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THE ELLIS
GUIDE TO
CABLE CLEATS
Type approvals 34
Business management 36
References 38
4 5
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IEC 61914 Cable cleats The aspects of construction The international In a short-circuit fault the forces
and performance covered by the are applied almost instantaneously
for electrical installations standard include: standard IEC 61914 and oscillate in every direction.
outlines a series of tests Material type – i.e. metallic, includes a formula in Experience shows that a cleat that
non-metallic or composite survives a mechanical tensile test
that can be used to Annex B that enables at a given force will not necessarily
Minimum and maximum declared
assess the performance service temperatures
a designer to calculate survive a short-circuit test, even if
forces are the same.
of a cleat’s design. Resistance to impact at the the force between two
minimum declared operating conductors during a fault.
Although the standard does not temperature
define pass or fail levels, it allows The ability of the cleat to Consider the properties
If the strength of a particular
manufacturers to define the withstand axial slippage forces of glass, immensely strong
cleat is also known, then the
performance characteristics of Resistance to electro-mechanical under tension but subject
optimum spacing of the cleat along
their products, and specifiers to forces – i.e. the ability of the cleat to brittle failure when
the cable in order to restrain the
compare products from different to withstand the forces between force created by the fault can impacted.
manufacturers. the cables in the event of a be calculated.
short-circuit
The strength of a cable cleat is
Resistance to UV and corrosion often determined using a mechanical
Flame propagation tensile test. However, the results
may be misleading because the force
is applied in a slow and controlled
manner, which does not replicate
fault conditions.
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SHORT-CIRCUIT
EXAMPLE: COMPARING TEST RESULTS
TESTING
Two manufacturers have Are both cleats suitable?
tested cleats to the
international standard
The answer? No.
IEC 61914 and both claim their
cleat is capable of withstanding
a peak short-circuit current Using the formula from
of 140kA. The international standard
IEC 61914 (provided and
Manufacturer
‘A’ conducted explained in the following
a test using a 35mm cable section) the force each cleat
cleated at 600mm centres was subjected to was:
Manufacturer
‘B’ conducted
a test using a 45mm cable Manufacturer ‘A’ 57kN
Conducting a This practice is becoming cleated at 300mm centres Manufacturer ‘B’ 22kN
commonplace, but prior to the
short-circuit test is publication of the international Your
system peak fault level You require 24kN (min)
the only reliable way of standard IEC 61914 many cable is 60kA, you are using a 30mm
cleats were not tested, and those diameter cable and you wish Manufacturer B’s product does
proving that a cable that were had no standardised to cleat at 1200mm centres. not meet the requirement.
cleat is capable of testing method by which to gauge
success or failure. As a result, test
withstanding a specific results were open to a wide range
set of fault conditions. of differing interpretations. This example reinforces the
importance of protecting a
IEC 61914 has provided a
We always recommend that any specification throughout the
standardised method for conducting
claims of cleat strength should procurement process. An engineer
a short-circuit test and a definition
be supported by a short-circuit can diligently calculate the forces
of the criteria for a pass. It does
test carried out in an independent and optimise the whole job cost
though allow for a significant degree
and accredited laboratory and through careful choice of cleat and
of latitude and so caution must be
appropriately certified.. cleat spacing. Yet when the project
employed when interpreting results.
reaches the buyers they may see a
Note should also be taken of the ALWAYS REMEMBER:
Specifiers, consultants and requirement for 20,000 cleats,
full report as opposed to just its
engineers should also request, as which they view as commodity Ellis will always specify a
headline page.
standard, a complete test report products and so specify and install cleat capable of meeting
that includes before and after a cheaper option. The risks of under the requirement.
photographs, and a table of results specification, given the dangers
and conclusions. involved, are obvious.
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SHORT-CIRCUIT
TESTING
1 s Fault -
peak, followed by a short term Peak Current 150 150
The former is concerned with
decaying RMS. 63 kA
cable degradation as a result of
Conductor Temperature °C
100 100
Fault Current kA
temperature rise (thermal stress The international standard 50 50
heating), while the latter is concerned IEC 61914 requires a short-circuit
0 0
with cable retention as a result of test duration of just 0.1 second.
electromechanical forces. This equates to five complete cycles, -50 -50
by which time the true strength 0.1s Fault – DC Component 1s Fault – DC Component
Typical installation specifications that -100 -100
withstand of the cable would require 0.1s Fault – Conductor Temperature 1s Fault – Conductor Temperature
-200 -200
a short-circuit withstand of 63kA for
0.000
0.040
0.080
0.120
0.160
0.200
0.240
0.280
0.320
0.360
0.400
0.440
0.480
0.520
0.560
0.600
0.640
0.680
0.720
0.760
0.800
0.840
0.880
0.920
0.960
1.000
1 second or 40kA for 3 seconds. Time s
The conductor temperature will continue to rise until the fault condition ends. At this point the
conductor temperature will begin to fall as heat dissipates through the rest of the cable structure.
The thermal withstand of a cable is its ability to withstand this process.
