All of our installations with customers are something special and they are all unique with their own set of requirements to make the install seamless and the machinery hum. While we always test and run our machinery after they are built, there is something special about seeing them all together under one roof, cutting lumber then running trusses, floors, and frames.
A recent install we had at Montgomery Truss & Panel in Grove City, Pennsylvania was indeed something special. We installed Spida machinery, with electrical panels designed and built to UL Standard 508A.
Watch our video to find out more about the UL Listed Mark on our Electrical Panels.
The Situation
When we started talking to this very special customer, he had some conditions under which he was building his new plant – all his machinery purchases had to be UL Certified. So, not only did we make the decision to implement the required changes to our machinery to embrace these UL requirements, we made the huge decision to redesign our electrical cabinets (panels) across our machinery, to comply to the rigorous standards set by UL.
Now more than 12 months later, we are designing our machinery with the coveted UL Standard 508A in the US and Canada.
UL Certification Training
It has been a massive undertaking for Spida to design and manufacture machinery for the US and Canadian markets, complying to UL Standard 508A.
We sent our people to UL Certification training – a bit like boot camp – and then brought them back and gave them the task of redesigning machinery that we had been producing for years. Designing to UL standards from an electrical point of view is no mean feat, requiring many hours of design, sourcing compliant materials, changing and modifying current manufacturing procedures and then building to compliance.
What Does the UL Listed Mark Mean For You, Our Customer?
It means that you have access to all of the advantages of UL508A certification, including enhanced safety, compliance with regulations, increased customer confidence and the ability to meet certain standards that are sometimes imposed by your region.
Most importantly, you’ll have confidence that when you see the UL Listed mark, you know that your machinery control panels have gone through rigorous testing to be leaders in design, materials, and manufacturing techniques.
National Electrical Code (NEC) and UL
Each state (or even each town within a state) will have its own rules and interpretation of what is needed for safe electrical installations – but generally they fall in line with the National Electrical Code (NEC).
The NEC defines a term called Listed – as being products that have been evaluated and found acceptable by a third-party certification organization (Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory – NRTL) of which UL is one. Products are Listed to an appropriate product standard. In the case of control panels, UL508A is the nationally recognized standard, so when a UL Listed mark is put on a product, it indicates that it has been independently assessed that it can safely be installed in accordance with the NEC. Local electrical inspectors who enforce the NEC will generally look for products to be Listed.
We at Spida recognize that your confidence in your new Truss, Frame and Floor Manufacturing plant is paramount. We are pleased to provide you with new and innovative machinery that complies with UL 508A. You’ll have machinery that is fit for purpose and complies with your local standards, and there will be no surprises when an inspector comes to survey the site.
Talk to your local Account Manager to learn more.
