BS EN ISO 1346:2021

BSI Standards Publication

Fibre ropes — Polypropylene split film,

monofilament and multifilament (PP2) and
polypropylene high-tenacity multifilament
(PP3) — 3-, 4-, 8- and 12-strand ropes
BS EN ISO 1346:2021 BRITISH STANDARD

National foreword
This British Standard is the UK implementation of EN ISO 1346:2021. It
is identical to ISO 1346:2021. It supersedes BS EN ISO 1346:2012, which
is withdrawn.
The UK participation in its preparation was entrusted to Technical
Committee TCI/77, Ropes and cordage and fishing nets.
A list of organizations represented on this committee can be obtained on
request to its committee manager.
Contractual and legal considerations
This publication has been prepared in good faith, however no
representation, warranty, assurance or undertaking (express or
implied) is or will be made, and no responsibility or liability is or will be
accepted by BSI in relation to the adequacy, accuracy, completeness or
reasonableness of this publication. All and any such responsibility and
liability is expressly disclaimed to the full extent permitted by the law.
This publication is provided as is, and is to be used at the
recipient’s own risk.
The recipient is advised to consider seeking professional guidance with
respect to its use of this publication.
This publication is not intended to constitute a contract. Users are
responsible for its correct application.
© The British Standards Institution 2021
Published by BSI Standards Limited 2021
ISBN 978 0 539 04137 8
ICS 59.080.50
Compliance with a British Standard cannot confer immunity from
legal obligations.
This British Standard was published under the authority of the
Standards Policy and Strategy Committee on 31 May 2021.

Amendments/corrigenda issued since publication

Date Text affected
EUROPEAN STANDARD EN ISO 1346
NORME EUROPÉENNE
EUROPÄISCHE NORM May 2021

ICS 59.080.50 Supersedes EN ISO 1346:2012

English Version

Fibre ropes - Polypropylene split film, monofilament and

multifilament (PP2) and polypropylene high-tenacity
multifilament (PP3) - 3-, 4-, 8- and 12-strand ropes
(ISO 1346:2021)
Cordages en fibres - Film fibrillé, monofilament Faserseile - Polypropylen-Splitfilm, Monofilament
et multifilament de polypropylène (PP2) et und Multifilament (PP2) und hochfestes
multifilament de polypropylène haute ténacité (PP3) Polypropylen-Multifilament (PP3) - 3-, 4-,
- Cordages à 3, 4, 8 et 12 torons (ISO 1346:2021) 8- und 12-litzige Seile (ISO 1346:2021)

This European Standard was approved by CEN on 22 April 2021.

CEN members are bound to comply with the CEN/CENELEC Internal Regulations which stipulate the conditions for giving
this European Standard the status of a national standard without any alteration. Up-to-date lists and bibliographical
references concerning such national standards may be obtained on application to the CEN-CENELEC Management Centre
or to any CEN member.

This European Standard exists in three official versions (English, French, German). A version in any other language
made by translation under the responsibility of a CEN member into its own language and notified to the CEN-CENELEC
Management Centre has the same status as the official versions.

CEN members are the national standards bodies of Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria, Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark,
Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland, Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta,
Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic of North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden,
Switzerland, Turkey and United Kingdom.

EUROPEAN COMMITTEE FOR STANDARDIZATION

COMITÉ EUROPÉEN DE NORMALISATION
EUROPÄISCHES KOMITEE FÜR NORMUNG

CEN-CENELEC Management Centre: Rue de la Science 23, B-1040 Brussels

© 2021 CEN All rights of exploitation in any form and by any means reserved Ref. No. EN ISO 1346:2021: E
worldwide for CEN national Members
BS EN ISO 1346:2021
EN ISO 1346:2021 (E)

European foreword
This document (EN ISO 1346:2021) has been prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 38 "Textiles" in
collaboration with Technical Committee CEN/TC 248 “Textiles and textile products” the secretariat of
which is held by BSI.
This European Standard shall be given the status of a national standard, either by publication of an
identical text or by endorsement, at the latest by November 2021, and conflicting national standards
shall be withdrawn at the latest by November 2021.
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. CEN shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights.
This document supersedes EN ISO 1346:2012.
According to the CEN-CENELEC Internal Regulations, the national standards organizations of the
following countries are bound to implement this European Standard: Austria, Belgium, Bulgaria,
Croatia, Cyprus, Czech Republic, Denmark, Estonia, Finland, France, Germany, Greece, Hungary, Iceland,
Ireland, Italy, Latvia, Lithuania, Luxembourg, Malta, Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Republic
of North Macedonia, Romania, Serbia, Slovakia, Slovenia, Spain, Sweden, Switzerland, Turkey and the
United Kingdom.

Endorsement notice
The text of ISO 1346:2021 has been approved by CEN as EN ISO 1346:2021 without any modification.

ii
 BS EN ISO 1346:2021
ISO 1346:2021


Contents Page

Foreword......................................................................................................................................................................................................................................... iv
1 Scope.................................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 1
2 Normative references....................................................................................................................................................................................... 1
3 Terms and definitions...................................................................................................................................................................................... 1
4 Designation................................................................................................................................................................................................................. 1
5 General requirements...................................................................................................................................................................................... 2
6 Physical properties............................................................................................................................................................................................. 3
7 Marking........................................................................................................................................................................................................................... 7

© ISO 2021 – All rights reserved  iii

BS EN ISO 1346:2021
ISO 1346:2021


Foreword
ISO (the International Organization for Standardization) is a worldwide federation of national standards
bodies (ISO member bodies). The work of preparing International Standards is normally carried out
through ISO technical committees. Each member body interested in a subject for which a technical
committee has been established has the right to be represented on that committee. International
organizations, governmental and non-governmental, in liaison with ISO, also take part in the work.
ISO collaborates closely with the International Electrotechnical Commission (IEC) on all matters of
electrotechnical standardization.
The procedures used to develop this document and those intended for its further maintenance are
described in the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 1. In particular, the different approval criteria needed for the
different types of ISO documents should be noted. This document was drafted in accordance with the
editorial rules of the ISO/IEC Directives, Part 2 (see www.iso.org/directives).
Attention is drawn to the possibility that some of the elements of this document may be the subject of
patent rights. ISO shall not be held responsible for identifying any or all such patent rights. Details of
any patent rights identified during the development of the document will be in the Introduction and/or
on the ISO list of patent declarations received (see www.iso.org/patents).
Any trade name used in this document is information given for the convenience of users and does not
constitute an endorsement.
For an explanation of the voluntary nature of standards, the meaning of ISO specific terms and
expressions related to conformity assessment, as well as information about ISO's adherence to the
World Trade Organization (WTO) principles in the Technical Barriers to Trade (TBT), see www.iso.
org/iso/foreword.html.
This document was prepared by Technical Committee ISO/TC 38, Textiles, in collaboration with the
European Committee for Standardization (CEN) Technical Committee CEN/TC 248, Textiles and
textile products, in accordance with the Agreement on technical cooperation between ISO and CEN
(Vienna Agreement).
This fifth edition cancels and replaces the fourth edition (ISO 1346:2012), which has been
technically revised.
The main changes compared to the previous edition are as follows:
— in the Scope, a statement specifying that the document does not cover all variations in strength or
product performance has been added;
— in Clause 3, the term "minimum breaking strength" has been added;
— in Table 1, Table 2 and Table 3, the tolerances in linear density have been modified.
Any feedback or questions on this document should be directed to the user’s national standards body. A
complete listing of these bodies can be found at www.iso.org/members.html.

iv  © ISO 2021 – All rights reserved

 BS EN ISO 1346:2021
INTERNATIONAL STANDARD ISO 1346:2021

Fibre ropes — Polypropylene split film, monofilament

and multifilament (PP2) and polypropylene high-tenacity
multifilament (PP3) — 3-, 4-, 8- and 12-strand ropes

1 Scope
This document specifies requirements for 3-strand hawser-laid and 4-strand shroud-laid ropes,
8-strand braided ropes and 12-strand braided ropes for general service made of polypropylene, and
gives rules for their designation.
This document does not cover all variations in strength or product performance. The rope manufacturer
is consulted to ensure the intended design meets the requirements of the application

2 Normative references
The following documents are referred to in the text in such a way that some or all of their content
constitutes requirements of this document. For dated references, only the edition cited applies. For
undated references, the latest edition of the referenced document (including any amendments) applies.
ISO 1968, Fibre ropes and cordage — Vocabulary
ISO 2307, Fibre ropes — Determination of certain physical and mechanical properties
ISO 9554, Fibre ropes — General specifications

3 Terms and definitions

For the purposes of this document, the terms and definitions given in ISO 1968 and the following apply.
ISO and IEC maintain terminological databases for use in standardization at the following addresses:
— ISO Online browsing platform: available at https://www.iso.org/obp
— IEC Electropedia: available at http://www.electropedia.org/
3.1
minimum breaking strength
MBS
force a fibre rope shall at least achieve when tested following a recognized procedure/test method
Note 1 to entry: The MBS is set by each manufacturer, as per their own internal statistical methods based on
breaking tests. In ISO 9554:2019, Annex D, two statistical methods are given that can be used to determine the MBS.

