SECTION 26 05 19

LOW-VOLTAGE ELECTRICAL POWER CONDUCTORS AND CABLES

PART 1 GENERAL

1.1 SECTION INCLUDES

A. Material, labor, tools, and installation requirements for:

1. Building Wire.

2. Power Cable.

3. Control Cable.

4. Instrumentation Cable.

5. Wire Connectors.

6. Insulating Tape.

7. Pulling’s Lubricants

1.2 RELATED SECTIONS

A. Division 00 – Procurement and Contracting Requirements

B. Section 01 00 00 – General Requirement

C. Section 26 05 00 – Common Work Results for Electrical.

1.3 REFERENCES STANDARDS

A. Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers, Inc. (IEEE):

1. 1202, Standard for Flame-Propagation Testing of Wire and Cable.

B. Insulated Cable Engineers Association (ICEA):

1. S-58-679, Standard for Control Cable Conductor Identification.

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 C. National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA):

1. ICS 4, Industrial Control and Systems: Terminal Blocks.

D. National Electrical Manufacturers Association/Insulated Cable Engineers Association

(NEMA/ICEA).

1. WC 57/S-73-532, Standard for Control Cables.

2. WC 70/S-95-658, Non-Shielded Power Cables Rated 2000 Volts or Less for the
Distribution of Electrical Energy.

E. National Fire Protection Association (NFPA):

1. 70, National Electrical Code (NEC).

2. 262, Standard Method of Test for Flame Travel and Smoke of Wires and Cables for
Use in Air-Handling Spaces.

F. Telecommunications Industry Association/Electronic Industries Alliance/American National

Standards Institute (TIA/EIA/ANSI):

1. 568, Commercial Building Telecommunications Cabling Standard

G. Underwriters Laboratories, Inc. (UL):

1. 44, Standard for Safety Thermoset-Insulated Wires and Cables.

2. 83, Standard for Safety Thermoplastic-Insulated Wires and Cables.

3. 467, Standard for Safety Grounding and Bonding Equipment.

4. 486A, Standard for Safety Wire Connectors and Soldering Lugs for use with Copper
Conductors.

5. 486C, Standard for Safety Splicing Wire Connections.

6. 510, Standard for Safety Polyvinyl Chloride, Polyethylene and Rubber Insulating Tape.

7. 1277, Standard for Safety Electrical Power and Control Tray Cables with Optional
Optical-Fiber Members.

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 8. 1581, Standard for Safety Reference Standard for Electrical Wires, Cables, and
Flexible Cords.

9. 2250, Standard for Safety Instrumentation Tray Cable.

1.4 SUBMITTALS

A. Submittals shall be in accordance with the Contract Documents and with applicable
requirements of Specification Section 01 00 00 - General Requirements in addition to those
listed below.

B. Product Data: Manufacturer's data sheets and detail drawings for each product to be used,
including:

1. Preparation instructions and recommendations.

2. Storage and handling requirements and recommendations.

3. Product literature.

4. Installation methods.

C. Manufacturers Certificates, if applicable: Certify product meet or exceed specified

requirements.

D. Testing Agency Qualifications: Products listed by Underwriters Laboratories (UL) or Electrical

Testing Laboratories (ETL).

1.5 QUALITY ASSURANCE

A. All work performed and all materials used shall be in accordance with the National Electrical
Code, and with applicable local regulations and ordinances. Equipment assemblies,
materials, and equipment shall be listed and labeled by Underwriter’s Laboratories or by a
testing agency acceptable to authorities having jurisdiction and marked for intended use.

B. Product Requirements:

1. Source Limitations: Obtain cable tray components through one source from a single
manufacturer.

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 2. Approval and Labeling: Provide cable trays and accessories specified in this Section
that are approved and labeled.

a. The Terms "Classified" pertaining to cable trays (rather than "Listed") and
"Labeled": As defined in NFPA 70, Article 100.

b. Listing and Labeling Agency Qualifications: A "Nationally Recognized Testing

Laboratory" as defined in OSHA Regulation 1910.7.

3. Comply with NFPA 70, National Electrical Code, Article 392: Cable Trays; provide UL
Classification and labels.

4. Comply with IEC 61537, Cable Tray Systems and Cable Ladder Systems for Cable
Management.

5. Comply with NEMA VE 1/CSA C22.2 No. 126.1, Metal Cable Tray Systems, for
materials, sizes, and configurations; provide cCSAus Certificate and labels.

6. Provide documentation of the following certifications:

a. ISO 9001 quality certification.

b. American Bureau of Shipping (ABS) Product Design Assessment certification.

c. Det Norske Veritas (DNV) certification.

d. E 90 Fire Testing certification.

7. Provide UL (or ETL) test documentation showing cable compression/deformation

testing.

