Chris Tapas, P.E., President, Tapas Engineering Services PC, Chicago
Articles
National Electrical Code 2005: Designing Computer Rooms
Editor’s Note: This is the fifth in a regular monthly column that covers significant new issues raised by the 2005 Edition of the National Electrical Code. Computer room designs and construction vary, but common features of most are self-contained HVAC systems, fire and smoke monitoring systems, automatic sprinkler or gaseous agent fire extinguishing systems, fire-rated walls, raised floors, underfloor wiring systems, and emergency power-off systems. Because of the critical nature of the 24/7 operation of most computer rooms, reliability is the critical design factor.
National Electrical Code 2005: Expanding GFCI Requirements—Article 210 Branch Circuits
Editor’s Note: This is the fourth in a regular monthly column that covers significant new issues raised by the 2005 Edition of the National Electrical Code. The National Electrical Code has included ground fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) protection since 1962 and gave it definition in the 1968 NEC. In each edition thereafter, GFCI safety requirements have expanded.
National Electrical Code 2005: Article 250 – Grounding and Bonding
Editor’s Note: This is the third in a regular monthly column that covers significant new issues raised by the 2005 Edition of the National Electrical Code. Over the past two code cycles, Article 250 of the 2005 NEC was extensively revised to make it better organized and easier to implement. Article 250 further clarifies the requirements for an electrical distribution system grounding system, including: requirements for providing paths to divert high voltage to the earth; requirements for the low-impedance fault current path to facilitate the operation of overcurrent protection devices; and how to remove dangerous voltage potentials between conductive parts of building components and electrical systems.