New PPI Report Traces the 50-Year Journey of PEX Tubing

To develop TR-56, PPI interviewed Tomas Lenman, the Swedish engineer who led the creation of the unique requirements. His account is paired with a whole timeline of F876 revisions, together with new sizes, chlorine and UV resistance necessities, and check strategies which have formed the tubing utilized by contractors right now. The report additionally tracks how PEX entered North American plumbing codes, starting with the BOCA Nationwide Plumbing Code in 1993 and later into the Uniform Plumbing Code (UPC) in 2000.

Requirements That Assist Contractors and Designers

“North American requirements ASTM F876 and ASTM F877 had been first printed in 1984,” stated Lance MacNevin, P.Eng., director of engineering for PPI’s Constructing & Development Division. “ASTM F876 contained the first necessities for PEX tubing itself, whereas F877 contained efficiency necessities for fittings for use as a system with PEX tubing. These requirements have developed to incorporate many new necessities for tubing, akin to chlorine and UV resistance, and for becoming techniques to make sure that connections are as robust or stronger than the tubing itself.”

PEX as a Market Chief in North America

PPI estimates that greater than 30 billion ft of PEX tubing have been shipped throughout the US, Canada, and Mexico since its introduction, with PEX now the dominant materials for residential plumbing techniques and hydronic heating purposes. Its ease of set up, dependable connections, and sturdiness have made it the go-to selection for contractors.

MacNevin added, “ASTM F876 has offered steerage to producers, certifiers, code officers, system designers, installers, and end-users in regards to the capabilities of PEX tubing techniques, serving to to foster progress and accountable use of PEX supplies. In 2024, it felt like this was the time to document the primary forty years of historical past in a single doc, as an trade useful resource.”

Extra details about PEX and different plastic strain piping techniques is on the market from the PPI Constructing & Development Division at www.plasticpipe.org/buildingconstruction.