Electrical design in factories plays a central role in the operation of any manufacturing facility, determining production efficiency, workplace safety, and operating costs. A standardized electrical system in factory design not only helps businesses save energy but also minimizes the risk of fire, explosions, and production interruptions due to technical failures.
However, failure to comply with electrical design standards can expose factories to risks such as short circuits, overloads, energy loss, and reduced equipment lifespan. Therefore, understanding and applying electrical design standards is crucial for businesses to operate safely, efficiently, and sustainably.
In this article, BIC will provide a comprehensive overview of the important standards in factory electrical design. If you're looking for a complete guide to ensure your factory's electrical system meets standards, this is the valuable information for you!
Electrical Design Standards for Factories
For investors, adhering to electrical design standards for factories is a mandatory requirement to ensure operational safety, maintain production efficiency, and minimize the risk of incidents. Below are four important standards that investors need to understand to ensure the electrical system operates stably and sustainably.
1. General Standards
Electrical safety technical standards are stipulated in the National Technical Regulation QCVN QTĐ 8:2010/BCT, issued by the Ministry of Industry and Trade according to Circular 04/2011/TT-BCT. This regulation outlines specific requirements to ensure that the electrical system in factories and workshops meets safety criteria.
- Compliance with General Standards: The electrical system must fully meet safety requirements for electrical conductors and electrical protection devices such as fuses and circuit breakers. Regular inspection and maintenance are necessary to detect and promptly address any problems, ensuring safety for people, property, and the working environment.
- Protection Against Electric Shock: The system needs to have measures in place to protect users from the risk of electric shock upon direct contact with the power source or in the event of electrical leakage from equipment casings.
- Protection Against Overheating: Electrical equipment must be arranged reasonably to minimize the risk of fire or explosion due to excessive temperatures or electrical sparks.
- Overcurrent Protection: Devices such as automatic circuit breakers and overload protection devices need to be installed to prevent current from exceeding the permissible level, which could cause short circuits and fires.
- Protection Against Fault Current: Conductors and electrical equipment must be designed to limit excessive temperature, preventing the risk of fire and explosion due to electrical faults.
- Overvoltage Protection: The electrical system needs to be equipped with automatic cut-off devices that activate when the voltage exceeds safe limits, helping to prevent incidents such as electric shock, fire, explosion, or equipment damage due to voltage surges.
Besides adhering to electrical technical standards, the fire protection system (FPS) plays a crucial role in safeguarding factories from fire and explosion hazards. Investors should consult additional regulations regarding factory FPS to ensure maximum safety for production facilities.
2. Electrical Drawing Standards in Factory Design
Electrical design is a significant aspect of factory design, construction implementation, and electrical system quality control. It is a technical document that must comply with regulations concerning presentation, symbols, and electrical system layout within the factory. A standard drawing aids the construction team in accurate execution, minimizes errors, and ensures safety during installation.
Below are some essential standards to adhere to when designing electrical drawings for factories:
- TCVN 5699-1:2010 – Standard for household electrical appliances and similar electrical appliances, ensuring safety in industrial electrical systems.
- TCVN 8241-4-2:2009 – Standard for electromagnetic compatibility (EMC), ensuring immunity to electrostatic discharge and electromagnetic environmental influences. This standard complies with IEC 61000-4-2:2001.
- TCVN 7922:2008 – Regulations on technical symbols used in electrical drawings, equivalent to IEC 60617:2002. This helps standardize technical language, facilitating drawing comprehension.
- TCXDVN 319:2004 – Standard for designing and installing grounding systems for industrial factories, protecting equipment and people from electric shock hazards.
- TCVN 3715:1982 – Regulations on complete transformer substations with a capacity of 1000kVA and a voltage of 20kV, ensuring a stable electrical system suitable for the factory's usage needs.
In addition, the electrical design of a factory must ensure readability and comprehensibility. Drawings must use technical symbols according to national and international standards, ensuring that the actual proportions of the details are reflected during installation. This helps the construction unit easily grasp and correctly execute the design, thereby speeding up progress and minimizing the risk of errors.
Besides complying with electrical system standards, the arrangement of escape routes in the factory design is also an important factor to consider. This helps ensure the safety of workers in the event of an incident.
3. Factory Electrical Panel Installation Standards
Electrical panels in factories are crucial components that coordinate, protect, and control the entire electrical system in factory designs, industrial parks, and production facilities. To ensure safe and efficient operation, the electrical design and installation of electrical panels must adhere to the following technical standards.
Low-voltage electrical panels must be made from durable materials that are corrosion-resistant and can withstand industrial environmental conditions. Specifically:
- Electrical Panel Enclosure: Typically made of stainless steel or powder-coated steel for increased durability and safety during use.
- Protection Class: Electrical panels may have one or two layers of doors to increase resistance to dust, water, and prevent external agents from entering.
- Power Supply Type: Can use single-phase (220V AC) or three-phase (380V AC) power, depending on the scale and usage needs of the factory.
- Rated Current: Ranges from 10A to 6300A.
- Breaking Capacity: Must be in the range of 5kA to 100kA.
- Operating Frequency: 50/60Hz, suitable for standard industrial power grids.
- IEC 60439-1: Specifies the design and assembly of low-voltage switchgear and controlgear assemblies, ensuring system consistency and quality.
- IEC 60947-2: Standard for low-voltage switchgear and controlgear, helping the system operate stably and preventing electrical incidents.
- IEC 61641: Standard for arc fault containment, helping to minimize the risk of fire and explosion.
