LBNL Electrical Equipment Build Standard V6

LBNL Electrical Equipment Build Standard
Revision 6

1 Introduction

The design and fabrication requirements in this document are derived from many sources, including American National Standards Institute (ANSI) standards, National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) standards, the Occupational Safety & Health Administration (OSHA), the National Electrical Code (NEC) and LBNL Electronics Engineering Division best engineering practices. These design and fabrication requirements are intended to cover most electrical equipment but cannot be expected to comprehensively cover all equipment and all existing standards. Underwriters Laboratories (UL) standards are cited in many places and have been chosen to serve as best engineering practices because of their appropriateness and UL’s status as an NRTL accepted by OSHA. Where there are conflicts between this document and the National Electrical Code, the NEC take precedence.

1.1 Purpose

The purpose of these requirements is to identify a broad set of general design elements and principles that incorporate safe electrical design—that is, reduce the risk of electric shock and fire. These requirements are a consensus set of requirements that come from the sources listed above and approved by the Electronics Engineering Division Leaders and Department Head.
The requirements in this document cover many aspects of electrical design and fabrication, including:
a) Guarding of live parts
b) Adequate wire size
c) Grounding and bonding
d) Component selection and mounting
e) Equipment installation
These requirements are conservative in order to assure safety throughout the lifetime of the equipment, under varying conditions, and during fault conditions.

1.2 References

References to standards and codes used in this document can be found in the References section of this document. Works cited are denoted by a number in brackets, ie. [1].

LBNL Electrical Equipment Build Standard
Revision 6

1.3 Additional Information

This standard addresses many electrical safety issues that may be encountered during the engineering and assembly of electronic equipment. Additional information can be found in the appendices of this document.

1.4 Issues

Design issues that are not covered adequately by the requirements in this document shall be resolved by applying good engineering processes. In other words, the design shall be reviewed with the appropriate level of formality graded by the risk in the system. Personnel requiring assistance should contact the Engineering Division for help.