ISO/TS 15877-7:2018

Plastics piping systems for hot and cold water installations - Chlorinated poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC-C) - Part 7: Guidance for the assessment of conformity

This document gives requirements and guidance for the assessment of conformity of materials, products, and assemblies in accordance with the applicable part(s) of ISO 15877 intended to be included in the manufacturer's quality plan as part of the quality management system and for the establishment of certification procedures. NOTE In order to help the reader, a basic test matrix is given in Annex A. In conjunction with the other parts of ISO 15877 (see Foreword), this document is applicable to Chlorinated poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC-C) piping systems intended to be used for hot and cold water installations within buildings for the conveyance of water, whether or not intended for human consumption (domestic systems) and for heating systems, under design pressures and temperatures appropriate to the class of application (see ISO 15877-1:2009, Table 1).

Systèmes de canalisations en plastique pour les installations d'eau chaude et froide — Poly(chlorure de vinyle) chloré (PVC-C) — Partie 7: Guide pour l'évaluation de la conformité

General Information

• Status: Published
• Publication Date: 22-Nov-2018
• ICS: 03.120.20 - Product and company certification. Conformity assessment
• ICS: 23.040.20 - Plastics pipes
• ICS: 91.140.60 - Water supply systems
• Technical Committee: ISO/TC 138/SC 2 - Plastics pipes and fittings for water supplies
• Drafting Committee: ISO/TC 138/SC 2/WG 1 - Plastics piping systems for hot and cold water applications
• Current Stage: 9093 - International Standard confirmed
• Start Date: 28-Jan-2025
• Completion Date: 13-Dec-2025

Relations

• Consolidates: ISO 19389:2014 - Space data and information transfer systems - Conjunction data message
• Effective Date: 06-Jun-2022
• Revises: ISO/TS 15877-7:2009 - Plastics piping systems for hot and cold water installations - Chlorinated poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC-C) - Part 7: Guidance for the assessment of conformity
• Effective Date: 08-Dec-2012

Overview

ISO/TS 15877-7:2018 - Plastics piping systems for hot and cold water installations - Chlorinated poly(vvinyl chloride) (PVC‑C) - Part 7: Guidance for the assessment of conformity provides requirements and practical guidance for assessing conformity of PVC‑C materials, compounds, products and assemblies. The technical specification is intended to be used by manufacturers, testing laboratories and certification bodies to define the tests, sampling and quality‑plan elements required for product release and certification. It applies to PVC‑C piping systems for hot and cold water inside buildings (domestic and heating systems) under the design pressures and temperatures defined in ISO 15877‑1.

Key topics and requirements

• Scope and applicability: Conformity assessment guidance for PVC‑C pipes, fittings, valves, joints and assemblies used in hot and cold water installations.
• Conformity testing framework: Describes the roles of type testing (TT), batch release tests (BRT), process verification tests (PVT), audit tests (AT), indirect tests (IT) and witness tests (WT).
• Grouping and sampling: Guidance on grouping by pressure class, size and fitting type to optimize testing and sampling plans.
• Quality plan integration: Requirements for including conformity tests and sampling in the manufacturer’s quality management system and quality plan.
• Certification procedures: Information to support the establishment of third‑party certification and audit programs; references to preferred competence standards for bodies (ISO/IEC 17065 for certification bodies, ISO/IEC 17025 for testing laboratories and ISO/IEC 17020 for inspection bodies).
• Record keeping and traceability: Expectations for maintaining test records and product batch identification to support conformity assessment.
• Annex A: A basic test matrix is provided to help users map tests to product types and assessment activities.

Practical applications

• Ensures consistent product safety and performance for PVC‑C piping used in potable water and heating systems.
• Supports product manufacturers in creating compliant quality plans, release procedures and internal process controls.
• Enables certification bodies and testing laboratories to design auditable conformity schemes and sampling plans.
• Assists specifiers, regulators and procurement teams to verify that PVC‑C piping meets standardized conformity assessment practices.

Who should use this standard

• PVC‑C pipe, fitting and valve manufacturers
• Testing laboratories, inspection and certification bodies
• Product designers, system specifiers, building services engineers and regulators interested in standardized conformity evidence for piping systems.

Related standards

• ISO 15877‑1, ‑2, ‑3, ‑5 (PVC‑C series)
• System standards for other materials: ISO 15874 (PP), ISO 15875 (PE‑X), ISO 15876 (PB), ISO 21003 (multilayer), ISO 22391 (PE‑RT)

Keywords: ISO/TS 15877-7:2018, PVC‑C, chlorinated poly(vinyl chloride), plastics piping systems, assessment of conformity, type testing, batch release tests, process verification, certification.

