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IP Ratings - What Are They and What Do They Mean?: Written by Abumessi Journey On 7:36 PM

Electrical cabinets are used in many industrial environments to safely manage electricity. Standards like IP ratings and NEMA ratings classify protection levels against contact with electricity and intrusion from solids, liquids, and dust. IP ratings use a two-digit system where the first number rates protection against solids and the second against liquids. NEMA ratings provide additional qualifications for the North American industrial environment. Understanding these standards is important for selecting the properly protected enclosure for a given environment and application.

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60 views4 pages

IP Ratings - What Are They and What Do They Mean?: Written by Abumessi Journey On 7:36 PM

Electrical cabinets are used in many industrial environments to safely manage electricity. Standards like IP ratings and NEMA ratings classify protection levels against contact with electricity and intrusion from solids, liquids, and dust. IP ratings use a two-digit system where the first number rates protection against solids and the second against liquids. NEMA ratings provide additional qualifications for the North American industrial environment. Understanding these standards is important for selecting the properly protected enclosure for a given environment and application.

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Banci Ngamen
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© © All Rights Reserved
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IP Ratings What are they and what do they mean?


Written by Abumessi Journey on 7:36 PM

Electrical cabinets are one of those ubiquitous elements in industrial


environments. It doesnt matter what industry you are in whether its
discrete, process , utility, building and construction or even commercial retail everything needs power. That
means cables and relays carrying what may be a dangerous amount of electricity that need to be protected from
the elements and environment on one side and people that need to be protected from accidental exposure on the
other.
The consequences of such accidental exposure can be tragic. According to statistics collected and published by
Capelli-Schellpfeffer, Inc., electrical accidents called arc flashes kill one or two people in the United States every
day. Many more are injured and then there is the cost of damaged equipment and lost production to consider.
Numerous standards have been devised to reduce the frequency of such accidents and make industrial
environments as safe as possible. These standards govern every aspect of equipment and procedures used for
managing electricity. For example, IEC 60529 classifies the level of protection provided against accidental contact
with live electrical parts and the intrusion of solid objects (including tools and body parts like hands and fingers),
dust, and water in electrical enclosures.
However, there is more to adhering to safety standards than including them as requirements in an RFP. You have
to know what they mean so you can select the right equipment for the right task and enforce their use. And that
can be a challenge as you have to understand what the different ratings mean and how they are applied in your
particular environment. In the case of IEC 60529 the grading is called an IP rating.
IP is short for Ingress Protection, and is specifically oriented to the amount of security an electrical cabinet has
against the intrusion of either solid objects, dust or moisture, says John Kovacik, Principal Engineer, industrial
control equipment with Underwriters Laboratories Inc. Underwriters Laboratories is an independent product safety
certification organization that has been testing products and writing safety standards for more than a century. The
IP rating is very important for knowing what kind of enclosure is appropriate for your particular environment and
application.
An IP rating consists of the letters IP followed by two numbers and an optional letter. The numbers provide a
grading against a set of conditions specifically delineating the level of protection an enclosure has against the
penetration of solids and dust (first number) or liquids (second number). If a cabinet has no rating against one of
these categories of penetration, the number is replaced with an X. For example, an electrical socket rated IP22 is
protected against the insertion of fingers and will continue to function safely when exposed to vertically or nearly
vertically dripping water. IP22 or IP2X are typical minimum requirements for the design of electrical accessories
for indoor use.
IP ratings are very important to people setting up equipment in almost any environment, says Kovacik, who adds
that enclosures are further categorized by the environments they are designed for. If you are setting up an
electrical cabinet in an outdoor environment in Alaska, you need to know the enclosure you purchase can
withstand severe winter conditions. Buying an enclosure engineered for an indoor SMT line wont satisfy your
needs. These ratings help you determine what type of enclosure is right for your requirements.
Solids
First
Number

Object size
protected
against

Effective against

No protection against contact and ingress of objects

>50 mm

Any large surface of the body, such as the back of a hand, but no protection against
deliberate contact with a body part

>12.5 mm

Fingers or similar objects

>2.5 mm

Tools, thick wires, etc.

>1 mm

Most wires, screws, etc.

Dust protected

Ingress of dust is not entirely prevented, but it must not enter in sufficient quantity
to interfere with the satisfactory operation of the equipment; complete protection
against contact

Dust tight

No ingress of dust; complete protection against contact

Liquids
Second
Number

Protected
against

Details

Not
protected

Dripping
water

Dripping water (vertically falling drops) shall have no harmful effect.

