Power topic #5410785 | Technical information from Cummins

UL 1008 Withstand and Close

On Ratings
White Paper
By Rich Scroggins, Technical Advisor

Electrical distribution system design Engineers often take a conservative

approach and specify high fault clearing
requires sizing equipment so that it
time based ratings however this can result
can safely withstand any level of fault in oversizing and limiting choices of transfer
current to which it may be exposed. switches. Not specifying fault duration
times and specifying only that transfer
In the case of transfer switches this
switch and overcurrent protection devices
involves an evaluation of the transfer be coordinated at the available fault current
switch’s short circuit withstand and allows contractors and transfer switch and
circuit breaker manufacturers the flexibility
close on rating (WCR), the available
to design a cost effective system that meets
fault current at the line terminals of the fault withstand requirements.
transfer switch and the fault clearing
time of the overcurrent protection
device. This creates a challenge for
engineers when specifying transfer
switches as the available fault current
and the overcurrent protection device
are usually not known at the time
specifications are written.
 UL 1008 Requirements
UL 1008 requires that all transfer switches have a
short circuit withstand and close on rating (WCR).
This refers to a level of fault current which the transfer
switch can withstand and close on to without creating
a hazardous condition. For a safe installation the
WCR of the transfer switch must be higher than the
available fault current at the point in the circuit where
the transfer switch is installed.
UL requires that all WCRs and their associated
durations and/or overcurrent devices (breakers or
fuses) be listed on the product. A proper installation
requires either that the transfer switch be protected
by an overcurrent device which is listed on the ATS
label or by a device that clears the fault in less time
than the duration associated with the switch’s WCR.
Figure 1 is an example of a transfer switch label
listing WCR and their associated circuit breakers for a
particular switch.

The WCR presumes that the transfer switch is

protected by an overcurrent device so that the fault
current persists for a limited period of time. The
WCR includes either a specific overcurrent device or
a duration of the fault and it is common for a transfer
switch to have several different WCRs for different
overcurrent devices or fault durations.
02 Power Topic #5410785

Figure 1 – Transfer Switch WCR with specified circuit breakers

Using a time based rating (sometimes known as
“3 cycle” or “any breaker” ratings) has the advantage
that it doesn’t limit a contractor on their choice of circuit
breakers. The disadvantage to the time based rating is
that the consultant or contractor is required to show that
the breaker clears the fault in less time than the transfer
switch’s WCR duration at the fault current listed on the
product. With a specific breaker based rating all the
contractor has to do is confirm that the selected breaker
is listed for the transfer switch. Also, because most
breakers actually clear faster than 50 msec (3 cycles)
as is specified in most time based ratings, most breaker
based ratings are much higher than time based ratings.
UL 1008 7th Edition
Effective in November of 2014 UL changed the
requirements for adding circuit breakers to transfer
switch specific breaker lists without running additional
short circuit tests. In earlier versions of UL 1008 a new
breaker could be added by comparing the maximum
published trip time with the maximum published trip
time of a previously tested breaker at the rated short
circuit current. If the trip time of the new breaker was
less than or equal to that of the previously tested
breaker the new breaker could be added to the list.
With the introduction of the UL 1008 7th edition adding
a new breaker now requires comparing the published
trip time of the new breaker with the actual trip time
from a previous short circuit test.
For example if a tested breaker has a maximum
published trip time 0.05 seconds then under the
earlier versions of UL 1008 any breaker that has a
maximum published trip time of 0.05 seconds or less
could be added to the list regardless of how long it
took that breaker to trip during the test. Under the
7th edition of UL 1008 if the tested breaker actually
tripped in 0.03 seconds during the test only circuit
breakers that have a maximum published trip time of
0.03 seconds or less can be added to the list without
an additional test.
This change resulted in some breakers that had been
listed being removed from lists and has made it more
difficult to add new breakers to lists without performing
additional short circuit tests which are very expensive
and are difficult to complete because there are very few
facilities capable of performing them.
The impact of this code change is significant but has
been overstated by some in the industry. While all
transfer switch manufacturers were forced to remove
some breakers from their listing many of the most
commonly used breakers by major circuit breaker
manufacturers remain. For example Table 1 lists
specific breaker WCR ratings for Cummins transfer
switches with four of commonly used breaker product
lines in North America.

