Cell Sites and the NEC

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tkb

tkb

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MA
Is a cell tower site considered a utility and exempt from the NEC?

I always thought that any utility has to follow the NEC for the site and building and are exempt from the NEC and follow other standards for whatever services they provide and their equipment.
 
iwire said:
Tim, I am not sure, but Have you read through 90.2(B)(4)?
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I believe that their equipment and related wiring is not. But the rest of the building is.
I say this because I work for a company that manufactures the buildings
used at some cell sites and we have to submit P.E. stamped drawings to the state for approval and buy a state label to apply to it.
We also have to have it inspected by a 3rd party inspection agency such as PFS, Corporation.
 
I read 90.2(B)(4) and I think that the building and the site is under the NEC and the equipment is not.
 
tkb said:
Is a cell tower site considered a utility and exempt from the NEC? . . .
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(4) Installations of communications equipment under the exclusive control of communications utilities located outdoors or in building spaces used exclusively for such installations
FPN to (4) and (5): Examples of utilities may include those entities that are typically designated or recognized by governmental law or regulation by public service/utility commissions and that install, operate, and maintain electric supply (such as generation, transmission, or distribution systems) or communication systems (such as telephone, CATV, Internet, satellite, or data services). Utilities may be subject to compliance with codes and standards covering their regulated activities as adopted under governmental law or regulation. Additional information can be found through consultation with the appropriate governmental bodies, such as state regulatory commissions, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and the Federal Communications Commission.
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In my humble opinion, everything inside a fenced and locked area would be the same as the area inside fenced and locked electric utility substation. In other words, if it is inside, they would follow their own standards that are based on the NESC and the inspector is not invited. :smile:
 
Many of these cell sites are not under the exclusive control of a utility. Most of the one's around here are built by investors and so-called tower companies, and they just lease the tower space and space in the equipment yard to whatever cell phone company wants to put something on the tower.
 
charlie said:
(4) Installations of communications equipment under the exclusive control of communications utilities located outdoors or in building spaces used exclusively for such installations
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Are lights, plugs and heating units "communications equipment"? :confused:
 
This area is the same as Marc's (area).
We either inspect the building wiring, or look for the State Label to which qcroanoke refers.
If there is a "state label" then we inspect the service and any feeders to the building.
(Note: often the tower lighting is a seperate installation also)
 
I do understand your consternation; however, look at the FPN closely for guidance, especially, "Additional information can be found through consultation with the appropriate governmental bodies, such as state regulatory commissions, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and the Federal Communications Commission."

The point I am trying to make is that it is not up to us or maybe not even the local electrical inspector. It depends on how the company is looked at by the above entities. The cell phone company is in many cases a recognized communications utility and can contract with whomever they wish to do work within a compound. This is the same as us contracting with a company to do work inside our relay house in a substation. I guarantee you that the electrical work in there does not meet the NEC nor is it inspected. By the way, they also have heaters, receptacles, lights, telephones, and bathrooms. :)
 
charlie said:
I do understand your consternation; however, look at the FPN closely for guidance, especially, "Additional information can be found through consultation with the appropriate governmental bodies, such as state regulatory commissions, the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission, and the Federal Communications Commission."

The point I am trying to make is that it is not up to us or maybe not even the local electrical inspector. It depends on how the company is looked at by the above entities. The cell phone company is in many cases a recognized communications utility and can contract with whomever they wish to do work within a compound. This is the same as us contracting with a company to do work inside our relay house in a substation. I guarantee you that the electrical work in there does not meet the NEC nor is it inspected. By the way, they also have heaters, receptacles, lights, telephones, and bathrooms. :)
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Not in WA State. The company I worked for, Verizon and the state went round and round until WA finally won out. The building is under the state's jurisdiction. The equipment and terminations are not, however the circuit all the way up to the equipment is under the state's jurisdiction.

The reason they went this way was that some rectifiers I was wiring up did not have a UL listing that an inspector caught and did not pass.
 
I have built many a Cell Sites. In most circumstance they are not under NEC rules, but I can tell you most all the electrical exceeds NEC requirements.

This is a gray and legal area. For a utility to be exempt means they usually have a monopoly which comes with very high tax rates and allows them right-of-way agreements with a city.

The vast majority of cell sites I have built, do not have permits pulled unless it is in a residential neighborhhod, and most of the requirements put on us are cosmetic.
 
Charlie there is one difference between a cell site and a utility substation. I agree with paul on this. A utility substation does not have a power meter, electrical service, lights, heat etc. Cell sites do- with a power meter comes an inspection to get service from the POCO.
And I am sure there are substations with power meters and cell sites without.

And Marc is right on most towers are owned by company A, and they lease tower space to company B, C and D, each will have there own power meter. However some cell companies have there own towers and buildings. In any event the wiring and esp the grounding is done code correctly.
 
We inspect all the cell sites in our city. I don't know if there was a battle at the beginning, but they all submit plans and pull permits. We see them all from underground, manufactured bldgs, behind a block wall enclosure, roof top to a suite inside a commercial bldg.

The only correction I ever have for these guys is grounding. They always want the service grounded to its own rod and not connected to their ground ring/rod setup. 250.50 and 250.58

Here in Orange County, CA all cell sites must be certified by the county sheriff that the operation will not interfere with 800mHZ communication system.
 
I am pricing up generator installs at multiple cell sites.
The drawings show type "G-GC" cable directly buried from the generator to the distribution panel to the cell huts.

I looked up type "G-GC' cable and don't see it as a DB cable.

Can this cable be DB if they don't have to follow the NEC?
 
when i first started out we wired quite a few cell sites and yes they are governed by the rules of the NEC and inspected by the AHJ. The specifications on every site we did went far beyond the scope of the NEC though. From the small cell towers you see on the side of the highway with the little gate and house to the ones on top of 20 story buildings and water towers. those were the coolest ones to wire. It was quite profitable for us for a good while because we were one of the only ec's in the area that the cell company's used. we still have 2 tower company's that call on us to do the special sites. but we pass on the regular ones.
 
paul said:
Not in WA State. The company I worked for, Verizon and the state went round and round until WA finally won out. The building is under the state's jurisdiction. The equipment and terminations are not, however the circuit all the way up to the equipment is under the state's jurisdiction.
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IMO that is exactly how 90.2(B)(4) is written. :)
 
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