Metering
Milbank Addresses Applicable NEC 2020 Requirements
The NEC 2020 updates brought about many changes that affect the design of service equipment used in the electrical industry. The purpose of this page is to give a concise overview of NEC 2020 changes that affect Milbank products and what Milbank is doing to align our products with the 2020 code changes.
At Milbank, we are working diligently to bring our product offerings into compliance. Some of our products may only require labeling changes, such as those described by Section 230.85(1) for Emergency Disconnects. Other product changes will be more extensive and require considerable redesign, specifically, the requirements of Sections 230.62 (Service Equipment – Enclosed or Guarded) and 230.71 (Maximum Number of Disconnects). View the NFPA map that shows the progression of states adopting NEC 2020.
Examples of such changes may include, but are not limited to, addition of plastic insulators and barriers, internal sheet metal modifications and product size modifications. Some of these changes will be significant enough to require approval/verification by a Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory (NRTL), such as Underwriters Laboratories, Inc. Please consult serving utility for their requirements prior to ordering or installing, as specifications and approvals vary by utility, and may require local electrical inspector approval.
To download a full copy of our white paper on NEC 2020 updates that affect Milbank product, click on the button below.
Relevant Code Change No. 1
Emergency Disconnect - NEC 230.85
“For one- and two-family dwelling units, all service conductors shall terminate in disconnecting means having a short-circuit current rating equal to or greater than the available fault current, installed in a readily accessible outdoor location. If more than one disconnect is provided, they shall be grouped. Each disconnect shall be one of the following:
(1) Service disconnects marked as follows: EMERGENCY DISCONNECT, SERVICE DISCONNECT
(2) Meter disconnects installed per 230.82(3) and marked as follows: EMERGENCY DISCONNECT, METER DISCONNECT, NOT SERVICE EQUIPMENT
(3) Other listed disconnect switches or circuit breakers on the supply side of each service disconnect that are suitable for use as service equipment and marked as follows: “EMERGENCY DISCONNECT, NOT SERVICE EQUIPMENT”
The intent behind this change is to allow first responders to disconnect power in emergency situations rather than waiting for the electric utility to arrive and shut off the power supply. There are several approaches that manufacturers are employing to solve this. Milbank has many meter main products that meet this requirement. We have added the Section 230.85(1) code-required markings to all meter main products and Milbank meter mains are 100% compliant with Section 230.85(1).
Illustration from International Association of Electrical Inspectors (IAEI) for Section 230.85(1)
Milbank label used on relevant meter mains to be compliant with Section 230.85(1)
Aluminum bus with snap in barrier
U3990 with sheet metal barrier
Relevant Code Change No. 2
Service Equipment - Enclosed or Guarded -
NEC 230.62(A) and (B)
“Energized parts of service equipment shall be enclosed as specified in 230.62(A) or guarded as specified in 230.62(B).
(A) Enclosed. Energized parts shall be enclosed so that they will not be exposed to accidental contact or shall be guarded as in 230.62(B).
(B) Guarded. Energized parts that are not enclosed shall be installed on a switchboard, panelboard, or control board and guarded in accordance with 110.18 and 110.27. Where energized parts are guarded as provided in 110.27(A)(1) and (A)(2), a means for locking or sealing doors providing access to energized parts shall be provided.
(C) Barriers. Barriers shall be placed in service equipment such that no uninsulated, ungrounded service busbar or service terminal is exposed to inadvertent contact by persons or maintenance equipment while servicing load terminations.”
For safety purposes, Section 230.62 was modified to reduce the risk of inadvertent contact to live parts while working inside of service equipment on the load (customer) terminals. New requirements in the 2020 NEC, Section 230.62 include barriers and/or guards on line side parts to prevent inadvertent contact.
Milbank has multiple solutions in place to comply with Section 230.62 and have already implemented many of them. On products containing a breaker fed by wires, the breaker’s set screws were filled with a compliant plug, and factory processes were modified to control wire insulation stripping. This change protected all live parts on the line side of the circuit breaker from contact, ensuring full compliance.
For meter mains that use our aluminum bus, we have designed molded plastic parts to snap into place on top of the bus and another separate part that snaps into the opening in the center barrier. This solution ensures that the bus and opening are completely isolated.
We have various meter mains that use the Milbank large frame breaker design that are either bussed or wired into the breaker from the meter section. Due to the wide variety of designs, and many unique requirements of our customers, Milbank has come up with several possible solutions that mainly involve using formed Formex™ insulators. These insulators cover live parts or an extended sheet metal barrier underneath the deadfront. The sheet metal barrier solution works well in situations where there is a raceway and the opening to the raceway needs to be covered to prevent inadvertent contact.
Relevant Code Change No. 3
Two to Six Service Disconnecting Means - 230.71(B)
“Two to six service disconnects shall be permitted for each service permitted by 230.2 or for each set of service-entrance conductors permitted by 230.40, Exception No. 1, 3, 4, or 5. The two to six service disconnecting means shall be permitted to consist of a combination of any of the following:
(1) Separate enclosures with a main service disconnecting means in each enclosure
(2) Panelboards with a main service disconnecting means in each panelboard enclosure
(3) Switchboard(s) where there is only one service disconnect in each separate vertical section where there are barriers separating each vertical section
(4) Service disconnects in switchgear or metering centers where each disconnect is located in a separate compartment
Informational Note No. 1: Metering centers are addressed in UL 67, Standard for Panelboards.
Informational Note No. 2: Examples of separate enclosures with a main service disconnecting means in each enclosure include but are not limited to motor control centers, fused disconnects, circuit breaker enclosures, and transfer switches that are suitable for use as service equipment.”
NEC 2020 Section 230.71(B) involves the implementation of separate compartments and barriers that isolate each disconnect from the others and provides protection from incidental contact of live parts when servicing an individual compartment.
Milbank horizontal meter mains will have sheet metal dividers installed that go the entire depth of the metering center, from front to back, to provide the “compartment” for each section that the code requires.
U6124 with separate compartments for each service disconnect
As a reminder, please consult your local electric service provider for their requirements prior to ordering or installing, as specifications and approvals vary by utility, and may require local electrical inspector approval.
For specific questions or product approvals in your area, contact your local Milbank sales representative.