TSD-2000-4-4-1 INSTALATION: EXTERNAL: BS EN 50174-3 AND UK REGULATIONS Issue 1

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Issue 1

In common with the requirements for the specification, planning and implementation of installations of telecommunications cabling inside buildings, the primary United Kingdom standard for cabling external to buildings is BS 6701 – which refers to and requires the application of the BS EN 50174 series – specifically BS EN 50174-1 and BS EN 50174-3. The requirements are independent of the type and purpose of the telecommunications cabling and are applicable to all metallic (e.g. balanced copper, coaxial) and optical media (all-silica, silica-based and plastic optical fibres).

In addition, and to provide a comprehensive approach, BS 7671 (better known as the Wiring Regulations) also requires the application of BS 6701 and BS EN 50174 standards in relation to low voltage cabling (a category that applies to all
telecommunications cabling capable of carrying a voltage between 0 V and 1000 VAC/1500 VDC – but excludes all-dielectric cables).

However, BS EN 50174-3 contains a Conformance clause which details exactly which parts of the standard are required for a claim of conformance. Within that clause there is a requirement that “local regulations, including safety, shall be met”. The
16 purpose of this Technical Support Document is to detail the relevant local regulations that apply in the United Kingdom and which, therefore, supersede specific requirements in BS EN 50174-3 and to explain how those regulations affect the implementation of installation of telecommunications cabling outside buildings.

The specific aspects of BS EN 50174-3 which are subject to these regulations are the depths of telecommunications cabling infrastructures, their separation from other utility infrastructures, their identification and marking.