In this guide: The short answer · Reading H07RN-F · Cores and colours · Titanex rubber cable · Sizes we stock · Arctic flex · SY cable · SWA · PVC flex and LSZH · Current ratings · Popular picks · FAQ

The short answer

For temporary power that gets run out, walked on, rained on and coiled back up, the usual choice is H07RN-F: a flexible, rubber-insulated, rubber-sheathed cable. Titanex is a premium H07RN-F made by Nexans, and Nexans says it is suitable for event environments such as festivals, concerts and sports events, “where the cable is exposed without protection and can be used several times”.

The other cables in this guide each have a narrower job:

• Arctic grade flex (yellow or blue PVC) is a low-temperature PVC cord. Doncaster Cables, one manufacturer, states it is not designed for outdoor use above 110V.
• SY is a PVC control cable with a steel wire braid. It is flexible, but our supplier Prolight’s description of the Elumen8 SY we sell says it is best suited indoors and should be protected if used outside.
• SWA (steel wire armoured) is a fixed-installation cable for clipping, trays, ducts and burial. It is not a touring cable.

This guide helps you choose cable. It does not cover sizing, wiring or terminating it. Designing, installing and testing temporary electrical systems is a job for a competent person, working to BS 7909 and BS 7671. The bigger picture of event supplies is in our event power distribution guide.

Reading the code: what H07RN-F means

H07RN-F is a code from the European harmonised cable designation system (CENELEC HD 361). Each part of the code tells you something. The letters below are as decoded in Lapp’s technical tables (T6, harmonised cables) and Interpower’s chart of the HD 361 codes:

The voltage needs one more note. The two figures are U₀/U: the first is conductor-to-earth voltage and the second is conductor-to-conductor. The harmonised standard EN 50525-1 says a cable’s rated voltage should be at least the nominal voltage of the system it is used on, for both values. So H07RN-F at 450/750V covers UK 230V single-phase and 400V three-phase, while H05 cables (300/500V) are lighter-duty cords.

The same code system explains the lighter cable on our shelves. The Elumen8 H05RR-F 0.75mm² three-core is a 300/500V cord with rubber insulation and a rubber sheath. The Elumen8 H05VV-F 0.75mm² four-core is 300/500V with PVC insulation and a PVC sheath.

Core counts and colours

Core colours in harmonised cable follow HD 308 S2. Nexans lists the identification for Titanex as follows. Other manufacturers’ cables can differ in the details, especially at small sizes and high core counts, so check the datasheet for the cable in front of you.

Searchers often ask what “5 core” means. It is three phase conductors (brown, black, grey), a neutral (blue) and a protective earth (green/yellow), which is what a five-pin three-phase connector needs. Three-core is the single-phase equivalent. Which connector matches which supply is covered in our event power distribution guide and the distro boxes guide.

An 18-core cable carries six circuits (live, neutral and earth each) in one sheath. That is the cable behind Socapex lighting multicore, for example the Elumen8 20m Socapex cable on Titanex 1.5mm².

Titanex: what the datasheet says

“Titanex” is often used as if it were a generic word for rubber cable, but it is a Nexans brand of H07RN-F. Every point here is from Nexans’ own product page and datasheet:

• Standards: EN 50525-2-21, HD 516, IEC 60245-4 type 66 and NF C32-102-4. Reaction to fire class Eca to EN 50575, flame retardant to IEC 60332-1.
• Construction: bare copper, flexible class 5 conductors, with cross-linked elastomer (EPR rubber) insulation and a black cross-linked elastomer sheath.
• Voltage: 450/750V in mobile use. Nexans also quotes 0.6/1kV for fixed installation.
• Temperature: operating range -25 to 55°C.
• Outdoors: Nexans says it can be installed outdoors without protection (UV resistant), and lists oil resistance as yes.
• Bending: minimum 6 to 8 times the cable’s outer diameter in dynamic use.
• Marking: metre marks along the sheath, so you can see how much is left on a drum.

We also stock Elumen8-branded H07RN-F on drums, such as the Elumen8 H07RN-F 2.5mm² three-core, 100m and 1.5mm² three-core, 100m. These are the same cable type, H07RN-F. The specification details above are Nexans’ figures for Titanex, so for any other brand check its own datasheet.

H07RN-F sizes we stock

Our bulk Titanex drums, by cross-section and core count. Nexans publishes a datasheet for each construction, which is where to check dimensions and ratings. Other drum lengths are listed in the cable drums category.

If you would rather not terminate cable yourself, we also sell made-up leads. Examples are the Elumen8 10m 32A three-phase 6mm² five-core lead, the 10m 32A single-phase 6mm² three-core lead and the 20m 13A to PowerTwist TR1 lead on 1.5mm² H07RN-F. All of them are in power cables.

Arctic, yellow and blue site cable

“Arctic” flex is the yellow or blue round cable seen on building sites. Taking Doncaster Cables’ 318-A Arctic Grade datasheet as an example:

• It is low-temperature PVC insulated and sheathed, rated 300/500V, and made to BS 6004 Table 6. It uses UK national codes such as 3183Y, not a harmonised H-code.
• It is suitable for installation and handling down to -25°C and is cold-bend tested to -40°C. That is where the “arctic” name comes from.
• Yellow sheath is intended for 110V centre-tapped site supplies and site services. Blue is intended for temporary traffic lights.
• The datasheet states: “These cables are not designed for outdoor use at voltages exceeding 110V.”

For a 230V or 400V outdoor event supply, then, arctic flex is not the cable to pick, whatever colour it is. Where 110V site gear turns up on an event, see our 110V site power guide.

The same national code system covers ordinary PVC flex. Our Elumen8 3183Y 2.5mm² white is this kind of PVC cord, not a rubber event cable.

