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Pipe & cable

— APPLICATION

PE-RT and HDPE grades for pipe, conduit and cable jacketing

A PE-RT pipe grade has to hold pressure at temperature for decades. Drainage pipe, conduit and cable jackets carry lighter loads, but they also stay buried in soil or walls for decades. This page covers HDPE for hot and cold water pipe, corrugated drainage pipe, conduit and cable jacketing. The range is focused today, and we add grades as our producer range widens. Below we explain how to read a pipe data sheet and which standards apply.

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Cut sections of black and grey polyethylene pipe, a coil of white small-bore pipe and teal corrugated conduit

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— REQUIREMENTS

What the pipe has to do

A pressure pipe fails slowly. Hoop stress from the water inside, often at raised temperature, ends in creep rupture or slow crack growth. The material has to resist both over the design life. Underfloor heating and plumbing pipe add heat and, in multilayer designs, a bond to an aluminium or barrier layer. Corrugated drainage pipe must keep its shape under backfill and traffic, and resist stress cracking at the corrugations. Conduit and cable jackets need stress-cracking resistance, thermal stability and electrical insulation.

— SELECTION

Choosing an HDPE grade for pipe, conduit and cable jacketing

Start with the classification. Pressure-pipe materials are classified by minimum required strength (MRS) under ISO 12162, based on long-term pressure tests extrapolated with the method in ISO 9080. PE-RT, polyethylene of raised temperature resistance, comes as Type I or Type II. ISO 24033 gives its reference lines for strength over time and temperature. If a data sheet states none of these, the grade is not documented for pressure pipe.

For hot water, also look at oxidation induction time and heat-ageing data, because the loss of stabiliser limits life at temperature.

Corrugated pipe and conduit need a stiff HDPE with good stress-cracking resistance (ESCR). FNCT results on data sheets let you compare grades, but only when the test stress, temperature and medium match.

For cable jacketing, check ESCR, thermal stabilisation and electrical properties such as volume resistivity and dielectric strength.

— PROCESSING

Pipe and cable extrusion

All of these parts are extruded: smooth pipe on a pipe line with vacuum sizing, corrugated pipe on a corrugator, jackets on a cable crosshead. Pipe grades have a high melt viscosity so the melt holds its shape in thick walls. Tell us the pipe type and dimensions, or the cable construction, and the standard you certify to.

Extrusion

— DOCUMENTATION

Product standards and drinking water

The finished pipe system is certified to its product standard; resin documentation does not replace that. Common product standards are ISO 22391 for PE-RT hot and cold water systems, EN 13476 for structured-wall drainage and sewer pipe, and EN 61386 for conduit. Directive (EU) 2020/2184 sets minimum hygiene requirements for materials in contact with drinking water (Article 11). Its European positive lists of permitted substances apply from 31 December 2026 (Implementing Decision (EU) 2024/367). Products with a national conformity certificate still valid on that date have until 31 December 2032 to move to the new conformity assessment (Delegated Regulation (EU) 2024/370, Article 11).

— FAQ

Common questions

Do you supply grades for pressure pipe?

Which HDPE suits corrugated drainage pipe?

Can one grade cover pipe and cable ducting?