8. Structural Performance: Cable trays shall be tested and rated for load carrying
capacity and safety factors.

a. Uniform Load Distribution: Capable of supporting a uniformly distributed load

on the indicated support span when supported as a simple span and tested
according to NEMA VE 1.

b. Concentrated Load: A load applied at midpoint of span and centerline of tray.

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 c. Load and Safety Factors: Applicable to both side rails and rung capacities.

C. Installer Qualifications: Certified by manufacturer.

1.6 DELIVERY, STORAGE, AND HANDLING

A. Avoid breakage, denting and scoring finishes. Damaged products shall not be installed.
Store cable and accessories in original cartons and in clean dry space; protect from weather
and construction traffic. Wet materials will be unpacked and dried before storage.

B. Store products indoors in manufacturer's or fabricator's original containers and packaging,

with labels clearly identifying product name and manufacturer. Protect from damage.

1. Storage and handling of cables in ambient temperatures of 32 degrees F or less:

Allow cable to acclimate to room temperature for at least 24 hours before installation
to ensure optimal cable flexibility.

1.7 PROJECT CONDITIONS

A. Maintain environmental conditions (temperature, humidity, and ventilation) within limits

recommended by manufacturer for optimum results. Do not install products under
environmental conditions outside manufacturer's recommended limits.

PART 2 PRODUCTS

1.8 MANUFACTURERS

A. Subject to compliance with the Contract Documents, the following manufacturers are
acceptable:

1. Building wire, power and control cable.

a. Southwire Company.

b. Encore Wire Corporation.

c. Okonite Company.

d. General Cable.

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 e. Cerrowire.

f. Alphawire.

g. Aetna Insulated Wire.

2. Instrumentation cable.

a. Belden Inc.

b. General Cable.

c. Alphawire.

3. Wire Connectors.

a. Burndy Corporation.

b. Buchanan.

c. Ideal.

d. Ilsco.

e. 3M Co.

f. Teledyne Penn Union.

g. Thomas and Betts.

h. Phoenix Contact.

4. Insulating and color-coding tape.

a. 3M Co.

b. Plymouth Bishop Tapes.

c. Red Seal Electric Co

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 B. Submit request for substitution in accordance with the Contract Documents.

PART 2

2.1 MANUFACTURED UNITS

A. Building Wire:

1. Conductor shall be copper with 600 V rated insulation.

2. Conductors shall be stranded, except for conductors used in lighting and receptacle
circuits which may be stranded or solid.

3. 3.Surface mark with manufacturer's name or trademark, conductor size, insulation

type and UL label.

4. 4.Conform to NEMA/ICEA WC 70/S-95-658 and UL 83 for type THHN/THWN and

THHN/THWN-2 insulation.

5. Conform to NEMA/ICEA WC 70/S-95-658 and UL 44 for type XHHW-2 insulation.

B. Control Power Cable:

1. Conductor shall be copper with 600 V rated insulation.

2. Surface mark with manufacturer's name or trademark, conductor size, insulation type
and UL label.

3. Conform to NEMA/ICEA WC 70/S-95-658 and UL 83 and UL 1277 for type

THHN/THWN insulation with an overall PVC jacket.

4. Number of conductors as required, including a bare ground conductor.

5. Individual conductor color coding:

a. ICEA S-58-679, Method 1, Table E-1.

b. See PART 3 of this Specification Section for additional requirements.

6. Conform to NFPA 70 Type TC and IEEE 1202 or CSA FT-4.

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 7. Wire Sizing as follows:

a. Control Boards/Circuit Breaker Cabinets/Transformer Control Cabinets

1) #12 AWG – Used for CT’s, SIS grey wire

2) #14 AWG – Used for PT’s and all other wiring, SIS grey wire

b. Field Wiring after Control Boards Terminal Blocks and before Field Equipment

1) #10 AWG or 19/22 – Used for CT’s

2) #12 AWG or 19/25 – Used for PT’s and other control and indication
functions

c. Standard BWP control cables come in 2c, 3c, 4c, and 6c.

d. Belden Type Wire

1) 2c or 3c/18 or 16 AWG –Used from the terminal blocks to the

annunciator panel or RTU cabinet. The usual functions are command for
recloser block or enable, recloser status indication, relay alarms.

C. Control Cable:

1. Conductor shall be copper with 600 V rated insulation.

2. Surface mark with manufacturer's name or trademark, conductor size, insulation type
and UL label.

3. Conform to NEMA/ICEA WC 57/S-73-532 and UL 83 and UL 1277 for type

THHN/THWN insulation with an overall PVC jacket.

4. Number of conductors as required, provided with or without bare ground conductor of

the same AWG size.

a. When a bare ground conductor is not provided, an additional insulated

conductor shall be provided and used as the ground conductor (e.g., 6/c No. 12
w/g and 7/c No. 12 are equal).

