NEC 590 Temporary Installations:

Status
Not open for further replies.
G

Goroon

Member
How would you apply this article to an installation in an Industrial application?
Does 590 eliminate the need to follow specific requirements of other code sections.
As the Engineer has saved money and the inspector has approved it who am I to object.

Recently we installed a 400hp 480v 3 PH 60 HZ 700 RPM 498 Amp Motor.
The Feeder for this motor is ground floor, outside the building in Switchgear with a rack in 1000 Amp Frame set to 600A with .7 sec Ground and 1600 Amp Series fuses.

500MCM parallel is used to feed a Softstart three floors down that sits 2 ft from the motor. The 800 hp soft start has electronic OL protection and an on-off pushbutton start in the softstart cabinet.
There are NO fuses in the softstart cabinet. There is no Disconnect Here, all hard wired.

Installation as a temporary could be as long as two years.

There is no Local Disconnect for the controller as per:
430.102 Location.
(A) Controller. An individual disconnecting means shall be provided for each controller and shall disconnect the controller. The disconnecting means shall be located in sight from the controller location.

Can 590 do this else where?
 
590.2(A) Other Articles. Except as specifically modified in this article, all other requirements of this Code for permanent wiring shall apply to temporary wiring installations.

From the 2008 Edition of the NFPA NEC Handbook:

Temporary installations of electrical equipment must be installed in accordance with all applicable permanent installation requirements except as modified by the rules in this article. For example, the requirements of 300.15 specify that a box or other enclosure must be used where splices are made. This rule is amended by 590.4(G), which, for construction sites, permits splices to be made in multiconductor cords and cables without the use of a box.
 
Pierre C Belarge said:
How many times have I heard as a response from the worker "it's only temporary".
Article 590 does give some relief to wiring methods, but is not a "get out of jail" card.
Click to expand...

I agree with Pierre. I like to say that electricity doesn't know it's temporary.
 
When does it cease to be temporary?

When does it cease to be temporary?

cowboyjwc said:
I agree with Pierre. I like to say that electricity doesn't know it's temporary.
Click to expand...

Same here, and anything installed for more than a few months rather stretches the definition of "temporary". I can accept that the feeder to a construction office trailer is temporary, even it's in use for a couple of years. On the other hand, in my (unpublished) book, the motor circuit across a factory ceases to be temp after a few months if there's nothing going on that would preclude a installing a permanent circuit.

Where do other people draw the line between temp and perm?
 
When somebody gets killed it is not temporary.
Temporary installations still have to comply with permenent wiring methods and installations.
 
zbang said:
Where do other people draw the line between temp and perm?
Click to expand...

IMO the NEC spells it out in 590.3

If there is no construction, emergency or test then you can't call it temporary.

Unless of course it's holiday lighting you get 90 days.
 
SEO said:
When somebody gets killed it is not temporary.
Temporary installations still have to comply with permenent wiring methods and installations.
Click to expand...

It's only temporary power so, they are only temporaraly dead. Right?:-?

Made a deal with a guy once that if he held on to the end of the wire and I flipped the switch, that if he could let go before the electricity got there then I would sign it off. Of course his response was "that'll never happen" and mine was "now we're understanding each other.":smile:
 
Depends on how temporary temporary is.

Depends on how temporary temporary is.

Goroon said:
How would you apply this article to an installation in an Industrial application?
Does 590 eliminate the need to follow specific requirements of other code sections.
As the Engineer has saved money and the inspector has approved it who am I to object.

Recently we installed a 400hp 480v 3 PH 60 HZ 700 RPM 498 Amp Motor.
The Feeder for this motor is ground floor, outside the building in Switchgear with a rack in 1000 Amp Frame set to 600A with .7 sec Ground and 1600 Amp Series fuses.

500MCM parallel is used to feed a Softstart three floors down that sits 2 ft from the motor. The 800 hp soft start has electronic OL protection and an on-off pushbutton start in the softstart cabinet.
There are NO fuses in the softstart cabinet. There is no Disconnect Here, all hard wired.

Installation as a temporary could be as long as two years.

There is no Local Disconnect for the controller as per:
430.102 Location.
(A) Controller. An individual disconnecting means shall be provided for each controller and shall disconnect the controller. The disconnecting means shall be located in sight from the controller location.

Can 590 do this else where?
Click to expand...
I don't know, but, 590.4(E) might work if the AHJ was grasping at straws,then referenced to 430.102 Location.
(A) Controller. An individual disconnecting means shall be provided for each controller and shall disconnect the controller. The disconnecting means shall be located in sight from the controller location.
 
Status
Not open for further replies.
Top