Global safety science expert UL on Sept. 8 announced that it is expanding its existing facility in Abu Dhabi, United Arab Emirates to now include a cables fire safety and performance laboratory.
The expanded facility, located in the Industrial City of Abu Dhabi (ICAD), allows manufacturers, brands and suppliers of electrical and optical cables and busways from throughout the Middle East to access a local laboratory for fire safety.
Sameer Abdul Salam, UL’s business head for the MEA Region, commented:
“The hazards associated with non-compliant cables present significant risks with respect to the nature and scale of a fire event. Our robust fire safety testing of cables, which is available at our new Abu Dhabi laboratory, brings trust and confidence that such safety issues have been assessed in the products manufacturers and companies are bringing to the marketplace. As the global safety science leader, UL looks forward to helping local purchasers, specifiers, installers and inspectors of telecommunication cables achieve increased speed to market and the ability to demonstrate their commitment to fire safety to their customers.”
The new fire safety laboratory is designed to test electric and optical cables, and busways as per various standards for flame retardant and fire resistance properties. Staffed with UL’s experts, the facility will enable faster turnaround times with enhanced regulation enforcement.
The local presence in Abu Dhabi with global expertise will help ease the logistical challenges for customers in Europe and Asia, said UL.
“In recent years, the Middle East has seen increased regulation around the fire safety of cables used in buildings to meet the civil defense requirements. At UL’s new Abu Dhabi laboratory, our fire safety experts will work with customers to help them meet these increased demands without sacrificing time or efficiency,” continued Salam.
UL offers its customers advisory and testing services to help them meet and exceed fire safety requirements. Research testing services for manufacturers can help customers design cables that comply to the necessary fire resistance/fire reactance standards.
UL can also produce a Type testing report and Type examination certificate based on IEC/EN/BS standards.
Sajeev Jesudas, executive vice president and chief commercial officer at UL, concluded:
