Power and Grounding Requirements
Cell sites are built to house communication equipment of the cellular telephone network. Cellular equipment can be located in
Safety requirements
Safety standards for installation and maintenance of electrical equipment are the object of the national codes; Canadian Electrical Code (CEC) in Canada and the National Electrical Code (NEC) in the USA. Although these codes do not govern installations of communication equipment under the exclusive control of communication utilities, it is good design and installation practice for the new equipment or system to comply with the intent of the appropriate Code. For systems installed at the customer premises outside of the above communication utilities, compliance with the Code is mandatory.
One of the basic safety rules of the national codes (CEC and NEC) in North America, for example, requires that there shall be no objectionable current on the Framework Ground conductor (grounding conductor). In practice, this usually means no measurable current.
In view of the above, communication equipment shall use a three wire distribution system as required by the codes (system with separated grounding such as Floor Ground and grounded conductor such as Battery Return or the neutral) rather than two wire power distribution system (system with joined grounding and grounded conductor).
Note: Countries outside North America may have different safety standards codes. Follow the safety standards for installation and maintenance of electrical equipment in your country accordingly.
