Labeling of Motors

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hshrainey

Member
Location
Memphis, TN
I have recently come across an issue with the labeling of a motor. The motor is labeled CE from Europe and the US motor is Labeled UL.
Is there a specific code that covers the labeling of a motor?
 

kwired

Electron manager
Location
NE Nebraska
Most motors are not UL listed if that helps (or confuses even more).

Hazardous location motors are listed, but most general purpose motors are not.
 

hshrainey

Member
Location
Memphis, TN
Danke, I have a motor that is be placed on a piece of equipment and then being shipped here in the US. The motor meets EU standards
but just not labeled with the UL. I didn't know if that is ok or not.
 

petersonra

Senior Member
Location
Northern illinois
Occupation
engineer
Danke, I have a motor that is be placed on a piece of equipment and then being shipped here in the US. The motor meets EU standards
but just not labeled with the UL. I didn't know if that is ok or not.

motors are not required to be listed in most cases. so what difference does it make as long as the voltage, frequency, and HP are correct?
 

Sahib

Senior Member
Location
India
Danke, I have a motor that is be placed on a piece of equipment and then being shipped here in the US. The motor meets EU standards
but just not labeled with the UL. I didn't know if that is ok or not.

If your end use equipment requires UL listing, so does the motor in it.
 
Danke, I have a motor that is be placed on a piece of equipment and then being shipped here in the US. The motor meets EU standards
but just not labeled with the UL. I didn't know if that is ok or not.

It will be up to the AHJ if it is ok or not, but most EU listed or certified assemblies have difficulty complying with the NEC requirements. They are a POA because they are not serviceable, electricians are unavare of the EU rules and sometimes repairs or replacement parts end up defeating the EU engineering principles, compromising safety in some cases. Not a good thang......
 

Sahib

Senior Member
Location
India
Truth equals insult? In what Universe?!

Truth does not equal insult as it is neutral.

Only your statement is untrue for it to be true, all my 300+ posts should be falsehood. But no moderator would have permitted it.
So what is clear is you are not even aware of your insulting behavior. :eek:hmy:
 

rbalex

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Mission Viejo, CA
Occupation
Professional Electrical Engineer
I think the re-framing of



as follows is okay:

If the counterpart of your end use equipment is UL listed in US, so does the motor in it.
Sahib, this still isn't quite true. The motor may be part of listed equipment; but it is not itself listed. At best, it is what is called a Recognized Component. The mark is a backwards "UR".

The NEMA motor manufacturer's Group have resisted listing motors since long before I was in the industry. I do not know why. Technically, there is no legal means to force them to either - unless one of them does so voluntarily.
 

Sahib

Senior Member
Location
India
Sahib, this still isn't quite true. The motor may be part of listed equipment; but it is not itself listed. At best, it is what is called a Recognized Component. The mark is a backwards "UR".

The NEMA motor manufacturer's Group have resisted listing motors since long before I was in the industry. I do not know why. Technically, there is no legal means to force them to either - unless one of them does so voluntarily.

The advantage of getting the motor recognised or listed to the UL 1004 series is that if the motor is used in an end use piece of equipment that is currently UL Listed, it will help that equipment manufacturer since they will not have to have a full evaluation on the motor. So I suppose the motor of the Op has to meet the evaluation criteria of UL1004, if the counterpart of his equipment in US is UL listed.
 

rbalex

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Mission Viejo, CA
Occupation
Professional Electrical Engineer
The advantage of getting the motor recognised or listed to the UL 1004 series is that if the motor is used in an end use piece of equipment that is currently UL Listed, it will help that equipment manufacturer since they will not have to have a full evaluation on the motor. So I suppose the motor of the Op has to meet the evaluation criteria of UL1004, if the counterpart of his equipment in US is UL listed.
At this point you are only speculating. The fact is, it just isn't the way things work with the NEMA motor manufacturers group. They wouldn't list explosionproof motors either if they were not more or less forced to by Section 501.125(A)(1). NOTE: identified is not equal to listed or labeled.
 
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Sahib

Senior Member
Location
India
rbalex:

It is not a case of the OP being a manufacturer wishing to export his equipment to US and wanting to know whether the motor component of his equipment also requires listing.

T
he NEC requires equipment be acceptable only if approved. Approved is defined as acceptable to the Local Authorities. The most common form of evidence considered acceptable by Local Authorities is a listing or labeling by an independent third party.

So if the OP's equipment and his motor component meet the relevant evaluation criteria of UL, there is a far better chance of acceptance of his equipment by the local authorities.
 

kwired

Electron manager
Location
NE Nebraska
rbalex:

It is not a case of the OP being a manufacturer wishing to export his equipment to US and wanting to know whether the motor component of his equipment also requires listing.

T
he NEC requires equipment be acceptable only if approved. Approved is defined as acceptable to the Local Authorities. The most common form of evidence considered acceptable by Local Authorities is a listing or labeling by an independent third party.

So if the OP's equipment and his motor component meet the relevant evaluation criteria of UL, there is a far better chance of acceptance of his equipment by the local authorities.
Nothing wrong with that logic, but the fact still is that NEMA motors are not required to be listed. If you decide to start making a motor line and decide to have it evaluated and listed, you have more overhead and will likely have to sell at a higher price than those selling a similar motor that have not done this. Not saying this can't happen, but for the most part it doesn't.
 

Sahib

Senior Member
Location
India
kwired:
I tried to develop an action plan for the OP to get his equipment approved. As his equipment is of foreign origin, it is better to check both his equipment and the motor in it for compliance with UL requirements to ensure that the rejection of his equipment by local authorities is least likely.
 
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rbalex

Moderator
Staff member
Location
Mission Viejo, CA
Occupation
Professional Electrical Engineer
rbalex:

It is not a case of the OP being a manufacturer wishing to export his equipment to US and wanting to know whether the motor component of his equipment also requires listing.

T
he NEC requires equipment be acceptable only if approved. Approved is defined as acceptable to the Local Authorities. The most common form of evidence considered acceptable by Local Authorities is a listing or labeling by an independent third party.

So if the OP's equipment and his motor component meet the relevant evaluation criteria of UL, there is a far better chance of acceptance of his equipment by the local authorities.
Yes, so? It just doesn't work that way.

If the OP wishes to have the entire assembly listed fine. At best, UL still will only mark the motor as a Recognized Component which UL's own standards state is not the same as listed or labeled. Fortunately for the OP, most AHJs don't know the difference.
 
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