Advanced Training on UL 508A and the North American Standards

TARGET GROUP: electrical department of machinery manufacturers

SCOPE: The aim of the course is the design of Electrical Control panels of machinery, in compliance with both the USA and the Canadian tecnical standards. Hereafter the ones we will discuss during the training:

•     NEC or NFPA 70, now in its 2023 edition. It is the reference standard for electrical safety in the United States.
•     NFPA 79: inspired by EN 60204-1 and which deals with the construction of the switchboard and especially the characteristics of the  machine’s control panels. GT Engineering participates in the working group of the new edition that will see the light in 2024.
•     UL 508A: The standard for the design, construction and certification of Industrial Control Panels of machinery in USA. We are member of the Standard Technical Panel.
•     The Canadian Electrical Code or C22.1. is the reference standard for electrical safety in Canada. It has the same prescriptive approach as the NEC, with several differences. GT is a member of the 4-006 working group on electrical cable sizing and the Voltage drop task force.
•     C 22.2 N°286: Since Janualy 2022 it is the reference standard for Industrial Control Panels to be imported into Canada.
•     C22.2 N301, The reference standard for the electrical installation outside the control panel. It is the equivalento of NFPA 79.

CONTENT: Professional training on US and Canadian regulations for electrical panels of machinery.

MODULE 1 (8 Hours) 

• Machinery Safety: a comparison between Europe and North America on the applicable standards
• The Authority Having Jurisdiction (AHJ)
• Difference between the Nationally Recognised Testing Laboratorie and the AHJ
• Product Certification
• The importance of Approved producs and its meaning in USA and Canada
• Electrical Distribution Systems in North America
• Listed vs Recognised and label examples
• FLA, FLC – Branch vs Feeder
• Combination Starter Types
• Suitable Components for Feeder circuits
• The use of Circuit Breakes
• The use of Supplementary Protectors in USA and Canada
• The Available Short Circuit Current
• When to use UL 508A and C22.2 N°286
• A brief history of the cable Ampacity Calculation in USA and Canada
• Terminal Temperature Limitations
• The 80% rule, where is it coming from
• How Canada approched the Cabel Ampacity
• Types of Fuses used in USA and in Canada
• The Arc Flash
• Example of the Electrical Panel Label for USA and for Canada
• The Warning sign: what is compulsary?
• Cable colours
• NEMA types
• Required Distances in fron of electrical panels

MODULE 2 (8 Hours) 

• Grounding and Bonding
• The RCD and the GFCI
• Safe voltages in USA and in Canada
• Class 2 and LVLE Circuits
• Introduction to UL 508A and C22.2 N°286
• Termination Temperature
• Minimum required spacings in branch and control circuits
• Use of components in the Feeder part of the panel
• Section 29: Cable assembly inside ICP
• Cables suitable for cabling inside the panel.
• Internal wiring in Canada
• Section 28: Expected Field Cable assembly
• How to size the neutral
• Section 30: Disconnect Switches
• Section 31: Branch Circuit sizinf and Protection
• Motor Group
• The Manual Motor Controllers
• Example of Branch Sizing
• The Tap Conductors
• Receptacles
• Machine Supply Circuit and Disconnecting Means
• Protection from Direct Contacts
• New aspects in NFPA 79 2021 edition and UL 508A 2022 update
• How to size a feeder
• Ampacity calculation inside ICP according to C22.2 N°286
• CE Code: Rule 4-006
• C22.2 N°286, use of Table 7
• How to design a panel to be exported to Canada
• Example of Feeder sizing

MODULE 3 (8 Hours) 

• Control Circuits
• Bonding – Size of Terminal or Bonding Conductor
• Transformer and Power Supply Secondary Grounding
• Identification of Grounding and Grounded Circuit Conductors and Terminals
• Enclosures and Accessibility of Live Parts
• Ventilation Openings
• Wire Bending Space
• Enclosure Environmental Control Devices
• Power Circuits: Components Type, Sizing, Conductor requirements
• Circuit breaking: Component Type, Sizing, Setting
• Combination Motor Controller: Sizing of Motor, Heating loads and Lights
• Feeder Circuits: Components type and Sizing
• Power Transformers: Components type and Sizing
• Control Circuits: Components type and sizing; Low-Voltage Limited Energy Circuits.
• Components and Panels Marking
• Industrial Control Panels
• The rules behind the SCCR (Short Circuit Current Rating) calculation
• Examples of SCCR calculation
• UL 698A: Indistrial control panels with intrinsically safe circuits
• Tests and Verifications

MODULE 4 (8 Hours)

• The Main Cable Standards in USA and Canada
• How AWM (Appliance Wiring Material) are classified in USA and in Canada
• What types of AWM cables are suitable outside the Industrial Control Panel
• Examples
• Machine Tool Wires
• TC-ER Cables
• When an installation falls under the NEC or the CE Code
• The use of Cable Trays
• Wiring methods and Practices according to NFPA 79
• Raceways and Wireways
• The cables ties
• The Cable Trays
• How to size cables according to NFPA 79
• Cables suitable for the Canadian Market
• How to size cables according to the NEC
• NEC cable sizing in Rigid Metal Conduits and Wireways
• The rules used by the NEC to size a cable ampacity
• Examples for RMC and Wireways
• Examples for Cable Trays of different sizes
• Maximum number of conductors in Wireways and Cable Trays
• The rules used by the CE Code to size a cable ampacity
• A brief history of Ampacity Calculation in Canada
• 60°C and 75°C terminations
• The importance of the cable as heat sink
• High Density Cables
• Examples

DURATION: 32 hours

GT Engineering is a member of the Standard Technical Panel for UL 508A, is Principal for NFPA 79 and a member of Task Force 4-006 for CE Code cable sizing.