Squared D PowerPact GE Spectra Siemens Sentron Eaton C Series

Bypass
Amps ATS Model Breaker Breaker Breaker Breaker
Model WCR@Volts (000s) WCR@Volts (000s) WCR@Volts (000s) WCR@Volts (000s)
Model Model Model Model
240 480 600 240 480 600 240 480 600 240 480 600
40 OTPC, OTEC HL 125 100 50 HED6 14 14 14 HFD 14 14 14

70 OTPC, OTEC HL 125 100 50 HFD6 14 14 14 HFD 14 14 14

125 OTPC, OTEC HL 125 100 50 HFD6 14 14 14 HFD 14 14 14
150 OTPC, OTEC BTPC HL 125 100 50 SGL 100 65 65 HFD6 30 30 25 HKD 30 30 30
225 OTPC, OTEC BTPC JL 125 100 50 SGL 100 65 65 HJD6 30 30 30 HKD 30 30 30
260 OTPC, OTEC BTPC LL 125 100 50 SGL 100 65 65 HJD6 30 30 30 HKD 30 30 30
300 OTPC, OTEC BTPC LL 125 100 50 SGL 100 65 65 CLD6 200 150 100 HKD 65 65 35
400 OTPC, OTEC BTPC LL 125 100 50 SGL 100 65 65 CLD6 200 150 100 HKD 65 65 35
600 OTPC, OTEC BTPC LL 125 100 50 SGL 100 65 65 CLD6 200 150 100 HLD 65 65 35
800 OTPC, OTEC BTPC PJ 65 65 25 SKP 65 65 50 HMD6 65 65 50 HLD 65 65 35
1000 OTPC, OTEC BTPC PJ 65 65 25 SKP 65 65 50 HMD6 65 65 50 HLD 65 65 35
03 Power Topic #5410785

1200 OTPC, OTEC BTPC PJ 65 65 25 SKP 85 85 85 HMD6 85 65 50 HLD 65 65 35

Table 1 – WCR of Cummins transfer switches with commonly used circuit breakers
 In most cases the WCR rating of the transfer switches
based on a specific breaker is substantially higher than
the time based ratings of the same transfer switch.
Table 2 displays WCR ratings for the Cummins ATS
product line, including time based ratings, ratings for
the commonly used breakers listed in table 1, current
limiting breakers and fuses. As an example, the appendix
displays the circuit breaker list for Cummins 300 and
400 amp transfer switches at 480 volts. A complete
circuit breaker list for all of Cummins automatic transfer
switches can be found at http://bit.ly/2sXnM3m
From this table it is clear that the ratings for the
commonly used breakers are higher than the time
based ratings, and the ratings based on current limiting
breakers and fuses are even higher. For this reason
specifying time based WCR before any analysis has
been done to evaluate the available fault current could
unnecessarily force a transfer switch manufacturer to
quote an oversized transfer switch resulting in a larger,
more expensive product than is really needed.

Specific Breaker Specific Breaker

Fuse Protection Time Based Ratings
Bypass Protection (Common) Protection (General)
Amps ATS Model
Model Max Fuse, Size & Type WCR@Volts (000s) WCR@Volts (000s) WCR@Volts (000s) Time WCR@Volts (000s)
480 600 240 480 600 240 480 600 (sec) 240 480 600
40 OTEC, OTPC 200 A Class, J, RK1, RK5 200 200 125 100 50 200 200 200
70 OTEC, OTPC 200 A Class, J, RK1, RK5 200 200 125 100 50 200 200 200
OTEC, OTPC 200 A Class, J, RK1, RK5 200 200 125 100 50 200 200 200
125 400 A Class J or T or 200 A Class
OHPC, CHPC 200 200 125 100 50 200 200 200 0.050 25 25 18
RK1 or 100 A Class rK5

600 A Class J, RK1, RK5 or

OTEC, OTPC BTPC 200 200 125 100 50 200 200 200
1200 A Class L, T
150
400 A Class J or T or 200 A Class
OHPC, CHPC 200 200 125 100 50 200 200 200 0.050 25 25 18
RK1 or 100 A Class rK5
600 A Class J, RK1, RK5 or
OTEC, OTPC BTPC 200 200 125 100 50 200 200 200
1200 A Class L, T
225
400 A Class J or T or 200 A Class
OHPC, CHPC 200 200 125 100 50 200 200 200 0.050 25 25 18
RK1 or 100 A Class rK5
600 A Class J, RK1, RK5 or
OTEC, OTPC BTPC 200 200 125 100 50 200 200 200
1200 A Class L, T
260
400 A Class J or T or 200 A Class
OHPC, CHPC 200 200 200 200 200 0.050 25 25 18
RK1 or 100 A Class rK5
600 A Class J, RK1, RK5 or
OTEC, OTPC BTPC 200 200 125 100 50 200 200 200 0.050 25 25 25
1200 A Class L, T
300
400 A Class J or T or 200 A Class
OHPC CHPC 200 200 125 100 50 200 200 200 0.050 35 35 22
RK1 or 100 A Class rK5
600 A Class J, RK1, RK 5 or
OTEC, OTPC BTPC 200 200 125 100 50 200 200 200 0.050 25 25 25
1200 A Class L, T
400
400 A Class J or T or 200 A Class
OHPC, CHPC 200 200 125 100 50 200 200 200 0.050 35 35 22
RK1 or 100 A Class rK5
600 A Class J, RK1, RK5 or
OTEC, OTPC BTPC 200 200 125 100 50 200 200 200 0.050 25 25 25
1200 A Class L, T
600
400 A Class J or T or 200 A Class
OHPC, CHPC 200 200 125 100 50 200 200 200 0.050 35 35 22
RK1 or 100 A Class rK5
600 A Class J, RK1, RK5, 1200 A
BTPC 200 200 65 65 50 200 200 200 0.050 42 42 42
Class T, or 2000 A Class L
800 2000 A Class L or 1200 A Class T
OTEC, OTPC 200 200 65 65 50 200 200 200 0.050 35 35 35
or 600 A Class J RK1 or RK5
OHPC, CHPC 2000 A Class L or T 200 200 200 200 200 0.050 65 65 65
600 A Class J, RK1, RK5, 1200 A
BTPC 200 200 65 65 50 200 200 200 0.050 42 42 42
Class T, or 2000 A Class L
04 Power Topic #5410785

1000
2000 A Class L or 1200 A Class T
OTEC, OTPC 200 200 65 65 50 200 200 200 0.050 35 35 35
or 600 A Class J RK1 or RK5
OTPC* BTPC 2000 Amp Class L 200 200 85 85 65 0.050 50 50 42
1200
OTEC, OTPC** 3000 Amp Class L 200 200 85 65 25 200 200 200 0.050 50 50 42
1600 OTPC BTPC 2500 A Class L 200 150 0.050 100 100 65
2000 OTPC BTPC 2500 A Class L 200 150 0.050 100 100 65
3000 OTPC BTPC 4000 A Class L 200 150 0.050 100 100 65
4000 OTPC BTPC 6000 A Class L 200 200 0.050 100 100 85

Table 2 – Cummins ATS WCR ratings (*Closed Transition **Open Transition)

The AIA transfer switch spec uses the following language
to begin the transfer switch WCR requirement.
Tested Fault-Current Closing and Short-Circuit
Ratings: Adequate for duty imposed by protective
devices at installation locations in Project under the
fault conditions indicated, based on testing according
to UL 1008.
This language is sufficient when writing a specification
when the available fault current is not known. A
transfer switch can comply with this specification with
either a specific breaker based or a time based rating.
When the available fault current is known at the
time of specification it is added to the spec, often in
tabular form for applications requiring multiple transfer
switches. At the time the spec is written circuit
breakers typically have not been selected for the
project so the spec may call out only “Molded Case
Circuit Breaker” as the overcurrent protection. Most
transfer switch manufacturers will quote based on
a time based WCR in that case because they can’t
be sure that the breakers ultimately selected will be
listed for their transfer switches. Once the breakers
are selected the ATS supplier may be able to provide
a smaller, less expensive switch than what was
originally quoted while still complying with the original
specification.
Conclusion
Most transfer switches have several short circuit
Withstand and Close On ratings based on fault
duration times and on specific overcurrent protection
devices. Specific overcurrent device ratings are
almost always higher than time based ratings and
will usually allow for the smallest most cost effective
transfer switch to be selected when these ratings can
be applied. For this reason specifications should only
require that the transfer switch short circuit ratings be
coordinated with the overcurrent protective devices
at the fault current available on the line side of the
transfer switch. This allows for flexibility in selecting
transfer switches once breakers are chosen for the
project and minimizes the possibility of having to
oversize the transfer switch to meet the short circuit
WCR requirements.
05 Power Topic #5410785
 Appendix
Cummins 300-400 Amp

Model: OTEC/OTPC
Frame (Max Amp): C (600)

