Modular Office Furniture Wiring

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Modular Office Furniture Wiring

March 26, 2025
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2026 NEC CMP-18 Public Input Report

CMP-18 Second Draft Report

“Office in a Small City” (1953) / Edward Hopper

Modular furniture systems with integral power and telecommunication fittings require attention to power and digital pathways.   “Modular systems furniture” is a generic term for bundles of panels, worksurfaces, shelves, and other items sold by a single manufacturer as a package for furnishing offices.  The modular furniture system environment is characterized by close proximity to electrical energy.   Where there is electrical energy there are concerns for shock and fire safety.

Fire safety considerations appear in NFPA 70 National Electrical Code (NEC)– generally in Articles 210 (Branch Circuits), Article 220 (Branch Circuit, Feeder and Service Load Calculations) — and with more specific safety considerations appearing in Articles 604 (Manufactured Wiring Systems) and Article 605 (Office Furnishings).   The current edition of the National Electrical Code is linked below:

Public Access 2023 National Electrical Code

Over the past 30-odd years modular furniture manufacturers have worked out a lot of the bugs in products; making it easier for furniture contractors to deliver a safer and more effective installation.  What remains are site-specific conditions — such as lighting load, current draw of space heaters and personal air conditioners through the furniture power pathway — that must be reckoned with.   A sample of other considerations:

  • Harmonic heating of the furniture pathway caused by non-linear, harmonic load
  • The risk of double-phasing when circuit breakers are joined with handle ties back at the panelboard and share a neutral
  • Any lighting equipment used with the partitions must have of properly sized cord no more than 9 ft long
  • Modularity in power tap cords (“whips’) between furniture raceways and the first gathering point

There are other safety and sustainability issues related to USB outlets, and data/voice outlets[2] that we will cover in another post and in our collaborations with IEEE SCC-18 and the IEEE Education & Healthcare Facilities Committee (IEEE E&H).

Seneca College / Toronto

We find office wiring a relatively lively “promontary” in safety and sustainability circles.   The transcript of debate among interior wiring experts is always a good place to listen in on the technical discussion; linked below:

Public Input Report – 2023 National Electrical Code Panel 7 

Public Input Report – 2023 National Electrical Code Panel 18

We find manufactured wiring concepts tracking that effects office occupancies for all industries.  Market incumbents continue advocacy for more ground fault and tamper-resistant receptacles in day care and gymnasium.

A more significant debate tracks in Chapter 2 — related to office modular furniture wiring because electrical load calculations determine how designers specify branch circuits for all occupancy classifications present in education communities (which is nearly every occupancy type defined in the International Building Code):

Public Input Report – 2023 National Electrical Code Panel 2

,Standards Michigan, beginning with its inspiration in the original University of Michigan standards advocacy enterprises, has a long and storied engagement with Chapter 2 of the NEC covered here and also academic literature and also in research sponsored by NFPA’s Fire Protection Research Foundation.

We always encourage our workpoint experts in the thousands of electrical and telecommunication units in the education and healthcare facilities industry to participate directly in the NFPA Code Development process (CLICK HERE to join a committee).

Since both the National Electrical Code and the National Electrical Safety Code revision cycles are roughly coincident in 2021 we working on electrical power issues every day, collaborating with the IEEE E&H Committee.   Online meetings are open to everyone.

 

Issue: [16-102]

Category: Electrical, Interior Furnishings, Telecommunications

Colleagues: Mike Anthony, Jim Harvey, Massimo Mitolo

 

[1]  Rightsizing electrical power systems in large commercial facilities

[2] Commercial Building Telecommunications Cabling Standard

More

 

 

Turkey Pot Pie Soup

March 25, 2025
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Cornell University Dining: Student & Campus Life

Number of servings per recipe: 8

Number of servings per recipe: 8

Ingredients:

  • 1/4 cup flour
  • 2 cups turkey stock
  • 4 cups fat free milk
  • 2 large celery stalks, chopped
  • 1 1/2 cups chopped onion
  • 8 oz sliced cremini mushrooms
  • Salt and pepper to taste
  • 2 Tablespoons chopped parsley
  • 8 oz frozen peas and carrots
  • 1 teaspoon turkey bullion
  • 2 medium potatoes, cubed small
  • 16 oz cooked turkey breast, diced small or shredded

Directions:

  • 1.Create a slurry by combining 1/2 cup of the cold broth with flour in a medium bowl and whisk until well blended. Set aside.
  • 2.Pour remaining broth and milk into a large pot and slowly bring to a boil.
  • 3.Add celery, onion, mushrooms, parsley, fresh pepper, frozen vegetables, and bullion, and return to a boil. Partially cover and simmer on low until vegetables are soft, about 20 minutes.
  • 4.Remove lid, add potatoes and cook until soft, about 5 minutes.
  • 5.Add turkey, and slowly whisk in slurry, stirring well as you add. Cook another 2-3 minutes, until soup thickens, adjust salt and pepper to taste and serve.