SY cable: steel braid, but a control cable

SY is easy to recognise. The transparent outer sheath shows a galvanised steel wire braid underneath. Lapp, a major SY manufacturer, describes its SY cables as PVC-insulated, fine-stranded copper conductors under a galvanised steel wire braid with a transparent PVC outer sheath.

For the SY we sell, our supplier Prolight’s description of the 6mm² five-core (Prolight code CABL349) says:

• It is designed as an interconnecting cable between fixed and mobile equipment in conveyors, assembly lines and production lines, where the braid “gives excellent mechanical protection”.
• It is also used by electricians “in certain fixed installations where only light mechanical stress may occur”.
• It is “best suited to conditions indoors; it can also be used outdoors but should be protected”.

So SY is flexible, but it is not built for the same job as H07RN-F. For comparison, Lapp’s generic data for its own ÖLFLEX CLASSIC SY cables (not the Elumen8 cable) gives -5 to +70°C for occasional flexing and a minimum bending radius of 20 times the cable diameter, against Nexans’ 6 to 8 times for Titanex in dynamic use. Lapp rates its SY at 300/500V, or 450/750V for the colour-coded version at 2.5mm² and above. Other makers’ SY can differ, so read the datasheet of the actual cable.

We stock Elumen8 SY 16mm² five-core and Elumen8 SY 6mm² five-core on 100m drums. They suit protected, mostly static runs such as inside a venue, plant room or permanent stage. They are not the default for outdoor event cable that is dragged around and rained on.

SWA armoured cable: fixed installation only

SWA is steel wire armoured cable, commonly made to BS 5467. Prysmian’s datasheet describes its BS 5467 as a 600/1000V cable with XLPE insulation, a PVC inner and outer sheath, and steel wire armour on multi-core sizes (aluminium wire on single-core). It is “designed primarily for clipped directly to a surface, on tray, in basket or in free air”. It can also be laid direct in the ground, in ducts or embedded in concrete. Its five-core colours are blue, brown, black, grey and green/yellow.

In other words, SWA is the cable for a permanent feed: a supply out to a field outlet, a plant room or an outbuilding. It is not meant to be coiled and re-laid after every show. Prysmian quotes a minimum installation temperature of 0°C and an 8D bending rule. If your search was “16mm 5 core armoured cable” for touring or temporary use, the cable you probably want is 16mm² five-core H07RN-F. Mechanical protection then comes from cable ramps and good routing, not armour. We don’t sell SWA. A permanent SWA installation should be specified, installed and tested by an electrician.

PVC flex and LSZH: what to know

PVC flex (H05VV-F, 318xY) is fine for indoor equipment leads and installs. It is a 300/500V cord, though, not a heavy-duty outdoor event cable.

LSZH (low smoke, zero halogen) describes how a cable behaves in a fire. The harmonised code chart defines its low-smoke compounds as giving a low level of corrosive gases and low smoke when burned. Buildings with escape routes or public areas sometimes specify it. In the harmonised code system, low-smoke polyolefin compounds have their own letters (Z and Z1); Nexans, for example, describes its H07Z1-K as halogen-free, emitting no corrosive gases and producing little smoke in a fire. The N in H07RN-F is not one of them, so if a venue specification requires LSZH, ask for a cable whose datasheet says so. In our range, LSZH currently shows up mainly on install speaker cable, such as the Elumen8 LSZH 2 x 1.5mm² install speaker cable, not mains cable.

Current ratings: why we don’t print a table

Manufacturers do publish current ratings. They come with conditions attached. Nexans’ Titanex ratings, for example, are for continuous duty with one cable in free air (on perforated trays) at 30°C ambient. A cable left coiled on a drum, bunched with others, run under matting or used in hot weather can carry much less. Voltage drop over a long run can decide the size before current does. Drum de-rating is covered in our cable drums and reels guide.

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Frequently asked questions

What does H07RN-F stand for?

H = harmonised type, 07 = 450/750V rated voltage, R = rubber insulation, N = polychloroprene (chloroprene) rubber sheath, F = fine-wire conductors for flexible use. The core count and size follow, for example 3G2.5 (three cores including green/yellow, 2.5mm² each).

What are the colours in 5 core cable?

For 5G harmonised cable such as Titanex, Nexans lists blue, brown, black, grey and green/yellow. Under the UK harmonised colours in BS 7671, brown, black and grey are the three line conductors, blue is neutral and green/yellow is the protective (earth) conductor. Prysmian lists the same five colours for five-core SWA.

Is SY cable the same as armoured cable?

No. SY has a steel wire braid under a clear PVC sheath and is a flexible control cable. SWA has steel wire armour and is a fixed-installation power cable, typically 600/1000V to BS 5467. Neither is a substitute for H07RN-F rubber cable on outdoor temporary power.

Can I use arctic yellow cable for a 230V outdoor event?

Doncaster Cables’ arctic grade datasheet says its cable is not designed for outdoor use above 110V. Yellow arctic flex is meant for 110V site supplies. For 230V or 400V outdoors, use rubber H07RN-F, and have a competent person confirm the size.

Is Titanex better than other H07RN-F?

All H07RN-F is made to the same harmonised standard (EN 50525-2-21). Titanex is Nexans’ version, and Nexans publishes its extended data: -25 to 55°C operating range, UV resistance for unprotected outdoor use and Eca fire class. When comparing another brand, check its datasheet for the same points.

What size cable do I need for 32A or 63A?

We can’t answer that safely without the run length, how the cable is laid and the protection in use. Sizing has to be done by a competent person to BS 7671 and BS 7909. Give us their specification and we will supply to it.