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 5. Individual conductor color coding:

a. ICEA S-58-679, Method 1, Table E-1.

b. See PART 3 of this Specification Section for additional requirements.

6. Conform to NFPA 70 Type TC and IEEE 1202, CSA FT-4 or NFPA 262.

7. Wire Sizing as follows:

a. Control Boards/Circuit Breaker Cabinets/Transformer Control Cabinets

1) #12 AWG – Used for CT’s, SIS grey wire

2) #14 AWG – Used for PT’s and all other wiring, SIS grey wire

b. Field Wiring after Control Boards Terminal Blocks and before Field Equipment

1) #10 AWG or 19/22 – Used for CT’s

2) #12 AWG or 19/25 – Used for PT’s and other control and indication
functions

c. Standard BWP control cables come in 2c, 3c, 4c, and 6c.

d. Belden Type Wire

1) 2c or 3c/18 or 16 AWG –Used from the terminal blocks to the

annunciator panel or RTU cabinet. The usual functions are command for
recloser block or enable, recloser status indication, relay alarms.

D. Electrical Equipment Control Wire:

1. Conductor shall be copper with 600 V rated insulation.

2. Conductors shall be stranded.

3. Surface mark with manufacturer's name or trademark, conductor size, insulation type
and UL label.

4. Conform to UL 44 for Type SIS insulation.

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 5. Conform to UL 83 for Type MTW insulation.

E. Instrumentation Cable:

1. Surface mark with manufacturer's name or trademark, conductor size, insulation type
and UL label.

2. Analog cable:

a. Tinned copper conductors.

b. 300 V or 600 V PVC insulation with PVC jacket.

c. Twisted with 100 percent foil shield coverage with drain wire.

d. Six (6) twists per foot minimum.

e. Individual conductor color coding: ICEA S-58-679, Method 1, Table E-2.

f. Conform to IEEE 1202 or CSA FT-4 or NFPA 262, UL 2250, UL 1581 and NFPA
70 Type ITC.

3. Digital cable:

a. As recommended by equipment (e.g., RTAC, SEL Relays, Network Switches

etc.) manufacturer.

b. Horizontal voice and data cable:

1) Category 6 per TIA/EIA/ANSI 568.

2) Cable shall be label-verified.

3) Cable jacket shall be factory marked at regular intervals indicating

verifying organization and performance level.

4) Conductors: No. 24 AWG solid untinned copper.

5) Rated CMP per NFPA 70.

c. Conform to IEEE 1202 or CSA FT-4 or NFPA 262 and NFPA 70 Type ITC.

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 F. Wire Connectors:

1. Twist/screw on type:

a. Twist/screw type shall not be used on power control cables, control cables,
electric equipment control wire, and instrumentation cable.

b. Insulated pressure or spring type solderless connector.

d. 600 V rated.

e. Ground conductors: Conform to UL 486C and/or UL 467 when required by local

codes.

f. Phase and neutral conductors: Conform to UL 486C.

2. Compression and mechanical screw type:

a. 600 V rated.

b. Ground conductors: Conform to UL 467.

c. Phase and neutral conductors: Conform to UL 486A.

3. Terminal block type:

a. High density, screw-post barrier-type with white center marker strip.

b. 600 V and ampere rating as required, for power circuits.

c. 600 V, 20 ampere rated for control circuits.

d. 300 V, 15 ampere rated for instrumentation circuits.

e. Conform to NEMA ICS 4 and UL 486A.

G. Insulating and Color Coding Tape:

1. Pressure sensitive vinyl.

2. Premium grade.

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 3. Heat, cold, moisture, and sunlight resistant.

4. Thickness, depending on use conditions: 7, 8.5, or 10 mil.

5. For cold weather or outdoor location, tape must also be all-weather.

6. Color:

a. Insulating tape: Black.

b. Color coding tape: Fade-resistant color as specified herein.

7. Comply with UL 510.

H. Pulling Lubricant: Cable manufacturer's standard containing no petroleum or other products

which will deteriorate insulation.

PART 3 EXECUTION

2.2 EXAMINATION

A. Examine substrates for compliance with requirements for installation tolerances and other
conditions affecting performance of cable. Do not proceed with installation until
unsatisfactory conditions have been corrected.

B. If substrate preparation is the responsibility of another installer, notify Engineer Chief of

unsatisfactory preparation before proceeding.

2.3 PREPARATION

A. Clean surfaces thoroughly prior to installation.

B. Prepare surfaces using the methods recommended by the manufacturer for achieving the
best result for the substrate under the project conditions.

2.4 CONDUCTOR MATERIAL APPLICATIONS

A. Comply with recommendations in NEMA VE 2. Install as a complete system, including all

necessary fasteners, hold-down clips, splice-plate support systems, barrier strips, hinged
horizontal and vertical splice plates, elbows, reducers, tees, and crosses.

