NCBCC Appeals and Orders, Interpretations
After an April, 18th appeal hearing, the North Carolina Building Codes Council issued an order erroneously suggesting that ?Equipment? is not electrical equipment. This recent ?Order? was written while ignoring the facts, and resulted in a ridiculous and incorrect interpretation of the National electrical code (NFPA 70). Experts from Government Inspections authorities, Testing Laboratories, and NFPA were not allowed to speak or present relevant information. In a subsequent appeal hearing on September 12th and 13th, the NC DOI was granted a ?Motion to Intervene.?
The Commissioner of Insurance lawyer subsequently utilized the NCECC IAEI?s expert witness, and there was only enough time for a few of our witnesses to speak. Their testimony showed how our Inspectors save lives by being allowed to use the NEC properly to do their jobs and protect our NC workers.
Unfortunately, the chairman of the NC Building Code Council is still insisting on changing the definition of ?Equipment? thereby attempting to dumb-down our State Code. If this is done, these actions will put our citizens at risk of electrical shock, electrocution and fire from non-certified or un-approved electrical equipment. How would these NCBCC members feel if a worker?s death was directly related to their actions? Proper knowledge of these equipment issues tells us that this outcome is very likely. Additionally as drafted the code would be futher ineffective as the proposal continues to defy scientific knowledge of electrical systems by ignoring that the system must be evaluated in it?s entirety before any part of the system can be found compliant. In simple terms one part effects the other, and this proposal?s lack of understanding would likely result in higher instances of system failures, fires, accidents, and fatalities.