[SOURCE: ISO 9554:2019, 3.2]

4 Designation
Fibre ropes shall be designated by
— the words “fibre rope”,
— the number of this document, i.e. ISO 1346,
— the construction or type of rope (see Clause 5),

© ISO 2021 – All rights reserved  1

BS EN ISO 1346:2021
ISO 1346:2021


— the reference number of the rope,

— the material from which the rope is made:
1) PP2: polypropylene split film, monofilament and multifilament,
2) PP3: polypropylene high-tenacity multifilament.
— The rope fibres shall be protected against deterioration due to sunlight (UV). See ISO 9554
EXAMPLE

Designation of an 8-strand braided rope (type L) with a linear density of 1 630 ktex, corresponding to the
reference number 60 and made of polypropylene monofilament (PP2):

Fibre rope ISO 1346 ‑ L – 60 – PP2 protected (UV)

5 General requirements

5.1 Polypropylene ropes shall be made in one of the following constructions:

— type A: 3-strand hawser-laid rope (see Figure 1);

— type B: 4-strand shroud-laid rope (see Figure 2);
— type L: 8-strand braided rope (see Figure 3);
— type T: 12-strand braided rope (see Figure 4).

Figure 1 — Shape of a 3-strand hawser-laid rope (type A)

2  © ISO 2021 – All rights reserved

 BS EN ISO 1346:2021
ISO 1346:2021


Figure 2 — Shape of a 4-strand shroud-laid rope (type B)

Figure 3 — Shape of an 8-strand braided rope (type L)

Figure 4 — Shape of a 12-strand braided rope (type T)

5.2 Construction, manufacture, lay, labelling, packaging, invoicing and delivery lengths shall be in
accordance with ISO 9554.

6 Physical properties
Linear density and minimum breaking strength shall be in accordance with Table 1, Table 2 and Table 3.
Regarding Table 1, Table 2 and Table 3, the following applies.
— The reference number corresponds to the approximate diameter, in millimetres.
— The linear density, in kilotex, corresponds to the net mass per length of rope, expressed in grams
per metre or in kilograms per thousand metres.
— The linear density is under reference tension and is measured as specified in ISO 2307

© ISO 2021 – All rights reserved  3

BS EN ISO 1346:2021
ISO 1346:2021


— The breaking strengths quoted in these tables relate to new dry and wet ropes.
— A force determined by the test methods specified in ISO 2307 is not necessarily an accurate
indication of the force at which that rope might break in other circumstances and situations. The
type and quality of the termination rate of force application, prior conditioning and previous force
applications to the rope can significantly influence the breaking strength. A rope bent around a
post, capstan, pulley or sheave could break a significantly lower force. A knot or other distortion in
a rope will significantly reduce the breaking strength.

Table 1 — Linear density and minimum breaking strength (MBS) of 3-strand hawser-laid
polypropylene ropes, type A
Minimum breaking strength
Linear density
kN
Split/Mono/Multi PP2 High-tenacity Multi PP3
Reference
Multi PP2 Multi PP3
Number Nominal Tolerance
ktex % Ropes with Ropes with
Unspliced Unspliced
eye-spliced eye-spliced
ropes ropes
terminations terminations
4 7,23 2,80 2,52 3,15 2,84
4,5 9,15 3,55 3,20 4,00 3,60
5 11,3 4,25 3,83 4,75 4,28
6 16,3 ±10 6,00 5,40 6,70 6,03
8 28,9 10,0 9,00 11,8 10,6
9 36,6 12,5 11,3 14,0 12,6
10 45,2 15,0 13,5 17,0 15,3
12 65,1 21,2 19,1 25,0 22,5
14 88,6 28,0 25,2 33,5 30,2
16 116 37,5 33,8 42,5 38,3
18 146 45,0 40,5 53,0 47,8
20 181 56,0 50,4 63,0 56,7
22 219 67,0 60,3 75,0 67,5
±8
24 260 80,0 72,0 90,0 81,0
26 306 90,0 81,0 106 95,4
28 354 106 95,4 118 106
30 407 118 106 132 119
32 463 132 119 150 135
36 586 170 153 190 171