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 B. Feeders: Soft annealed Copper stranded, class B compressed.

C. Branch Circuits: Copper. Stranded for No. 12 AWG and larger.

D. Minimum Wire Size: #12 awg for power and lighting circuits, #14 awg for control circuits. In
the case of “homeruns” over 125 feet in length, no conductor smaller than a No. 10 wire shall
be used. The tap conductor from the J-box in the ceiling to the receptacle may be No. 12.
Each 120-volt phase conductor shall have a neutral conductor of the same size. The sizing
of all wire except remote control wire shall be accomplished in the case of both feeder and
branch circuits by conforming to the following provisions. Only lighting circuits may share
grounding conductors. All lighting circuits with shared grounding conductors shall be #10
AWG minimum.

2.5 CONDUCTOR INSULATION AND MULTI-CONDUCTOR CABLE APPLICATIONS AND

WIRING METHODS

A. Service Entrance: Type XHHW, or type THHN/THWN up to and including 600 kcmil, single
conductors in conduit.

B. Exposed Feeders: Type THHN/THWN for all sizes up to and including 600 kcmil, single
conductors in conduit.

C. Feeders Concealed in Ceilings, Walls, Partitions, and Crawlspaces: Type XHHW for #2 awg
and larger, or type THHN/THWN for all sizes up to and including 600 kcmil, single
conductors in conduit.

D. Feeders Concealed in Concrete, below Slabs-on-Grade, and underground: Type XHHW for
#2 awg and larger, single conductors in conduit.

E. Exposed Branch Circuits, Including in Crawlspaces: Type XHHW, single conductors in

conduit.

F. Branch Circuits Concealed in Ceilings, Walls, and Partitions: Type XHHW, single conductors
in conduit.

G. Branch Circuits Concealed in Concrete, below Slabs-on-Grade, and underground: Type

XHHW single conductors in conduit.

H. Cord Drops and Portable Appliance Connections: Type SO, hard service cord with

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 stainlesssteel, wire-mesh, and strain relief device at terminations to suit application. Service
voltage shall not exceed 240 VAC.

I. Recessed or Semi-recessed Lighting Fixture Whips: Type THHN-THWN (90 deg C), single
conductors in FMC in lengths not to exceed six (6) feet.

2.6 INSTALLATION OF CONDUCTORS AND CABLES

A. Splices in feeder circuits shall be avoided unless necessitated by the length of the run more
than 500 feet. Locations of all splices shall be approved by the University’s Chief Electrician
and made in Code sized splice box with the word “SPLICE” permanently labeled on cover.

B. Conductors may be run parallel from sizes 250 kcmil up to and including 600 kcmil provided
all paralleled conductors are of the same size, manufacturer, length and type of insulation

C. Homeruns may not contain more than three circuits

D. Use manufacturer-approved pulling compound or lubricant where necessary; compound

used must not deteriorate conductor or insulation. Do not exceed manufacturer's
recommended maximum pulling tensions and sidewall pressure values.

E. Use pulling means; including fish tape, cable, rope, and basket-weave wire/cable grips that
will not damage cables or conduit.

F. Identify and color-code conductors and cables according to Division 26 Section

"Identification for Electrical Systems" for secondary service, feeders and branch circuits.

2.7 CONNECTIONS

A. Tighten electrical connectors and terminals according to manufacturer's published torque

tightening values. If manufacturer's torque values are not indicated, use those specified in
UL 486A.

B. Make splices and taps that are compatible with conductor material and that possess
equivalent or better mechanical strength and insulation ratings than unspliced conductors.

C. Wiring at Outlets: Install conductor at each outlet or junction box with at least 6 inches (150
mm) of slack.

2.8 FIRESTOPPING

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 A. Apply firestopping to electrical penetrations of fire-rated floor and wall assemblies to restore
original fire-resistance rating of assembly according to Division 07 Sections

1. All penetrations shall be under constant visual surveillance until firestopping is

applied.

2. Products: Cooper B –Line, 3m, Hilti, Specified Technologies, Inc.

2.9 FIELD QUALITY CONTROL

A. Perform tests and inspections and prepare test reports.

B. Tests and Inspections:

1. After installing conductors and cables and before electrical circuitry has been
energized, test service entrance and feeder conductors, and conductors feeding the
following critical equipment and services for compliance with requirements.

a. Generator, UPS, and Fire Pump.

2. Perform each visual and mechanical inspection and electrical test stated in NETA
Acceptance Testing Specification. Certify compliance with test parameters.

C. Test Reports: Prepare a written report to record the following:

1. Test procedures used.

2. Test results that comply with requirements.

3. Test results that do not comply with requirements and corrective action taken to
achieve compliance with requirements.

D. Remove and replace non-compliant cables or wires and retest as specified above.

END OF SECTION

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