|
|
|
|
|
With Toxicity Testing "just around the corner", planners and architects are considering new solutions and placement of the cabling infrastructure. Soon, testing for toxicity may be part of the requirement for the cables that we place in IAQ (Indoor Air Quality) pathways as well as the IEQ (Indoor Environmental Quality) standards. We can no longer trash the building by filling the return air plenums with toxic chemicals and waste materials that pose a safety and public health risk. The Potential Dangers of Exposed Cabling in Environmental Air Plenums are acute. In the past far too little of the full safety story has been written about the potential dangers of exposed cabling in environmental air plenums. The risks associated with cabling in ceiling plenums are frightening. Numerous experts are now calling for the testing process on plenum cables to include toxicity testing. If these cables are tested for toxicity most will fail to meet any reasonable safety limit. For more than twenty years, most plenum cable was manufactured using lead (Pb) and other dangerous heavy metals in the jackets. Today, those cables are decomposing and releasing their lethal cargo into the air systems. There are almost 8.5 million miles of abandoned communications cable in the USA. The price tag to clean up this mess is staggering. Estimates place the rough costs to remove the cabling which is now a safety and environmental hazard at $4 to $22 per square foot. In thirty years, we have turned much of our ceiling return air plenum spaces into a virtual "Love Canal" of toxic Teflon and other cable coatings. FIRE and SMOKE are not the only threats associated with fire conditions. Many of the chemical materials used in cabling, like Teflon, generate highly toxic and lethal gases under heat decomposition. This entire scenario has some attorney's licking their chops at the prospect of future liability awards in the billions. Closer to home, the building and commercial real estate industry is pushing for answers to the unraveling myth of plenum cable safety. Organizations like BOMA and NAIOP are challenging architects and designers to find solutions that work and are safe. Safe materials must be required in the air stream. In the event of a fire, toxic gases, fire or smoke should not incapacitate the occupants. Shockingly, most buildings do not have sensors for toxic gases in spite of claims that safety is paramount. Major issues regarding cable fire safety have been documented in research conducted in the USA and in Europe. Safety experts read the evidence with alarm, but designers and users appear to be blind to the dangers because the current cables are "Code Approved". For new construction, designers should carefully consider the use of in-floor cabling systems such as underfloor duct for on-grade use or a cellular floor system for elevated building levels. These systems provide the ultimate safety against cable fire and smoke problems by encapsulating cables in steel cells below a concrete fill. Underside fireproofing assures against cable outgassing for two to three hours. For retrofit projects that must incorporate plenum cabling, metal conduit or low smoke zero halogen cable are safer alternatives. CMP cable suppliers should be asked to supply "aged" cable fire tests to simulate the effects of heat aging, abrasion, and the degradation effects of plasticizer migration which can lead to cable jacket splitting. Sustainability is a crucial component of the safety scenario. Nobody wants to spend thousands and even millions on cabling that is "safe today and useless tomorrow". The current code (NEC 2005) does not require any follow up testing on cables that are being placed in the indoor air systems. IAQ (Indoor Air Quality) and IEQ (Indoor Environmental Quality) are two important terms that will be on the agenda for "Happy Buildings". Several cost studies have revealed that using in-floor systems result in overall lower costs for the installation and maintenance of cabling facilities, while offering the highest level of safety. The Q-Floor/Taproute® System HHRobertson Floor Systems, a CENTRIA company, manufactures the Q-Floor/Taproute® System - the premier cable management system for office buildings, libraries, schools and casinos. Since its introduction in 1931 by the H.H. Robertson Company, the system has been constantly improved to provide customer benefits unmatched by any other method of horizontal cable distribution. |
||
|
|
||