Specific Breaker

Voltage 480
WCR (kA) 14 18 22 25 30 35 42 50 65 100 150 200
Eaton GHB, GD JGE KD, CKD , 1
CMDL , 1
CHKD , CHLD1,
1
EGC, KDC, JGU, LGU DSL, LA, NB,
GHC CLD1, JD, LGS, MDL1, CHMDL1, CLDC1, HJD, LDC, JGC, LGC JGX, LCL,
JDB, JGS, HKD, HLD1, HMDL1, LGX
KDB, LD1, JGH, LGH
LGE

GE SEL, SFL, SGL SEP, SFP, SGP FE, FG AKRU, AKU,

THLC4
Siemens ED4 ED6 HED6 FD6, FD6A, HED4 BQCH, CPD6, HFD6, CJD6, CLD6, CED6, CFD6
FXD6, FXD6A HFXD6, HHFD6, SCJC6, SCLD6
HHFXD6

Schneider HD, DG, HG, CK1000L, DJ, HJ, JJ, LJ, CD106L, DL, CF250L, CJ400L FI, KI, LI, HR,
JD, JG, LG, PA, PAF, NSF150H, NSF250H, HL, JL, LL, JR, LR
LD NSF150N, PAL NSJ400H, NSJ600H, NSJ400L,
NSF250N, PH, PHF, PHL NSJ600L
NSJ400N,
NSJ600N

Model: CHPC/OHPC
Frame (Max Amp): C (600)
Specific Breaker
Voltage 480
WCR (kA) 18 35 65 100 150 175 200
Eaton JDC, JGC, KDC, JGU, LGU NB800 DSL, JGX, LA400,
LDC, LGC, LA500 LCL, LCLA, LCLG,
LCLGA, LGX, NB500

GE SFL, TFL, SGL SFP, SGP AKRU, AKU, THCL2,

THCL4

Siemens CJD6, CLD6, CED6, CFD6

SCJD6, SCLD6
06 Power Topic #5410785

Schneider HD, JD, LD HG, JG, LG, HJ, JJ, LJ, NSF150H, HL, JL, LL, CF250L, DSL, HR, JR, KI,
NSF150N, NSF250H, NSJ400H, NSJ400L, CJ400L LI, LR
NSF250N, NSJ600H NSJ600L
NSJ400N,
NSF600N
Cummins 300-400 Amp

Model: BTPC
Frame (Max Amp): C (600)

Specific Breaker

Voltage 480
WCR (kA) 14 18 22 25 30 35 42 50 65 100 150 200
Eaton EHD, EGB, GD EGE, KD, CKD1, CLD1, CMDL1, CHKD1, CHLD1, CHMDL1, EGC, KDC, JGU, LGU DSL, LA,
FDB, JGE EGS, FD, JD, MDL1 CLDC1, EGH, HFD, HJD, HKD, LDC, JGC, NB, JGX,
GHB, JDB, JGS, KDB, HLD1, HMDL1, JGH LGC LCL, LGX
GHC LD1

GE TEYD TEYH SEL, SFL, SGL, TEYL SEP, SFP, FE, FG AKRU, AKU,
SGP THLC4

Siemens BQCH, ED4 ED6, HED6 FD6, FD6A, CPD6, HDGA, HFD6, HFGA, HFXD6, CMD6, CJD6, CED6, CFD6
BQD, NGB, FXD6, FXD6A, HED4 HHFD6, HHFXD6, HJD6, HJGA, CND6, CLD6,
CQD NGG JD6, JXD6, HJXD6, HHJD6, HHJXD6, SCMD6, SCJC6,
NDGA, NFGA, HLGA, HLGB, HMG, LDGA, SCND6 SCLD6
NJGA, NLGA, LFGA, LJGA, LLGA, LLGB, LMG
NLGB, NMG

Schneider HD, DG, HG, JG, CK1000L, DJ, HJ, JJ, LJ, NSF150H, CE106L, DL, CF250L, FI, KI, LI,
JD, LG, NSF150N, PA, PAF, NSF250H, NSJ400H, NSJ600H, HL, JL, LL, CJ400L HR, JR, LR
LD NSF250N, PAL PH, PHF, PHL NSJ400L,
NSJ400N, NSJ600L
NSJ600N

07 Power Topic #5410785

About the author
Rich Scroggins is a Technical Advisor in the
Application Engineering group at Cummins.
Rich has been with Cummins for 18 years
in a variety of engineering and product
management roles. Rich has led product
development and application work with transfer
switches, switchgear controls and networking
and remote monitoring products and has developed
and conducted seminars and sales and service training
internationally on several products. Rich received his
bachelors degree in electrical engineering from the
University of Minnesota and an MBA from the University
of St. Thomas.
08 Power Topic #5410785
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