Standards Content (Sample)

TECHNICAL ISO/TS
SPECIFICATION 15877-7
Third edition
2018-11
Plastics piping systems for hot and
cold water installations — Chlorinated
poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC-C) —
Part 7:
Guidance for the assessment of
conformity
Systèmes de canalisations en plastique pour les installations d'eau
chaude et froide — Poly(chlorure de vinyle) chloré (PVC-C) —
Partie 7: Guide pour l'évaluation de la conformité
Reference number
©
ISO 2018
© ISO 2018
All rights reserved. Unless otherwise specified, or required in the context of its implementation, no part of this publication may
be reproduced or utilized otherwise in any form or by any means, electronic or mechanical, including photocopying, or posting
on the internet or an intranet, without prior written permission. Permission can be requested from either ISO at the address
below or ISO’s member body in the country of the requester.
ISO copyright office
CP 401 • Ch. de Blandonnet 8
CH-1214 Vernier, Geneva
Phone: [phone]
Fax: [phone]
Email: [e-mail]
Website: www.iso.org
Published in Switzerland
ii © ISO 2018 – All rights reserved

Contents Page
Foreword .iv
Introduction .v
1 Scope . 1
2 Normative references . 1
3 Terms and definitions . 1
4 Abbreviated terms . 4
5 General . 5
6 Testing and inspection . 5
6.1 Grouping . 5
6.1.1 General. 5
6.1.2 Pressure groups . 5
6.1.3 Size groups . 5
6.1.4 Fitting groups . 6
6.2 Type testing (TT) . 6
6.3 Batch release tests (BRT) .11
6.4 Process verification tests (PVT) .12
6.5 Audit tests (AT) .13
6.6 Indirect tests (IT) .14
6.7 Test records.14
Annex A (informative) Basic test matrix .15
Bibliography .16
Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out
through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical
committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.
ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of
electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www .iso .org/directives).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. Details of
any patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction and/or
on the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www .iso .org/patents).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation on the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and
expressions related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to the
World Trade Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT) see the following
URL: www .iso .org/iso/foreword .html.
This document was prepared by the European Committee for Standardization (CEN) Technical
Committee CEN/TC 155, Plastics piping systems and ducting systems, in collaboration with ISO Technical
Committee TC 138, Plastics pipes, fittings and valves for the transport of fluids, Subcommittee SC 2,
Plastics pipes and fittings for water supplies, in accordance with the Agreement on technical cooperation
between ISO and CEN (Vienna Agreement).
This third edition cancels and replaces the second edition (ISO/TS 15877-7:2009), which has been
technically revised.
The main changes compared to the previous edition are as follows:
— Addition of new definitions of the terms “material”, compound” and “material grade”;
— Revision of 6.2 “Type testing (TT)” with a special focus on Table 4.
A list of all parts in the ISO 15877 series can be found on the ISO website.
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www .iso .org/members .html.
iv © ISO 2018 – All rights reserved

Introduction
This document can be used to support elaboration of national third party certification procedures for
products conforming to the applicable part(s) of ISO 15877.
This document is a part of a System Standard for plastics piping systems of a particular material for a
specified application. There are a number of such System Standards.
At the date of publication of this document, System Standards for piping systems of other plastics
materials used for the same application are the following:
— ISO 15874, Plastics piping systems for hot and cold water installations — Polypropylene (PP)
— ISO 15875, Plastics piping systems for hot and cold water installations — Crosslinked Polyethylene (PE-X)
— ISO 15876, Plastics piping systems for hot and cold water installations — Polybutene (PB)
— ISO 21003, Multilayer piping systems for hot and cold water installations inside buildings
— ISO 22391, Plastics piping systems for hot and cold water installations — Polyethylene of raised
temperature resistance (PE-RT)
They are supported by separate standards on test methods to which references are made throughout
the System Standard.
The System Standards are consistent with general standards on functional requirements and on
recommended practice for installation.
Figures 1 and 2 are intended to provide general information on the concept of testing and organisation
of those tests used for the purpose of the assessment of conformity. For each type of test, i.e. type testing
(TT), batch release test (BRT), process verification test (PVT), and audit test (AT), this document details
the applicable characteristics to be assessed as well as the frequency and sampling of testing.
A typical scheme for the assessment of conformity of materials, compounds, pipes, fittings, valves,
joints or assemblies by product manufacturers is given in Figure 1.
Figure 1 — Typical scheme for the assessment of conformity by a product manufacturer
A typical scheme for the assessment of conformity of compounds, pipes, fittings, joints or assemblies by
manufacturers, including certification, is given in Figure 2.
Figure 2 — Typical scheme for the assessment of conformity by a product manufacturer,
including certification
vi © ISO 2018 – All rights reserved

