Code Change Summary: New informational note added to existing definition of a “field evaluation body”.

The previous 2017 NEC^® definition of “field evaluation body” (FEB) contained a bracketed reference of [790, 2012] and no further explanation besides the basic definition. Unless the code reader has experience with the NEC^® and other NFPA publications, it may be difficult to know that the bracketed reference is extracted text from NFPA 790 Standard for Competency of Third-Party Field Evaluation Bodies.

The new informational note makes it clear that NFPA 790 provides guidelines for establishing who is competent to perform a field evaluation.

Many in the electrical industry assume that any of the approved Nationally Recognized Testing Labs (NRTL’s) are competent to perform a field evaluation of an unlisted product and have no idea that a field evaluation and field applied label does not result in the product becoming “listed”.

The Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) runs the NRTL program which includes verifying the competency of the NRTL to certify (list) products in a controlled laboratory environment.

Often, during the certification (listing) process, a product is required by the appropriate standard to be taken to the point of failure as the NRTL observes and records the results. This is something that can only be done in a controlled laboratory environment which is one reason a product cannot be “listed” in the field by an FEB.

Since OSHA does not ensure the competency of an FEB, NFPE 790 was established to govern those who wish to become an FEB and it’s up to the inspection authority whether to accept the credentials of the FEB in accordance with NFPA 790.

Below is a preview of the NEC^®. See the actual NEC^® text at NFPA.ORG for the complete code section. Once there, click on their link to free access to the 2020 NEC^® edition of NFPA 70.