| Full title | BS 8519:2020 Selection and installation of fire-resistant power and control cable systems for life safety, fire-fighting and other critical applications. Code of practice |
| Publisher | BSI. Committee FSH/1, Fire safety cables |
| Current edition | 2020, came into effect 30 June 2020. Supersedes BS 8519:2010, which is withdrawn |
| Status | Current. A code of practice: recommendations, not a specification |
| Cable test standards cited | BS 8491:2008, BS EN 50200:2015, BS 8434-2:2003+A2:2009 |
| Standards referred to | BS 5839-1, BS 5839-8, BS 5839-9, BS 5266-1, BS 9999, BS 9991 |
What it covers
BS 8519 gives recommendations on the selection and installation of fire-resistant power and control cable systems that must keep their circuit integrity in a fire for life safety and fire-fighting. It also covers electrical system design for these applications and fire survival times.
It is aimed at buildings that, because of their size, height, form or use, need life safety and fire-fighting systems. Examples given in the scope are:
- Sprinkler pumps and wet riser pumps
- Smoke control systems
- Fire-fighting and evacuation lifts
- Other systems required by the fire engineered strategy
It covers the source of supply, the distribution voltage (HV or LV), and the location of intake rooms, switchrooms, transformer and generator rooms, risers, plant rooms and lift motor rooms. It can also be used for circuits critical to business continuity, property protection or environmental protection.
BS 8519 does not give recommendations for installations covered by BS 5839-1, BS 5839-8, BS 5839-9 and BS 5266-1, but refers to them.
Fire survival times and categories
The standard uses three categories of circuit that must keep circuit integrity under defined fire conditions, for fire survival times of 30 min, 60 min and 120 min.
Table 1 (Clause 5) gives the recommended cable category for each application.
Each cable category has tests drawn from British Standards that assess cable performance under conditions expected in a real fire. The normative references for cable fire testing are:
| Standard | Title (summary) |
|---|---|
| BS 8491:2008 | Assessment of fire integrity of large diameter power cables for smoke and heat control systems and certain other active fire safety systems |
| BS EN 50200:2015 | Resistance to fire of unprotected small cables for use in emergency circuits |
| BS 8434-2:2003+A2:2009 | Unprotected small cables for emergency circuits: BS EN 50200 with a 930 °C flame and with water spray |
Normative Annex D sets the test for Category 3 cables with cores up to and including 4 mm².
Structure
| Clause | Subject |
|---|---|
| 5 | Fire survival times (Table 1, cable categories by application) |
| 6 | Power supplies: primary and secondary supplies, generators, UPS, fuel storage |
| 7 | Dual circuits and diverse routes (HV and LV) |
| 8 | Fire-resisting building fabric enclosures |
| 9 | Automatic changeover devices |
| 11 | Cable selection |
| 12 | Cable protective systems, including fire stopping and linear expansion |
| 13 to 15 | Effect of fire temperature on cable size, circuit protective conductors, installation practice |
| 16 | Cable support systems |
| 17 | Junction boxes and joints |
| 18 | Fire-resistant busbar systems |
| 20 | Life safety and fire-fighting applications: sprinkler and wet riser pumps, smoke control, car park smoke control, firefighters and evacuation lifts |
| Annex E | Determining the cross-sectional area of drop rods |
| Annex J | Variations, with a model design completion certificate |
The whole system, not just the cable
BS 8519 aims to stop circuit fire integrity being compromised by other parts of the distribution system: cable glands, terminations, joints and cable support systems. It also calls for:
- Dual redundant supplies run on diverse cable routes, in separate compartments
- Automatic changeover devices in the same compartment as the life safety, fire-fighting or critical equipment
- Allowance for the effect of fire temperature on conductor resistance and voltage drop (Clause 13, Annex F)
- Cable support systems, including drop rods, designed for the load in fire conditions (Clause 16, Annexes E and I)
- Internal and external fire stopping to keep switchroom compartmentation, and allowance for thermal expansion of cable enclosures (Clause 12)
Relationship to other standards
| Standard | Relationship |
|---|---|
| Approved Document B | Vol 1 para 3.52 and Vol 2 para 5.31 point to BS 5839-1, BS 5266-1 and BS 8519 for cables in large and complex buildings |
| BS 5839-1:2025 | Fire detection and alarm systems in non-domestic premises. Clause 25 gives its own recommendations for cables, including enhanced fire-resisting cable. Outside BS 8519 scope |
| BS 5266-1:2025 | Emergency lighting. Outside BS 8519 scope |
| BS 9999 and BS 9991 | Fire safety in buildings. BS 8519 refers to them for the design and installation of electrical distribution for life safety and fire-fighting equipment |
| BS 8519:2010 | Previous edition, withdrawn |
The fire resistance test methods are described on the BS EN 50200 and IEC 60331 pages.
What it means in practice
- Find the fire survival time and cable category for each circuit from the fire strategy and Table 1.
- Check the cable datasheet or certificate names the BS 8519 category and the tests passed.
- Glands, joints, junction boxes and supports should match the integrity of the cable.
- Fire alarm and emergency lighting circuits follow BS 5839-1 and BS 5266-1, not BS 8519.
- As a code of practice, any deviation should be justified. Annex J covers variation from the recommendations and includes a model design completion certificate.