Free air cable installed at 12’ above finished floor protected?

[Isaiah]

We have 3/C w/Grd cable free air suspended for approximately 3’ from a C fitting to a 3 phase 480V Heater
Construction is saying the cable is “protected” since it’s installed too high to be hit by a forklift or other objects. NEC requires cable to be protected from physical damage-does the above installation meet the intent of the Code?


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[Perri Redder]

Construction is not Electrician, and MUCH further from Electrical engineer or fire inspector. Technically, you can have insulated conductors 12' high with no mechanical(not the same as no forklift). Protection requirements other than height still apply. Must have an additional layer of insulation if considered exposed. Exposure is equivalent to LOS or ladder access. Conduit fill and raceway restrictions still apply. You cannot have any voltage 12' high in an area that contains or may contain mechanical equipment. Height only reduces protection requirements, it does not eliminate them. For example, I believe you can use EMT or SCH80PVC in most cases. This is just from my head, and I am both tired and rusty so please be diligent. I still consider 480V high voltage in bad situations because once it goes wild it's potential increases based on environmental factors. Then again, I took electrical, chemical, and computer engineering at the same time. I am a little weird.

 

[tom baker]

We have 3/C w/Grd cable free air suspended for approximately 3’ from a C fitting to a 3 phase 480V Heater
Construction is saying the cable is “protected” since it’s installed too high to be hit by a forklift or other objects. NEC requires cable to be protected from physical damage-does the above installation meet the intent of the Code?


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What type of cable?
NMB, MC, AC, TC?
Physical damage is not defined.
Me, if it was a C conduit body, I would have pulled more wire, ran LTMC to heater and not switched to cable.
If you want to cite construction, is the cable secured at each end?

 

[Isaiah]

What type of cable?
NMB, MC, AC, TC?
Physical damage is not defined.
Me, if it was a C conduit body, I would have pulled more wire, ran LTMC to heater and not switched to cable.
If you want to cite construction, is the cable secured at each end?

It’s not even TC cable - it’s a simple two wire circuit with what appears to be vendor supplied cable


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[acrwc10]

Is this a metal jacketed cable or a cord, such as "SO" cord?

 

[petersonra]

First thing is to determine if it is an otherwise nec compliant installation.

I don't have an issue with it being protected or not. It seems out of the way enough that it is unlikely to get snagged by a passing forklift or employee jumping up in the air to grab it.