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Canadian Perspective
Design and installation of electrical equipment is a reasonably well understood and adjusted procedure. It is done in accordance with the safety requirements of the Canadian Electrical Code and specific installation standards, with additional performance criteria of energy codes, ASHRAE codes and regulatory directives, and undoubtedly — with particular requirements of the clients. Of course, such installations are inspected by the electrical safety regulators for compliance with the accepted design and with the CE Code provisions.
This subject is not new. There have been numerous articles written about the CE Code requirements for fire pump installations and about the selection of the conductors and overcurrent protection for fire pump feeders. So, what’s the reason to revisit this issue? The answer is: changes to the NFPA 20.
Historically, this subject was always a source of confusion to the electrical designers, installers and regulators, as provisions of the Elevator Code have not always been accurately correlated with the National Building Code of Canada (NBCC) and with the Canadian Electrical Code. Fortunately, some provisions for the electrically connected equipment used in conjunction with elevators have been harmonized in the latest editions of the Elevator Code and the NBCC.
Any electrical design and installation is based on a number of conditions. Traditionally, such conditions include reliability, performance and economics. Usually these conditions are dictated by the clients, who want such installations to function in a dependable manner and to be economically feasible. But regardless of the client’s criteria, one condition that must be consistently met by the design and installation is safety.
In general, electrical designers, contractors and regulators are quite comfortable in applying the CE Code requirements for the electrically connected life safety systems. However, they must have a clear understanding of such requirements in other relevant codes and standards.
Let’s say, you are undertaking design and installation or inspection of such electrical installation in patient care areas of a health care facility. Do you consider certain parts of patient care areas as wet locations, and which criteria do you use for such consideration? In light of these questions — which wiring methods should be used, and which types of equipment construction should be specified in design? Is use of a solidly grounded system allowed in patient care areas or must only isolated systems be used?
Let’s say, you are a supplier of an emergency generator or a designer of an emergency distribution system, and your task is to select an emergency generator and main disconnecting means and overcurrent devices that will manually or automatically disconnect the electrical system supplied from the emergency generator.
Some building developers and owners like to consider the building IT infrastructure, building heating and air-conditioning systems, elevators, sump pumps and water treatment equipment as the “essential electrical system.”
Let’s say, a designer decided to utilize optical fiber cables for control of lighting circuits or to amalgamate wiring connecting the fire alarm field devices with wiring supplying the components of a security system. Is such integration of wiring allowed by the Canadian Electrical Code? And what about use of a nurse call panel in a hospital as means for annunciation of a patient room (sleeping room) smoke [...]
Let’s acknowledge a few undisputed facts: 1. All electrical equipment used in installations under provisions of the CE Code, Part I must be approved , and it must be of a kind or type and rating approved for specific purpose for which it is intended to be utilized (Re: Rule 2-024). 2. Word “approved” (in respect [...]