Maximum cleat stress and the most likely point of cleat failure occurs at Peak Current
(where indicated) after about 0.01s of commencement of the fault.
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CALCULATION OF
CLEAT SPACING 0.17 x i p
2
AND SELECTION OF Ft =
CLEAT TYPE S
Where the system peak Where:
LOOP STRENGTH OF ELLIS CABLE CLEATS
fault current and the Ft = force in Newton/metre (N/m)
cable diameter are ip = p
eak short-circuit current in CLEAT TYPE LOOP STRENGTH (LS)
kiloamp (kA)
known, the following
S = distance between the Alpha 15,000 N
formula, taken from The centrelines of the conductors Vulcan+, Protect and Standard Duty Flexi-strap 36,000 N
international standard in metres (m) Emperor, Colossus and Heavy Duty Flexi-strap 63,000 N
IEC 61914, can be used Once Ft in N/m has been determined Centaur Saddle and Clamps 85,000 N
to calculate the forces then the force for each potential
cleat can be calculated. The formula uses peak current,
between two conductors however this is often unavailable
in the event of a three
Metric ladder typically has rungs at ALWAYS REMEMBER: with a Root Mean Square (RMS)
300mm intervals, so cleat spacing
Whole job cost should always value given instead. To calculate
phase fault: is usually a multiple of this distance.
the peak current from the RMS,
So, Ft x 0.3 gives the force a cleat be considered as costs can
often be reduced by using IEC 61439-1 Low voltage switchgear
will see if spaced at 300mm, Ft x 0.6
0.17 x ip2 for 600mm etc. a stronger, more expensive and controlgear assemblies is
commonly referred to, which uses
Ft = Ft x cleat spacing can then be
cleat at a wider spacing than
a cheaper option at more the following multiples:
S compared to the maximum
recommended mechanical loop
regular intervals.
10 - 20kA = 2
strength of the cleat and then 21 - 50kA = 2.1
the cleat type and spacing can
51kA = 2.2
be selected.
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CALCULATION OF
CLEAT SPACING
AND SELECTION OF
CLEAT TYPE
Ft x CLEAT SPACING REQUIRED LOOP STRENGTH Ft x CLEAT SPACING REQUIRED LOOP STRENGTH
0.3 for 300mm 16,240 N per cleat 0.3 for 300mm 6,134 N per cleat
0.6 for 600mm 32,480 N per cleat 0.6 for 600mm 12,268 N per cleat
0.9 for 900mm 48,718 N per cleat 0.9 for 900mm 18,401 N per cleat
1.2 for 1200mm 64,958 N per cleat 1.2 for 1200mm 24,535 N per cleat
This force per distance can then In this example, the Ellis As with example 1, force per distance 1) It is strongly recommended that a
be compared to different cleat recommendation was for Vulcan+ can be compared to the cleat loop system employs a fault rated cleat
loop strengths to ascertain the cleats (LS: 36,000) spaced every strengths and the appropriate cleat or restraint at a maximum spacing
appropriate cleat and spacing 600mm, or Emperor cleats and spacing specified. of 1500mm.
requirements for specification. (LS: 63,000) every 900mm.
In this example, Alpha cleats 2) On bends and risers it is
(LS: 15,000) spaced every 600mm recommended that the maximum
are the best option. cleat spacing is 300mm.
Before a cleat and spacing are
finalised, two other factors should
be considered irrespective of the
short-circuit level.
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MATTERS OF
CORROSION
One of the most important GALVANIC CORROSION The further apart the two metals Therefore, if it is made from a metal
are in the series, the greater the that is more anodic than its support
issues to consider when risk of galvanic corrosion – with structure it will be susceptible to
Galvanic corrosion occurs when
specifying cable cleats dissimilar metals are placed in
the metal higher up the list (more galvanic corrosion.
anodic) being the one whose rate
is the risk of material contact with each other in the of corrosion is accelerated.
Conversely, if the cleat is more
presence of an electrolyte. cathodic than its support structure,
corrosion – not just as a The second factor to consider is there is little risk of galvanic
There are two factors that affect
result of the installation the rate of galvanic corrosion, the the relative surface areas of the corrosion.
environment, but also from first is the distance between the different metals.
Using this criteria, if galvanised
two metals in the galvanic series.
other metals which the If the more anodic (higher up the ladder is the support structure,
list) metal has a smaller surface and there are no other significant
cleat is in contact with. area than the metal it is in contact factors, it is safe to use stainless
with, the difference in surface area steel or aluminium cleats. However,
causes the rate of corrosion of the if the support structure is stainless
Zinc (hot-dip/die cast/plated)
Yellow Brass
corrosion to be discounted.