Dripping
water
when
tilted up to
15

Vertically dripping water shall have no harmful effect when the enclosure is tilted at an
angle up to 15 from its normal position.

Spraying
water

Water falling as a spray at any angle up to 60 from the vertical shall have no harmful
effect.

Splashing
water

Water splashing against the enclosure from any direction shall have no harmful effect.

Water jets

Water projected by a nozzle against enclosure from any direction shall have no harmful
effects.

Powerful
water jets

Water projected in powerful jets against the enclosure from any direction shall have no
harmful effects.

Immersion
up to 1 m

Ingress of water in harmful quantity shall not be possible when the enclosure is
immersed in water under defined conditions of pressure and time (up to 1 m of
submersion).

Immersion
beyond
1m

The equipment is suitable for continuous immersion in water under conditions which
shall be specified by the manufacturer. Normally, this will mean that the equipment is
hermetically sealed. However, with certain types of equipment, it can mean that water
can enter but only in such a manner that produces no harmful effects.

Further complicating matters is the fact that the IEC isnt the only organization that offers a rating system for
electrical enclosures. The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) also has a system of protection
ratings. While you may find an IP rating on almost any piece of electrical equipment, NEMA ratings are specifically
focused on the industrial environment and are predominantly North American.
According to Kovacik, NEMA ratings cover additional qualifications not addressed by the IEC standards so they
dont map directly to IP ratings and that makes it important to understand how they relate. NEMA ratings also

address issues such as corrosion resistance and construction practices which are not addressed by IP ratings.
Because NEMA covers these additional factors, NEMA and IP ratings are not truly equivalent. A NEMA rating can
satisfy or exceed all the requirements of an IP rating for example, NEMA 1 meets all the requirements of IP20
and NEMA 6 meets all the requirements of IP67 but the reverse is not true.
NEMA Ratings:
Type
Designation

Effective against

Indoor use primarily to provide a degree of protection against limited amounts of falling dirt.

Indoor use primarily to provide a degree of protection against limited amounts of falling water
and dirt.

Outdoor use primarily to provide a degree of protection against rain, sleet, wind blown dust and
damage from external ice formation.

3R

Outdoor use primarily to provide a degree of protection against rain, sleet, and damage from
external ice formation.

3S

Outdoor use primarily to provide a degree of protection against rain, sleet, windblown dust and
to provide for operation of external mechanisms when ice laden.

Indoor or outdoor use primarily to provide a degree of protection against windblown dust and
rain, splashing water, hose-directed water and damage from external ice formation.

4X

Indoor or outdoor use primarily to provide a degree of protection against corrosion, windblown
dust and rain, splashing water, hose-directed water, and damage from external ice formation.

Indoor use primarily to provide a degree of protection against settling airborne dust, falling dirt,
and dripping noncorrosive liquids.

Indoor or outdoor use primarily to provide a degree of protection again hose-directed water, and
the entry of water during occasional temporary submersion at a limited depth and damage from
external ice formation.

6P

Indoor or outdoor use primarily to provide a degree of protection against hose-directed water,
the entry of water during prolonged submersion at a limited depth and damage from external ice
formation.

Indoor use in locations classified as Class I, Division 1, Groups A, B, C or D hazardous


locations as defined in the National Electric Code (NFPA 70) (Commonly referred to as
explosion-proof).

Indoor or outdoor use in locations classified as Class I, Division 2, Groups A, B, C or D


hazardous locations as defined in the National Electric Code (NFPA 70) (commonly referred to
as oil immersed).

Indoor use in locations classified as Class II, Division 1, Groups E, F and G hazardous locations
as defined in the National Electric Code (NFPA 70) (commonly referred to as dust-ignition
proof).

10

Intended to meet the applicable requirements of the Mine Safety and Health Administration
(MSHA).

12/K

Indoor use primarily to provide a degree of protection against circulating dust, falling dirt, and
dripping noncorrosive liquids.

13

Indoor use primarily to provide a degree of protection against dust, spraying of water, oil, and
noncorrosive coolant.

Note: An X may be added to the Type 3, 3R and 3S ratings (3X, 3RX, 3SX) to denote additional corrosion

protection equivalent to a Type 4X rating.


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