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Use of RCD protection in industrial and commercial installations

Andy
Hello All

We all know the benefits of RCD protection and how the regulations are changing regarding domestics. I am constantly being asked if RCDs are required for normal switched socket circuits in industrial installations apart from the obvious use of RCDs for areas likely to cause a reduction in resistance (sockets that could conceivably be used out side). So are RCDs required for general office circuits, for dedicated IT equipment (computers etc), work areas such as clean dry packing areas and so on.


Given RCDs require testing regularly and the results recorded which causes disruption to production equipment, IT equipment, Data centers etc are RCDs really required especially if they are installed within steel conduit or steel trunking on walls or under floors?


Any advice welcome


Andy
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    you may get more answers re-posting this in the wiring /regs forum, as far more people visit it, importantly more of  those actually working 'in the field' as it were.

    or ask Lisa Miles‍ if it can be moved.

    From my personal side, it very much depends what is being plugged in - if 'ordinary folk' are plugging in the phone charger they brought in from home, or some appliance of unknown vintage with a frayed flex, it  is a far less controlled case than a  socket in a controlled access building that supplies a specific piece of fixed apparatus, or is only used by trained personnel.

    In many ways the regs do not acknowledge this.

    One might like the RCD sockets to be more common, and the wiring to be MCB only and in metal trunk, but it is a bit tricky due to a coverage gap between the standards committee that do the RCD sockets and spurs, and the one that does the wiring regs, at the moment you can read the regs as saying they cannot be used, as they are not called up in a list of approved standards.

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  • 0
    you may get more answers re-posting this in the wiring /regs forum, as far more people visit it, importantly more of  those actually working 'in the field' as it were.

    or ask Lisa Miles‍ if it can be moved.

    From my personal side, it very much depends what is being plugged in - if 'ordinary folk' are plugging in the phone charger they brought in from home, or some appliance of unknown vintage with a frayed flex, it  is a far less controlled case than a  socket in a controlled access building that supplies a specific piece of fixed apparatus, or is only used by trained personnel.

    In many ways the regs do not acknowledge this.

    One might like the RCD sockets to be more common, and the wiring to be MCB only and in metal trunk, but it is a bit tricky due to a coverage gap between the standards committee that do the RCD sockets and spurs, and the one that does the wiring regs, at the moment you can read the regs as saying they cannot be used, as they are not called up in a list of approved standards.

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