*Recipe from Skinny Taste

Nutrition Information: 1 1/3 cups| servings per recipe: 8 | Calories: 192, total fat: 2 g, saturated fat: 0 g, trans fat: 0 g; cholesterol: 1.3 mg, sodium: 159 mg, carbohydrates: 27 g, fiber: 8.3 g, sugar: 8.5 g, protein: 18 g

Standards New York

Illumination 300

March 25, 2025
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IEEE Education & Healthcare Facilities Committee

Outdoor Sport Illumination Technical Issues & Representative Calculation

“Starry Night Over the Rhône” 1888 Vincent van Gogh

Today we refresh our understanding of the moment in illumination technologies for outdoor lighting systems— related but different from our exploration of building interior illumination systems in Illumination 200.  Later in 2023 we will roll out Illumination 500 which explores litigation related to public illumination technology.  As cities-within-cities the shared perimeter of a campus with the host municipality has proven rich in legal controversy and action.

Illumination technology was the original inspiration for the electric utility industry; providing night-time security and transforming every sector of every economy on earth.  Lighting load remains the largest component of any building’s electric load — about 35 percent– making it a large target for energy regulations.

Our inquiry begins with selections from the following documents…

International Electrotechnical Commission TC 34 Lighting

IEC 60364 Electrical Installations in Buildings

2023 National Electrical Safety Code

IEEE P3001.9 – Recommended Practice for the Design of Power Systems Supplying Lighting Systems in Commercial and Industrial Facilities

Institution of Engineering and Technology: Recommendations for Energy-efficient Exterior Lighting Systems

2023 National Electrical Code: Article 410  (While the bulk of the NEC concerns indoor wiring fire hazards, there are passages that inform outdoor lighting wiring safety)

2019 ASHRAE 90.1: Chapter 9 Lighting

Illumination Engineering Society: Various titles

ISO/TC 274 Light and lighting

Salt Water River Project: Outdoor Lighting Standards

US DOE-EERE Building Energy Codes Program

…and about 20 other accredited, consortia or ad hoc standards developers and publishers aligned principally with vertical incumbents.  Illumination was the original inspiration (i.e. the first “killer app”) for the electrical power industry in every nation.  Its best practice literature reflects a fast-moving, shape-changing domain.

Click in today with the login credentials at the upper right of our home page.

Upper Wharfedale Primary Federation School District Yorkshire Dales

McGill University: Before electricity, streets were filled with gas lights

Outdoor lighting systems can be owned and maintained by different entities depending on the context and location. Here are some examples of ownership regimes for outdoor lighting systems:

  1. Public ownership: In this case, outdoor lighting systems are owned and maintained by the local government or municipal authority. The lighting may be installed in public spaces such as parks, streets, and other outdoor areas for the safety and convenience of the public.
  2. Private ownership: Outdoor lighting systems may be owned by private individuals or organizations. For example, a business owner may install outdoor lighting for security or aesthetic reasons, or a homeowner may install outdoor lighting in their garden or yard.
  3. Co-owned: Outdoor lighting systems may be owned jointly by multiple entities. For example, a residential community may jointly own and maintain outdoor lighting in their shared spaces such as parking areas, community parks, or recreational facilities.
  4. Utility ownership: Outdoor lighting systems may be owned and maintained by utility companies such as electric or energy companies. These companies may install and maintain street lights or other lighting systems for the public good.
  5. Third-party ownership: In some cases, a third-party entity may own and maintain outdoor lighting systems on behalf of a public or private entity. For example, a lighting contractor may install and maintain lighting in a public park on behalf of a local government.

The ownership regime of an outdoor lighting system can have implications for issues such as installation, maintenance, and cost-sharing. It is important to consider ownership when designing and implementing outdoor lighting systems to ensure their long-term effectiveness and sustainability.

More

International Commission on Illumination

National Electrical Manufacturers Association

National Electrical Contractors Association

Representative Specifications

Sam Houston State University | Division 26500 Interior and Exterior Lighting

University of Delaware | Division 265100 Interior Lighting

Cal Poly University San Luis Obispo | Division 265100 Interior Lighting

Relevant Research

Enhancing the Sustainability of Outdoor Floodlighting for Cultural Heritage Buildings

The Performance and Impact of LED Floodlights in an Outdoor Electrical Substation During Misty Weather Conditions

Replacement of HPS Luminaires with LED Luminaires for the Lighting Requirements of an Outdoor Electrical Substation

 

Luminaires, Lampholders, and Lamps

March 25, 2025
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Best wiring safety practice for the illumination of educational settlement occupancies is scattered throughout the National Electrical Code with primary consideration for wiring fire safety:

  • Article 410 – Covers the installation of luminaires (fixtures), lampholders, and lamps, including requirements for wiring, grounding, and support.
  • Article 210 – Covers branch circuit requirements, including those for lighting circuits in dwellings and commercial buildings.
  • Article 220 – Provides guidelines for calculating lighting loads.
  • Article 225 – Addresses outside lighting installations.
  • Article 240 – Covers overcurrent protection for lighting circuits.
  • Article 250 – Deals with grounding and bonding, which is essential for lighting circuits.
  • Article 300 – Covers general wiring methods that apply to lighting circuits.

We have done a fair amount of work on this topic over the years, including writing the chapter on campus outdoor lighting for the soon-to-be-released IEEE 3001.9 Recommended Practice for the Design of Power Systems Supplying Lighting Systems in Commercial and Industrial Facilities.   

For our meeting please refer to the workspace we have set up for the 2026 Revision of the NEC:

2026 National Electrical Code Workspace

We will pick through specifics in the transcripts of Code Making Panels 10 and 18.

 

International Building Code: Chapter 12 Section 1204 Lighting

Outdoor Lighting Design Guide

March 25, 2025
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Sport Lighting

March 25, 2025
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IES LP-6-2x Lighting Practice: Lighting Control Systems

 

Athletic and recreational sports enterprises are important features in education communities; supportive of brand identity and cohort creation.  Assuring the safety and sustainability of these assets is informed by several best practice titles; among them the Illuminating Engineering Society recommended practice RP-6-15 Sports and Recreational Area Lighting  From the project prospectus:

The purpose of RP-6-15  is to provide the reader with recommendations to aid in the design of sports lighting systems. Popular sports, such as baseball, tennis, basketball and football as well as recreational social activities, such as horseshoe pitching and croquet are covered. Venues for spectators of amateur, collegiate, and professional sports are complex facilities that should provide not only for the spectators, but also the equipment used in modern sports broadcasting. This document does not address those needs, so the reader should look for guidance from the sports league or the project consultant.
Sports lighting systems consume power which over time can be significant, and IES RP-6-15 defines methods for maximizing energy efficiency.

The IES-suite joins standards developed by the International Code Council (International Building Code), the Institute of Electrical and Electronic Engineers (IEEE 3001.9) and the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA 70) that must be applied skillfully by design professionals and understood by athletic facility managers.  Other consensus standards developers such as the American Society of Heating and Refrigeration Engineers and the Entertainment Services and Technology Association were moving into this domain before the circumstances of the pandemic.

We always encourage our colleagues in the education industry to do so themselves; starting with the links below:

Committees

IES Standards Open for Public Review

"People don’t notice whether it’s winter or summer when they’re happy" -- Anton Chekhov

Comments on proposed changes to IES LP-6-2x Lighting Practice: Lighting Control Systems – Properties, Selection, and Specification will be received until April 1st

Comments on Draft “IES TM-39  Technical Memorandum: Quantification and Specification of Flicker” will be received until August 12th
Keep in mind that the IES typically deals with the application of best practice in illumination.  It neither covers the reliability of the power systems nor the power chain to the luminaries.  Recommended practice for the power chain are now being developed by the IEEE Industrial Applications Society; specifically IEEE 3001.9 – Recommended Practice for the Design of Power Systems Supplying Lighting Systems in Commercial and Industrial Facilities.  The IEEE Education & Healthcare Facilities Committee pulls together ALL the standards — ICC, IEEE, IEC, NFPA, IES, ASHRAE, ASTM, ESTA and any other emergent consensus or open source documents that might set the standard of care for the education industry.

University of Michigan

The IEEE E&H Committee meets online 4 times monthly in Europe and the United States; and those meetings are open to the public (CLICK HERE).   Additionally, we set aside one hour every month to walk through the entire suite of standards for sports and recreation facilities.   See our CALENDAR for the date of our next Athletic & Recreation standards teleconference.  Login credential are at the upper right of our home page

Issue: [16-132]

Category: Electrical, Athletics & Recreation

Colleagues: Mike Anthony, Jim Harvey, Kane Howard

Related:

Designing Lighting for People and Buildings

Engineering in Sport

Energy Standard for Sites & Buildings: Lighting

March 25, 2025
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University of Michigan

The American Society of Heating, Refrigerating, and Air Conditioning Engineers (ASHRAE) is an ANSI-accredited continuous-maintenance standards developer (a major contributor to what we call a regulatory product development “stream”).   Continuous maintenance means that changes to titles in its catalog can change in as little as 30-45 days.  This is meaningful to jurisdictions that require conformance to the “latest” version of ASHRAE 90.1

Among the leading titles in its catalog is ASHRAE 90.1 Energy Standard for Sites and Buildings Except Low-Rise Residential Buildings.  Standard 90.1 has been a benchmark for commercial building energy codes in the United States and a key basis for codes and standards around the world for more than 35 years.  Free access to ASHRAE 90.1 version is available at the link below:

READ ONLY Version of 2022 ASHRAE 90.1

If you cannot access it with the link above, try the link below and select 90.1 from the title list:

Current Popular ASHRAE Standards and Guidelines

Chapter 9: Lighting, begins on Page 148, and therein lie the tables that are the most widely used metrics (lighting power densities) by electrical and illumination engineers for specifying luminaires and getting them wired and controlled “per code”.   Many jurisdictions provide access to this Chapter without charge.  Respecting ASHRAE’s copyright, we will not do so here but will use them during today’s Illumination Colloquium, 16:00 UTC.

Keep in mind that recently ASHRAE expanded the scope of 90.1 to include energy usage in the spaces between buildings:

25 January 2023: Newly Released ASHRAE 90.1-2022 Includes Expanded Scope For Building Sites

At this time, there are no redlines open for public comment

Online Standards Actions & Public Review Drafts

Education industry facility managers, energy conservation workgroups, sustainability officers, electric shop foreman, electricians and front-line maintenance professionals who change lighting fixtures, maintain environmental air systems are encouraged to participate directly in the ASHRAE consensus standard development process.

Univerzita Karlova

We also maintain ASHRAE best practice titles as standing items on our Mechanical, Water, Energy and Illumination colloquia.  See our CALENDAR for the next online meeting; open to everyone.

Issue: [Various]

Category: Mechanical, Electrical, Energy Conservation, Facility Asset Management, US Department of Energy, #SmartCampus

Colleagues: Mike Anthony, Larry Spielvogel, Richard Robben

Under Construction:  ASHRAE WORKSPACE

More:

Consulting-Specifying Engineer (March 4, 2025): Why and how to adopt the IECC for energy-efficient designs

US Department of Energy Codes Program: Power and Lighting

Rightsizing Electrical Power Systems

N.B. We are knocking on ASHRAE’s door to accept proposals for reducing building interior power chain energy and material waste that we cannot persuade National Electrical Code committee to include in the 2026 revision of the National Electrical Code.

Rightsizing Electrical Power Systems

March 25, 2025
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Standards Michigan, spun-off in 2016 from the original University of Michigan Business & Finance Operation, has peppered NFPA 70 technical committees writing the 2016-2026 National Electric Code with proposals to reduce the size of building premise feeder infrastructure; accommodating the improvements made in illumination and rotating machinery energy conservation since the 1980’s (variable frequency drives, LED lighting, controls, etc.)

These proposals are routinely voted down in 12-20 member committees representing manufacturers (primarily) though local inspection authorities are complicit in overbuilding electric services because they “bill by the service panel ampere rating”.  In other words, when a municipality can charge a higher inspection fee for a 1200 ampere panel, what incentive is there to support changes to the NEC that takes that inspection fee down to 400 amperes?

The energy conservation that would result from the acceptance of our proposals into the NEC are related to the following: reduced step down transformer sizes, reduced wire and conduit sizes, reduced panelboard sizes, reduced electric room cooling systems — including the HVAC cooling systems and the ceiling plenum sheet metal carrying the waste heat away.   Up to 20 percent energy savings is in play here and all the experts around the table know it.   So much for the economic footprint of the largest non-residential building construction market in the United States — about $120 billion annually.

The market incumbents are complicit in ignoring energy conservation opportunity.  To paraphrase one of Mike Anthony’s colleagues representing electrical equipment manufacturers:

“You’re right Mike, but I am getting paid to vote against you.”

NFPA Electrical Division knows it, too.

University of Michigan

 

Rightsizing Commercial Electrical Power Systems: Review of a New Exception in NEC Section 220.12

Michael A. Anthony – James R. Harvey

University of Michigan, Ann Arbor

Thomas L. Harman

University of Houston, Clear Lake, Texas

For decades, application of National Electrical Code (NEC) rules for sizing services, feeders and branch circuits has resulted in unused capacity in almost all occupancy classes. US Department of Energy data compiled in 1999 indicates average load on building transformers between 10 and 25 percent. More recent data gathered by the educational facilities industry has verified this claim. Recognizing that aggressive energy codes are driving energy consumption lower, and that larger than necessary transformers create larger than necessary flash hazard, the 2014 NEC will provide an exception in Section 220.12 that will permit designers to reduce transformer kVA ratings and all related components of the power delivery system. This is a conservative, incremental step in the direction of reduced load density that is limited to lighting systems. More study of feeder and branch circuit loading is necessary to inform discussion about circuit design methods in future revisions of the NEC.

CLICK HERE for complete paper

University of Houston

2026 National Electrical Code Workspace

Kindergarten

March 24, 2025
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International Building Code: Group A Model Building Codes: 2024/2025/2026 Development Cycle

 

“One Hundred Children Playing in the Spring” | Su Hanchen 蘇漢臣

Safety and sustainability for any facility begins with an understanding of who shall occupy the built environment and how.  University settings, with mixed-use phenomenon arising spontaneously and temporarily, often present challenges.   Educational communities are a convergent settings for families; day care facilities among them.  First principles regarding occupancy classifications for day care facilities appear in Section 308 of the International Building Code, Institutional Group I; linked below:

Section 308 | International Building Code

The ICC Institutional Group I-4 classification includes buildings and structures occupied by more than five persons of any age who received custodial care for fewer than 24 hours per day by persons other than parents or guardian, relatives by blood, marriage or adoption, and in a place other than the home of the person cared far.  This group includes both adult and child day care.

We maintain focus on child day care.  Many educational communities operate child day care enterprises for both academic study and/or as auxiliary (university employee benefit) enterprises.

Princeton University Child Care Center

Each of the International Code Council code development groups fetch back to a shared understanding of the nature of the facility; character of its occupants and prospective usage patterns.

The Group B developmental cycle ended in December 2019.  The 2021 revision of the International Building code is in production now, though likely slowed down because of the pandemic.   Ahead of the formal, market release of the Group B tranche of titles, you can sample the safety concepts in play during this revision with an examination of the documents linked below:

2019 GROUP B PROPOSED CHANGES TO THE I-CODES ALBUQUERQUE COMMITTEE ACTION HEARINGS

2019 REPORT OF THE COMMITTEE ACTION HEARINGS ON THE 2018 EDITIONS OF THE GROUP B INTERNATIONAL CODES

Search on the terms “day care” and “daycare” to get a sample of the prevailing concepts; use of such facilities as storm shelters, for example.

“The Country School” | Winslow Homer

We encourage our safety and sustainability colleagues to participate directly in the ICC Code Development process.   We slice horizontally through the disciplinary silos (“incumbent verticals”) created by hundreds of consensus product developers every week and we can say, upon considerable authority that the ICC consensus product development environment is one of the best in the world.  Privately developed standards (for use by public agencies) is a far better way to discover and promulgate leading practice than originating technical specifics from legislative bodies.   CLICK HERE to get started.  Contact Kimberly Paarlberg ([email protected]) for more information.

There are competitor consensus products in this space — Chapter 18 Day-Care Occupancies in NFPA 5000 Building Construction and Safety Code, for example; a title we maintain the standing agenda of our Model Building Code teleconferences.   It is developed from a different pool of expertise under a different due process regime.   See our CALENDAR for the next online meeting; open to everyone.

 

Issue: [18-166]

Category: Architectural, Healthcare Facilities, Facility Asset Management

Colleagues: Mike Anthony, Jim Harvey, Richard Robben

Several names for this occupancy class:

  1. Nursery
  2. Crèche
  3. Playgroup
  4. Montessori
  5. Preschool
  6. Kindergarten
  7. Childcare
  8. Toddler group
  9. Daycare
  10. Early learning center

A Study of Children’s Password Practices

 

Lovely Day

March 24, 2025
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Recorded January 2015

Mathieu Manach : Percussions

Jean-Michel Warluzelle : Bass & background vocal

Bruno Thivend : Guitar & background vocal

Pierric Tailler : Vocal & guitar

Bill Withers Official Site

Université de Lyon | Fête des Lumières 2019 – Les Rêveries Lumineuses de Léonard

 

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