound containing flame retardant additive See Clause 8 XLPE PE-X PE - cross linked or crosslinkable Silane, peroxide or exposure to e-beam (irradiation) Some materials consist of a physical blend of different polymers. For the purpose of the current document series, the polymer type is categorised as that of the largest component. Thus a PP/PE blend of ratio 60/40 would be classified as a PP polymer. 5 Maximum operating temperature The maximum operating temperature of telecommunication cables is based on thermal degradation, heat deformation characteristics and the thermal sensitivity of the dielectric properties. Most normal telecommunication cable applications define the maximum operating temperature as 60°C. This operating temperature can be a result of the external environment, conductor heating or a combination of both. The requirements and test methods may need to be reconsidered in the light of developing power over the Ethernet (POE) requirements. Unless stated otherwise all the materials described in EN 50288-2 are suitable for 70°C operating temperature. For certain applications (EN 50288-7) higher operating temperatures are necessary (eg. PP, XLPE at 90°C, SiR, FEP >90°C). For these products the focus is more on the potential for thermal degradation. Thermal degradation (ageing) performance can be demonstrated by techniques such as Arrhenius ageing (EN 60216) or by conventional heat ageing at elevated temperatures. Using the Arrhenius ageing protocol it is possible to predict the life expectancy (typically
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