CPR for Cables and Wires

The European Construction Products Regulation (CPR)


The European Construction Products Regulation (CPR) 305/2011 defines coherent and verifiable regulations for the use of construction products in buildings. It applies to all EU member states and aims to enhance safety in buildings. The CPR was extended on 1st June 2016 to include cables and wires which are classified in terms of their reaction to fire. The regulations will be binding for manufacturers and suppliers from 1st July 2017.
HELUKABEL GmbH has its products tested and certified. Since 1st July 2017, all relevant products from HELUKABEL will carry a CE mark and a declaration of performance as per the CPR.

The CPR for cables and wires is implemented by DIN EN 50575:2017-02: “Power, control and communication cables - Cables for general applications in construction works subject to reaction to fire requirements”. Cable products verified by a notified body are awarded a CE mark. For each cable, the manufacturer or supplier must also provide a declaration of performance which precisely describes its reaction to fire.

With the inclusion of cables and wires in the list of construction products, the EU has defined 6 fire classes for cables – from ACa through to FCa (Ca stands for ‘cable’). The class is allocated according to criteria such as flame propagation and heat generation. From non-flammable (Aca) and hardly inflammable (B1Ca, B2Ca, CCa) through normally flammable (DCa, ECa) to easily flammable (FCa). There are also three additional classes which refer to other requirements such as smoke production (s1 and s2), acidity / halogen-free flame retardancy (a1) and flaming droplets (d1 and d2).