TECHNICAL SPECIFICATION ISO/TS 15877-7:2018(E)
Plastics piping systems for hot and cold water
installations — Chlorinated poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC-C) —
Part 7:
Guidance for the assessment of conformity
1 Scope
This document gives requirements and guidance for the assessment of conformity of materials,
products, and assemblies in accordance with the applicable part(s) of ISO 15877 intended to be included
in the manufacturer’s quality plan as part of the quality management system and for the establishment
of certification procedures.
NOTE In order to help the reader, a basic test matrix is given in Annex A.
In conjunction with the other parts of ISO 15877 (see Foreword), this document is applicable to
Chlorinated poly(vinyl chloride) (PVC-C) piping systems intended to be used for hot and cold water
installations within buildings for the conveyance of water, whether or not intended for human
consumption (domestic systems) and for heating systems, under design pressures and temperatures
appropriate to the class of application (see ISO 15877-1:2009, Table 1).
2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content
constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For
undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
ISO 15877-1:2009, Plastics piping systems for hot and cold water installations — Chlorinated poly(vinyl
chloride) (PVC-C) — Part 1: General
ISO 15877-2:2009, Plastics piping systems for hot and cold water installations — Chlorinated poly(vinyl
chloride) (PVC-C) — Part 2: Pipes
ISO 15877-3:2009, Plastics piping systems for hot and cold water installations — Chlorinated poly(vinyl
chloride) (PVC-C) — Part 3: Fittings
ISO 15877-5:2009, Plastics piping systems for hot and cold water installations — Chlorinated poly(vinyl
chloride) (PVC-C) — Part 5: Fitness for purpose of the system
3 Terms and definitions
For the purposes of this document, the terms and definitions given in ISO 15877-1 and ISO 15877-3 and
the following apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminological databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— IEC Electropedia: available at http: //www .electropedia .org/
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at http: //www .iso .org/obp
3.1
certification body
impartial body, governmental or non-governmental, possessing the necessary competence and
responsibility to carry out certification of conformity according to given rules of procedure and
management
[2]
Note 1 to entry: A certification body is preferably compliant with ISO/IEC 17065 .
3.2
inspection body
body that performs inspection
Note 1 to entry: An inspection body can be an organization, or part of an organization.
[3]
[SOURCE: ISO/IEC 17020:2012 , 3.5]
[3]
Note 2 to entry: An inspection body is preferably compliant with ISO/IEC 17020 .
3.3
testing laboratory
laboratory which measures, tests, calibrates or otherwise determines the characteristics of the
performance of materials and products
[4]
Note 1 to entry: A testing laboratory is preferably compliant with ISO/IEC 17025 .
3.4
quality management system
part of a management system with regard to quality
[SOURCE: ISO 9000:2015, 3.5.4]
[6]
Note 1 to entry: Requirements for quality management systems are given in ISO 9001 .
3.5
quality plan
document setting out the specific quality practices, resources and sequence of activities relevant to a
particular product or range of products
3.6
type testing
TT
testing performed to prove that the compound (3.13), component (3.21), product (3.16), joint (3.22) or
assembly (3.23) is capable of conforming to the requirements given in the relevant standard
Note 1 to entry: The type test results remain valid until there is a change in the compound (3.13) or product (3.16)
or assembly (3.23) provided that the process verification tests are done regularly.
3.7
batch release test
BRT
test performed by or on behalf of the manufacturer on a batch of compound (3.13), components (3.21) or
products (3.16), which has to be satisfactorily completed before the batch can be released
2 © ISO 2018 – All rights reserved

3.8
process verification test
PVT
test performed by or on behalf of the product manufacturer on compounds (3.13), components (3.21),
products (3.16) or joints (3.22) at specific intervals to confirm that the process continues to be capable
of producing components (3.21) and products (3.16) which conform to the requirements given in the
relevant standard
Note 1 to entry: Such tests are not required to release batches of materials (3.12), compound (3.13), components
(3.21) or products (3.16) and are carried out as a measure of process control.
3.9
audit test
AT
test performed by a test laboratory on behalf of an inspection body (3.2) or certification body (3.1) to
confirm that the material, compound (3.13), components (3.21), product (3.16), joint (3.22) or assembly
(3.23) continues to conform to the requirements given in the relevant standard and to provide
information to assess the effectiveness of the quality management system (3.4)
3.10
indirect test
IT
test performed by or on behalf of the manufacturer, different from that specified test for that particular
characteristic, having previously verified its correlation with the specified test
3.11
witness test
WT
test accepted by an inspection or a certification body (3.1) for type testing (3.6) and/or audit testing,
which is carried out by or on behalf of the manufacturer and supervised by a representative of the
inspection or certification body (3.1), qualified in testing
3.12
material
composition grouped by specific families, expressed by generic names used in various standards, e.g.
PP-H, PB-R, PE-RT Type II, PE-X a, PVC-C
3.13
compound
clearly defined homogenous mixture of the polymer with additives, i.e. antioxidants, pigments,
stabilizers and others, at a dosage level necessary for the processing and the intended use of the final
product (3.16)
3.14
material grade
material (3.12) with a defined specification from a material manufacturer
3.15
batch of material grade
clearly identified quantity of a given homogeneous material (3.12) or compound (3.13) manufactured
under uniform conditions and defined and identified by the material/compound manufacturer
3.16
product
pipe, fitting, or valve of a clearly identified type intended to be a part of a piping system which the
manufacturer puts on the market
3.17
product batch
clearly identified collection of units or products (3.16), manufactured consecutively or continuously
under the same conditions, using the same compounds (3.13) conforming to the same specifications
Note 1 to entry: The production batch is defined and identified by the product manufacturer.
3.18
lot
clearly identifiable sub-division of a batch for inspection purposes
3.19
sample
one or more units or products (3.16) drawn from the same production batch or lot (3.18), selected at
random without regard to their quality
Note 1 to entry: The number of products (3.16) in the sample is the sample size.
3.20
group
collection of similar components (3.21) or products (3.16) from which samples (3.19) are selected for
testing purposes
3.21
component
product (3.16) manufactured out of a specific compound (3.13), brought to the market as part of another
product (3.16) or as a spare part
Note 1 to entry: For drinking water application, components may be considered as products (3.16) and be
individually approved (e.g. o-ring, gasket) or they are tested as integral part of a product (3.16) (e.g. in a valve).
3.22
joint
connection between two or more products (3.16)
3.23
assembly
assembled product
assembled product using two or more parts
3.24
sampling plan
specific plan which defines the test and the number of units or products (3.16) or assemblies (3.23) to be
inspected
3.25
product type
generic description of a product (3.16)
EXAMPLE A pipe or fitting or valve or their main parts, of the same design, from a particular compound (3.13).
3.26
cavity
space within a mould to be filled to form the moulded product
EXAMPLE That part of an injection mould which gives the form to the injection-moulded product.
4 Abbreviated terms
To avoid misunderstanding, the abbreviations in this clause are defined as being the same in each
language. For the same reason, the terms are given in the three languages, English, French and German.
4 © ISO 2018 – All rights reserved

EN FR DE
AT audit test essai d’audit Überwachungsprüfung
BRT batch release test essai de libération de cam- Freigabeprüfung einer Charge
pagne de fabrication
IT indirect test essai indirect indirekte Prüfung
PVT process verification test essai de vérification du pro- Prozessüberprüfung
cédé de fabrication
TT type test essai de type Typprüfung
WT witness testing essai témoin Prüfung unter Aufsicht
5 General
Compounds, products and assemblies shall conform to the requirements given in ISO 15877 (all parts).
Products and assemblies shall be produced by the manufacturer under a quality management system
which includes a quality plan.
For the effect on water quality, attention is drawn to the requirements of national regulations.
6 Testing and inspection
6.1 Grouping
6.1.1 General
For the purposes of this document, the groups specified in 6.1.2 to 6.1.4 apply.
6.1.2 Pressure groups
Two pressure groups are defined, as given in Table 1.
Table 1 — Pressure groups
Pressure group Operating pressure, p
op
bar
1 4; 6
2 8; 10
6.1.3 Size groups
Two size groups are defined for pipes and fittings, as given in Table 2.
Table 2 — Size groups
Size group Nominal diameter, d
n
mm
1 10 ≤ d ≤ 63
n
2 63 < d ≤ 160
n
6.1.4 Fitting groups
Four groups of fittings each having a similar design are defined, as given in Table 3.
Table 3 — Fitting groups
Fitting group Type of fitting
1 Bends
2 Elbows, Tees
3 Reducers, couplers, double-sockets, end caps
4 Unions, flange adaptors, transition fittings, adaptor pieces and/or their plastics parts
and others
6.2 Type testing (TT)
Relevant TTs shall be carried out on new systems and whenever there is a change in design, compound,
production site or production method, other than routine in-process adjustments, and/or whenever
there is an extension of the product range.
TTs shall demonstrate that the products conform to all requirements for the characteristics given in
Table 5 to Table 7.
Conditions considered as leading to a change of compound (M) are given in Table 4. The dosage level of
ingredients of the compound shall not exceed the tolerance bands given in Table 4. The values for X (see
Table 4) shall be specified in the manufacturer’s quality plan. The relevant characteristics to be tested
in case of change of compound are given in Tables 5, 6 and 7 in columns M1 to M2, as applicable.
A change in the supplier of stabilizer or other additives does not necessarily constitute a change in
a
compound (see Table 4, footnote .
A change of material of metal fittings without any change of design in those areas which are relevant to
the joint performance does not require testing as specified in ISO 15877-5.
Table 4 — Conditions considered to lead to a change of compound (M)
Type of material change Conditions
M1 — Change of chlorine content of the resin — Amount greater
...