4  © ISO 2021 – All rights reserved

 BS EN ISO 1346:2021
ISO 1346:2021


Minimum breaking strength

Linear density
kN
Split/Mono/Multi PP2 High-tenacity Multi PP3
Reference
Multi PP2 Multi PP3
Number Nominal Tolerance
ktex % Ropes with Ropes with
Unspliced Unspliced
eye-spliced eye-spliced
ropes ropes
terminations terminations
40 723 200 180 236 212
44 875 250 225 280 252
48 1 040 280 252 335 302
52 1 220 335 302 375 338
56 1 420 375 338 425 383
60 1 630 425 383 500 450
64 1 850 500 450 560 504
72 2 340 600 540 710 639
80 2 890 750 675 850 765
±5
88 3 500 900 810 1 000 900
96 4 170 1 060 954 1 180 1 062
104 4 890 1 250 1 125 1 400 1 260
112 5 670 1 400 1 260 1 600 1 440
120 6 510 1 600 1 440 1 800 1 620
128 7 410 1 800 1 620 2 000 1 800
136 8 360 2 000 1 800 2 240 2 016
144 9 370 2 240 2 016 2 500 2 250
160 11 600 2 800 2 520 3 000 2 700

Table 2 — Linear density and minimum breaking strength (MBS) of 4-strand shroud-laid
polypropylene ropes, type B
Minimum breaking strength
Linear density
kN
Split/Mono/Multi PP2 High-tenacity Multi PP3
Reference
Multi PP2 Multi PP3
Number Tolerance
Nominal ktex Ropes with Ropes with
% Unspliced Unspliced
eye-spliced eye-spliced
ropes ropes
terminations terminations
10 45,2 ±10 14,0 12,6 16,0 14,4

© ISO 2021 – All rights reserved  5

BS EN ISO 1346:2021
ISO 1346:2021


Minimum breaking strength

Linear density
kN
Split/Mono/Multi PP2 High-tenacity Multi PP3
Reference
Multi PP2 Multi PP3
Number Tolerance
Nominal ktex Ropes with Ropes with
% Unspliced Unspliced
eye-spliced eye-spliced
ropes ropes
terminations terminations
12 65,1 19,0 17,1 22,4 20,2
14 88,6 26,5 23,9 30,0 27,0
16 116 33,5 30,2 37,5 33,8
18 146 45,0 40,5 47,5 42,8
20 181 53,0 47,7 60,0 54,0
22 219 60,0 54,0 71,0 63,9
±8
24 260 71,0 63,9 80,0 72,0
26 306 80,0 72,0 95,0 85,6
28 354 95,0 85,5 106,0 95,4
30 407 106 95,4 125 113
32 463 125 113 140 126
36 586 150 135 170 153
40 723 180 162 212 191
44 875 224 202 250 225
48 1 040 250 225 300 270
52 1 220 300 270 335 302
56 1 420 335 302 400 360
60 1 630 400 360 450 405
64 1 850 450 405 500 450
72 2 340 560 504 630 567
80 2 890 670 603 750 675
±5
88 3 500 800 720 900 810
96 4 170 950 855 1 060 954
104 4 890 1 120 1 008 1 250 1 125
112 5 670 1 250 1 125 1 400 1 260
120 6 510 1 400 1 260 1 600 1 440
128 7 410 1 600 1 440 1 800 1 620
136 8 360 1 800 1 620 2 000 1 800
144 9 370 2 000 1 800 2 240 2 016
160 11 600 2 500 2 250 2 800 2 520

6  © ISO 2021 – All rights reserved

 BS EN ISO 1346:2021
ISO 1346:2021


Table 3 — Linear density and minimum breaking strength (MBS) of 8 and 12-strand braided
polypropylene ropes, types L and T
Minimum breaking strength
Linear density
kN
Reference 8-strands 12-strands
Number Nominal Tolerance Ropes with Ropes with
ktex % Unspliced Unspliced
eye-spliced eye-spliced
ropes ropes
terminations terminations
12 65,1 21,2 19,1 22,4 20,2
16 116 33,5 30,2 35,5 32,0
20 181 53,0 47,7 56,0 50,4
24 260 75,0 67,5 80,0 72,0
±8
28 354 100 90 106 95,4
30 407 112 101 118 106
32 463 132 119 140 126
36 586 160 144 170 153
40 723 200 180 210 189
44 875 236 212 250 225
48 1 040 280 252 300 270
52 1 220 335 302 355 320
56 1 420 375 338 400 360
60 1 630 425 383 450 405
64 1 850 475 428 500 450
72 2 340 600 540 630 567
80 2 890 750 675 800 720
±5
88 3 500 900 810 950 855
96 4 170 1 060 954 1 120 1 008
104 4 890 1 250 1 125 1 320 1 188
112 5 670 1 400 1 260 1 500 1 350
120 6 510 1 600 1 440 1 700 1 530
128 7 410 1 900 1 710 2 000 1 800
136 8 360 2 120 1 908 2 240 2 016
144 9 370 2 360 2 124 2 500 2 250
160 11 600 2 800 2 520 3 000 2 700

7 Marking
The marking shall be in accordance with ISO 9554.

© ISO 2021 – All rights reserved  7

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