Modern Building Services

26 MODERN BUILDING SERVICES MAY 2023 FEATURE ELECTRICAL SERVICES The silver ions disrupt the key cell functions of bacteria and prevent them from reproducing on surfaces. The presence of silver ions has been proven to reduce the bacteria surviving on the surface by 99.9%. In addition, it is proven to be effective against potentially dangerous bacteria such as Methicillin Resistant Staphylococcus Aureus (MRSA), Escherichia coli (E. coli) and Klebsiella pneumoniae. When combined with a robust cleaning regime, the antimicrobial properties can protect those using the building from the risks of bacteria. Do be aware, the durability and longevity of the protection depends on how it is incorporated into the material. Post-production surface applications are generally less effective in the long-term. This is because any scratches or damage to the surface, which is common in busy, high-traffic environments, will remove the coating and leave exposed areas where the bacteria can survive and multiply. In contrast, where the silver ions are integrated during manufacturing and therefore present throughout the material, damage to the surface will not impair its effectiveness – offering a longer-lasting and more reliable protection. It is worth noting that due to the nature of the manufacturing process, it is only possible to achieve this level of antimicrobial protection with PVC-U or ABS products. Must be compliant To ensure the quality and performance of the product, any antimicrobial trunking system should be manufactured in line with the ISO 22196:2011 standard and be compliant with the European Biocidal Products Directive (BPD). While antimicrobial products are commonly specified within the healthcare sector, they may also be beneficial in other high-traffic buildings and public spaces including schools, colleges, universities and leisure facilities. Cable protection For some applications, there may be a need to protect the cables from radiated electromagnetic interference (EMI). As the source of this interference can be both nearby equipment and other cables routed alongside, there are different solutions that may be suitable. For some buildings, separation of power and data cables may be required to protect the latter from EMI. This is most common where a large number of power, data and other service cables need to be contained within a system, such as in large offices. As PVC-U does not provide this type of protection, metal dividers (typically steel or aluminium) can be fitted inside the trunking. This approach can be useful where a PVC-U system is required, such as to also ensure antimicrobial protection. However, these dividers do not provide protection from external sources of EMI, which can include any nearby electrical device. Trunking systems constructed from steel or aluminium can provide a more comprehensive level of EMI protection. For example; Marshall-Tufflex’s XL301 and XL302 aluminium trunking provides three large capacity compartments with aluminium dividers for easy separation of different cable types. Environmental conditions A further key consideration when choosing cable management systems is the environment that the products will be fitted in. Levels of moisture, humidity and temperature as well as exposure to chemicals must all be considered.