BS EN IEC 60695-6-2:2018

What is BS EN IEC 60695‑6‑2 on Smoke obscuration about? 

BS EN IEC 60695‑6‑2 is the second part of an international standard that covers safety guidelines for fire hazard testing.  

BS EN IEC 60695‑6‑2 provides a summary of commonly used test methods for the assessment of smoke obscuration. It presents a brief summary of static and dynamic test methods in common use, either as international standards or national or industry standards. It includes special observations on their relevance to electrotechnical products and their materials and to fire scenarios and gives recommendations on their use. 

BS EN IEC 60695‑6‑2 stipulates technical specifications like types of the test method, types of the test specimen, published static and dynamic test methods, etc. for verifying the smoke obscuration. 

Note 1: The requirements, test methods, or test conditions of BS EN IEC 60695‑6‑2 will not apply unless specifically referred to or included in the relevant publications.  

Who is BS EN IEC 60695‑6‑2 on Smoke obscuration for? 

BS EN IEC 60695‑6‑2 on smoke obscuration is useful for: 

• Firefighting companies 
• Test /service providers for smoke obscuration 
• Manufactures of smoke detectors 
• Installers of smoke detecting systems 

Why should you use BS EN IEC 60695‑6‑2 on Smoke obscuration? 

Fires involving electrotechnical products can be initiated from external non-electrical sources. One of the contributing fire hazards is the release of smoke, which may cause loss of vision and/or disorientation which could impede escape from the building or firefighting. 

BS EN IEC 60695‑6‑2 aims to save lives and property by reducing the number of fires or reducing the consequences of the fire, which is accomplished by: 

• Preventing ignition caused by an electrically energized component part  
• Confining any resulting fire within the bounds of the enclosure of the electrotechnical product, in the event of ignition 
• Minimizing flame spread beyond the product’s enclosure and minimizing the harmful effects of fire effluents including heat, smoke, and toxic or corrosive combustion products. 

BS EN IEC 60695‑6‑2 describes smoke test methods in common use to assess the smoke release from electrotechnical products, or from materials used in electrotechnical products. It gives guidance to product committees wishing to incorporate test methods for smoke obscuration in product standards. 

What’s changed since the last update? 

BS EN IEC 60695‑6‑2:2018 supersedes BS EN 60695‑6‑2:2011, which is withdrawn. BS EN IEC 60695‑6‑2:2018 includes the following significant technical changes with respect to the previous edition: 

• Updated introduction; updated normative references; new text in 4.1 
• Deletion of references to IEC 60695-6-30 and -31 (withdrawn); deletion of references to BS 6853 and CEI 20-37-3 (superseded); deletion of references to ISO/TR 5924 (withdrawn) 
• Updates with respect to ISO 5659-2; updated text with respect to EN 50399; updated text with respect to ISO 5660-1 
• Addition of new Subclause 7.5, deletion of Annex B; deletion of Annex E, additional bibliographic references