One of our facilities received a recommendation from a safety consultant to replace a panel similar to the one shown in the attachment. They are saying, "There is an open faced panel in a general area of the plant. 2014 NEC Section 408.3: Panelboards shall be mounted in cabinets, cutout boxes, or identified enclosures and shall be dead-front. Exception: Panel boards other than of the dead front externally operable type shall be permitted where accessible only to qualified persons. A dead-front is a cabinet without live parts exposed to a person on the operating side of the equipment."
To be clear, the panel in question is not the one shown but is similar in that it does not have a door nor is it meant to have a door. This is in an industrial environment.
I disagree with this recommendation. First of all they referenced the wrong section, should be 408.38. I don't see this section as requiring a door, seems to me it only requires protection from energized parts. Is that correct?
I'm asking because my facility has a couple panels like this and I'll eventually be forced to replace them if this recommendation is accepted. At this point this is really not my fight but I've been asked for my two cents.
To be clear, the panel in question is not the one shown but is similar in that it does not have a door nor is it meant to have a door. This is in an industrial environment.
I disagree with this recommendation. First of all they referenced the wrong section, should be 408.38. I don't see this section as requiring a door, seems to me it only requires protection from energized parts. Is that correct?
I'm asking because my facility has a couple panels like this and I'll eventually be forced to replace them if this recommendation is accepted. At this point this is really not my fight but I've been asked for my two cents.