Aluminium
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MATTERS OF
CORROSION
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MATTERS OF
CORROSION
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MATTERS OF
CORROSION
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CABLE CLEATS
AND…
the phases cancel each other It is worth noting that whatever the
OPERATING TEMPERATURES out, which in turn negates the eddy
MULTI-CORE CABLES withstand quoted, in the event of
currents and the heating effect. a significant fault an unrestrained
Our standard ranges of cleats There is a commonly held belief
multi-core cable will move.
are designed for use in ambient Despite this, it is preferable to within the electrical industry that
temperatures ranging from -50°C use cleats manufactured from multi-core cables will protect Furthermore, the requirements of
to +60°C and with cable conductor non-magnetic materials such themselves in the event of a most wiring regulations are clear
temperatures up to 90°C. as aluminium, injection moulded short-circuit, meaning their and typically state that:
polymers or stainless steel, which installation does not require fault
EDDY CURRENTS has only very slight magnetic rated cable cleats.
properties.
However, research shows that the EVERY CONDUCTOR
Ferro-magnetic materials that
forces between the conductors of
completely surround single
a multi-core cable in the event of a
OR CABLE SHALL HAVE
conductors in AC circuits are
susceptible to heating from
ALWAYS REMEMBER: fault are similar to those between ADEQUATE STRENGTH,
three separate single core cables
eddy currents. When using single cable laid in a trefoil arrangement. AND BE SO INSTALLED
Generally, eddy current cleats manufactured from
generation at mains frequencies ferro-magnetic materials Therefore, when specifying AS TO WITHSTAND THE
care should be taken to avoid multi-core cables it is advisable
requires a complete electrical and
forming a complete iron loop that cable manufacturer should
ELECTROMAGNETIC
ferro-magnetic circuit around each
conductor. But in installations where around the cable. be contacted to ascertain the ability FORCES THAT MAY BE
of its specific cable to withstand
all three phases are contained within CAUSED BY ANY
these forces.
the same cleat e.g. three cables in a
trefoil cleat, the magnetic fields of CURRENT, INCLUDING
FAULT CURRENT
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CABLE CLEATS
AND…
(BRE) in line with the London Even aluminium only has a melting
FIRE
Underground 1-085 specification point of 660˚C, which means it would
FOR INFORMATION: with regard to: fail to support FP cables in a fire.
There are currently no European UL94’s V-0 rating means
or IEC standards for fire rated Smoke emission To counteract this shortcoming,
that burning stops within
cable clamps, although there are Ellis manufactures the Phoenix
10 seconds on a vertical Limited oxygen index
requirements within other standards range of clamps for use with FP
that can be followed to prevent specimen; drips of particles Toxicity of fumes cables. Independently tested by
unsuitable products being specified. allowed as long as they Exova Warrington fire and BRE, all
The appropriate products are
are not inflamed. products in the range are proven
The international standard listed in the London Underground
to perform to the same level as
IEC 61914 requires non-metallic and Approved Products register.
the FP cables ensuring continuous
composite cleats to have adequate Identification numbers are 360,
operation in the event of fire.
resistance to flame propagation. The use of the description LSF 361,362, 363, 364, 365 and 1661.
(low smoke and fume) is common
UL94, the standard for Safety of A great deal of focus is placed on
terminology with regard to polymers,
Flammability of Plastic Materials for fire rated (FP) cables and their
but is misleading as it doesn’t relate
Parts in Devices and Appliances, is a performance in fire, but very little
to any published standard and so
plastics flammability standard that attention is given to the cable fixings
can be interpreted in a wide variety
classifies plastics according to how used to secure these cables. Given
of ways.
they burn in various orientations that FP cable is typically rated for
and thicknesses. Adherence to its To ensure complete assurance of operation in temperatures ranging
V-0 rating for polymers should be performance in a fire, all Ellis plastic from 850°C to 950°C then the use
demanded by specifiers. products have undergone testing at of plastic cleats or clamps is clearly
the Building Research Establishment inappropriate.
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CABLE CLEATS
AND…
UV RESISTANCE
ALWAYS REMEMBER:
While wholly metal cleats are
impervious to UV attack, composite All cleats supplied by Ellis
and polymer cleats can be at risk. for applications involving UV
are provided in UV resistant
Ellis composite cleats such as materials.
Emperor, Vulcan and Atlas all have
polymer liners, but are designed to
be impervious to UV attack because
the polymer is shielded by either the
cleat’s body or the installed cables.
Polymer cleats that are likely to be
exposed to UV should be supplied in
materials containing carbon black or
other UV stabilised material.
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CABLE SYSTEM
DESIGN
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FREQUENTLY ASKED
QUESTIONS
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TYPE APPROVALS
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BUSINESS
MANAGEMENT
ENVIRONMENTAL
COMMITMENT
Ellis has IS0 14001 certification.
Note: Serial No. on cleat matches the Work Order ID on the Work Order Traveller.
All appropriate batch numbers are entered onto the Work Order Traveller to give 100% traceability.
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REFERENCES Notes
CIGRE Technical Brochure – Ref. No. 194: Construction, laying and installation
techniques for extruded and self-contained fluid filled cable systems (2001)
Heinhold, L. Wiley: Power Cables and Their Applications: Pt. 1 (Power Cables
& Their Applications) (1990)
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Notes Notes
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Notes Notes
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Notes Notes
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Notes Notes
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