AS/NZS 61439 Electrical Enclosure Compliance

AS/NZS 61439 was released in 2016 and superceded AS/NZS 3439 in 2021. The scope applies to low voltage switchgear and controlgear assemblies not exceeding 1000V ac. or 1500 V dc. It applies to all assemblies whether they are designed, manufactured and verified on a one-off basis or fully standardised and manufactured in quantity. The standard does not apply to individual components that comply to relevant individual product standards.

If an assembly is rated equal to or less than 125Amps and is short circuit fault rated equal to or less than 10kA then compliance to AS/NZS 61439 is not required. (Assemblies that are not required to comply to AS/NZS 61439 must still comply with AS/NZS 3000. It is the responsibility of the contractor to be aware of and meet requirements). This is the only exclusion. All other assemblies must comply to AS/NZS 61439.

AS/NZS 61439 & IEC62208

AS/NZS 61439 Cl 10.2.1 states that where an empty enclosure in accordance with IEC62208 is used and not modified, no repetition of the enclosure testing to 10.2 is required. IP Enclosures empty electrical enclosures have been tested and certified to IEC62208 ‘Empty enclosures for low voltage switchgear and controlgear assemblies’ by an independent accredited test laboratory. A certificate of conformity to IEC62208 assists switchboard builders throughout design verification and routine verification processes outlined in AS/NZS 61439.

IP Enclosures Supports Switchboard Builders

AS/NZS 61439 ‘Low voltage switchgear and controlgear assemblies’ is the standard for ‘assemblies’ and responsibilities are outlined in section 3, Terms and Definitions. The ‘Original Manufacturer’ is the organisation that has carried out the original design and verification of an assembly (Clause 3.10.1) while the ‘Assembly Manufacturer’ is the organisation taking responsibility for the completed assembly. IP Enclosures is an empty enclosure supplier as per IEC62208. We support organisations defined as Original Manufacturers and Assembly Manufacturers throughout design verification and routine verification processes required by AS/NZS 61439 by complying with IEC62208, relevant sections of AS/NZS 61439 and providing necessary documentation and certificates.

Design Verification and Routine Verification

AS/NZS 61439 requires final assemblies to meet or exceed requirements. Annex D, design verification Table D1 (shown below), lists 13 design verifications to be performed. Three methods of verification can be used to verify the characteristics in Table D1 and the Table outlines which method of verification can be used to verify each characteristic.

Test: Test made on a sample of an assembly or on parts of assemblies to verify that the design meets the requirements of the relevant assembly standard.
Comparison: Structured comparison of a proposed design for an assembly, or parts of an assembly, with a reference design verified by test.
Assessment: Design verification of strict design rules or calculations applied to a sample of an assembly or
to parts of assemblies to show that the design meets the requirements of the relevant assembly standard.

IP Enclosures’ empty electrical enclosures have been tested in accordance with IEC62208 and documentation is made available for design verification in accordance with AS/NZS 61439.

Table D.1 – List of Design Verifications to be Performed

Refer below for Annex D – Design Verification, Table D.1 – List of design verifications to be performed including method of verification.

No.	No. Characteristic to be verified	Clauses or subclauses	Verification options available
			Testing	Comparison	Assessment
1	Strength of material and parts:	10.2
	Resistance to corrosion	10.2.2	YES	NO	NO
	Properties of insulating materials:	10.2.3
	Thermal stability	10.2.3.1	YES	NO	NO
	Resistance to abnormal heat and fire due to internal electric effects	10.2.3.2	YES	NO	YES
	Resistance to ultra-violet (UV) radiation	10.2.4	YES	NO	YES
	Lifting	10.2.5	YES	NO	NO
	Mechanical impact	10.2.6	YES	NO	NO
	Marking	10.2.7	YES	NO	NO
2	Degree of protection of enclosures	10.3	YES	NO	YES
3	Clearances	10.4	YES	NO	YES
4	Creepage distances	10.4	YES	NO	YES
5	Protection against electric shock and integrity of protective circuits:	10.5
	Effective continuity between the exposed conductive parts of the ASSEMBLY and the protective circuit	10.5.2	YES	NO	NO
	Short-circuit withstand strength of the protective circuit	10.5.3	YES	NO	NO
6	Incorporation of switching devices and components	10.6	NO	NO	YES
7	Internal electrical circuits and connections	10.7	NO	NO	YES
8	Terminals for external conductors	10.8	NO	NO	YES
9	Dielectric properties:	10.9
	Power-frequency withstand voltage	10.9.2	YES	NO	NO
	Impulse withstand voltage	10.9.3	YES	NO	YES
10	Temperature-rise limits	10.10	YES	YES	YES
11	Short-circuit withstand strength	10.11	YES	YES	NO
12	Electromagnetic compatibility (EMC)	10.12	YES	NO	YES
13	Mechanical operation	10.13	YES	NO	NO

Arc Fault Containment

Arc fault containment is not a mandatory requirement for compliance to AS/NZS 61439. Arc fault containment is covered in Appendix ZC and the application of the Appendix is subject to agreement between purchaser and manufacturer. The Standard does not define requirements for arc flash protection.

For more information

*The information provided is a guide only. Refer to SAI Global for more relevant standards.