- IEC 60529: Standard for the degree of protection provided by enclosures (IP code), specifying the resistance to dust and water, suitable for the factory environment.
- Height: From 1m to 2m.
- Width: Ranging from 0.5m to 1.8m.
- Depth: From 0.3m to 0.8m.
Compliance with these standards not only ensures safety but also helps the factory's electrical design operate efficiently, minimizes the risk of incidents, contributes to extending equipment lifespan, and optimizes operating costs for the business.
- Galvanized Steel: Widely used due to its rust resistance and reasonable cost.
- Stainless Steel 304: High durability and excellent corrosion resistance, suitable for high-humidity environments or chemical exposure.
- Aluminum: Lightweight and easy to install, suitable for cable systems with lighter loads.
- Load Capacity: The deflection between two support points must be less than 1/300 of the span to ensure rigidity and load-bearing capacity.
- Distance between Supports: Commonly ranges from 1.2m to 2m, helping to maintain system stability.
- Cable Tray/Ladder Bend Radius: Must be designed to suit the equipment and the cable diameter:
+ If the outer diameter is less than 100mm, the bend radius R = 400mm.
+ If the outer diameter is from 100mm to 160mm, the bend radius R = 600mm.
- Use cable trays and trunking only when there is a need to route electrical wires and protective signals, helping to organize conductors neatly and avoid clutter.
- Complete the installation of cable trays and trunking before running electrical wires to minimize damage to the cable system during construction.
- Protect the cable tray and trunking system with accompanying accessories, such as:
+ Elbows, tees, cross connectors: Support flexible installation at intersections.
+ Covers: Protect cables from dust, water, and external impacts.
- Ensure standard spacing between components and secure them firmly with supports or hangers to increase stability.
- The cable tray and trunking system must be easy to assemble, disassemble, and maintain, facilitating inspection and repair when necessary.
Proper installation of cable trays and trunking according to standards helps the electrical system operate safely and sustainably, reducing the risk of short circuits and extending the lifespan of electrical equipment in factories and workshops.
- Classification of lightning protection systems: Direct lightning strike protection and surge protection (protecting electrical and electronic equipment).
- Determining the protection zone: The lightning protection system must ensure the shielding of the entire construction, especially areas susceptible to impact, such as the factory roof and areas housing important electrical equipment.
- Selecting a lightning protection method: Use Franklin lightning rods or a mesh lightning rod system. Apply advanced lightning protection technologies such as Early Streamer Emission (ESE) lightning rods.
- Surge protection: Install surge protection devices (SPDs) at main electrical panels, distribution panels, and control systems.
Lightning Rod:
- Installed at the highest point of the structure.
- The height of the lightning rod is calculated based on the protection radius according to TCVN 9385:2012 standard.
- Constructed from corrosion-resistant materials such as galvanized steel, copper, or stainless steel.
Down Conductors:
- Use bare copper cable or galvanized steel cable with a cross-sectional area ≥ 50mm².
- Conductors should follow a straight path, minimizing sharp bends to reduce resistance.
- Secured firmly, avoiding contact with flammable materials.
- According to TCVN 9385:2012 standard, the minimum distance between the down conductor and electrical systems is 1.5m – 2m, depending on the voltage level of the system.
- Surge protection devices (SPDs) should be installed at the main electrical panel, distribution boards, and critical equipment to prevent voltage surges.
Installing the lightning protection and grounding system according to standards not only protects the safety of the structure but also helps extend the lifespan of electrical equipment, minimizing the risk of production interruptions due to electrical incidents.
Designing electrical systems for factories requires ensuring full compliance with technical requirements, safety standards, and efficient usage. Before starting, it's crucial to gather and analyze detailed electrical parameters of the factory, including total energy consumption, the quantity and power of electrical equipment, the need for specialized electrical systems like backup power, and safety protection requirements.
The electrical system must be designed in accordance with current regulations regarding connection, protection, lightning protection, and energy saving. An important factor is dividing the electrical system into appropriate zones for ease of management and control. Areas such as production, corridors, offices, and canteens may require separate electrical system designs to ensure maximum efficiency and safety.
Furthermore, the system should be equipped with protective devices like overload and short-circuit protection to minimize the risk of fire, explosion, and equipment failure. Choosing high-quality electrical materials not only extends the system's lifespan but also ensures operational stability. Simultaneously, a logical arrangement of electrical equipment, wiring, and outlets is crucial to facilitate usage and maintenance, and to avoid potential safety hazards like obstructions or short circuits.
The lighting system should also be designed to suit each usage area, ensuring both work efficiency and optimized energy consumption. Furthermore, equipping a backup system such as a generator helps maintain the continuous operation of the factory in the event of a power outage.
A critical factor is the lightning protection and grounding system. The design needs to be robust and effective in protecting the factory from lightning strikes, minimizing incidents related to short circuits and fires caused by natural disasters.
Finally, the factory's electrical design must be equipped with comprehensive safety measures to minimize the risk of electric shock, while also providing safety guidelines for operating personnel. Storing electrical design drawings along with operating and maintenance manuals will enable the management unit to easily control and maintain the system in the future, ensuring stable and long-term operation.
Designing a factory's electrical system requires strict adherence to technical standards to ensure safety, efficiency, and system lifespan. To ensure the factory's electrical system operates stably and meets standards, collaboration with professional factory design consulting units is essential. If you are looking for an optimal solution for your factory's electrical system, contact BIC immediately for detailed consultation and support.
