What is BS 8519 about?
BS 8519 is the Business standard on Fire safety cables which are designed to maintain circuit integrity and continue to work for a specified period of time under defined conditions.
BS 8519 gives the best guidance and recommendations on the selection and installation of power and control cable systems which are required to maintain their circuit integrity for life safety and fire-fighting applications.
BS 8519 does not give recommendations for those installations covered in BS 5839-1, BS 5839-8, BS 5839-9, and BS 5266-1, but makes reference to these standards in an informative capacity.
BS 8519 covers:
- The source of supply
- The distribution voltage [high voltage (HV) or low voltage (LV)]
- The appropriate location of the main intake enclosures, HV switch rooms, LV switch rooms, transformer rooms, generator rooms, risers, fire life safety plant rooms and fire-fighting/evacuation lift motor rooms/shafts
Who is BS 8519 for?
BS 8519 on the installation of fire-resistant power is relevant to:
- Fire engineers
- Regulators and enforcers including building control bodies
- Fire authorities
- Health and safety inspectors
Why should you use BS 8519?
Fire-resistant cables are used to maintain circuit integrity for a stated period of time.
BS 8519 aims to ensure that the level of circuit integrity is not compromised by other components of the whole electrical distribution system, including cable glands, terminations, joints, and cable support systems.
BS 8519 is beneficial for fire engineers as it is reliable for high-rise and complex buildings that have developed in terms of increased size, height, and complexity of active fire protection.
Also helpful in low emission of smoke and corrosive gases when affected by the fire.
What’s changed since the last update?
BS 8519:2010 supersedes BS 7346-6:2005, which is withdrawn.
The following principal changes:
- Change of identifier
- Change of scope
- Change from a specification to a code of practice
- Removal of Annex B (now published separately as BS 8491)
- Expansion of content to include all life safety/fire-fighting systems (not only smoke venting and fire-fighting cores as in the previous edition)