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Chartered Electrical Safety Engineer (CESE)

Arc Flash Study Services

Our in-house Chartered Electrical Safety Engineer models your installation in validated ETAP software, then fixes the label that your electricians read before they open a live panel. We aim to ensure compliance with CEA 2023 and NFPA 70E for your manufacturing plants, power plants, data centres, hospitals, data centers, and IT parks, anywhere in India.

  • Validated ETAP v24.0.3 software
  • 1200+ audits since 2014
  • IEEE 1584 and NFPA 70E

Overview

How an arc flash study keeps your electricians safe and facility compliant

Your electricians open live low-voltage panels, motor control centres and distribution boards every week. If an arc strikes inside one, the harm depends on three things: the fault level at that bus, how fast the upstream breaker clears it, and how close they stand.

The study builds your installation in ETAP. Short-circuit and coordination calculations then give the incident energy and arc flash boundary at every switchboard, as per IEEE 1584-2018. Each panel gets a label with its incident energy and the arc-rated personal protective equipment (PPE) NFPA 70E (2024) calls for. Management can set PPE, work rules, and relay settings from a calculated number, not a guess.

Every study we conduct covers the following:

  • Incident energy and arc flash boundary at every bus, incomer to distribution board.
  • Labels printed and fixed on each panel, stating the PPE required.
  • A priority-wise list of setting and design changes that cut the incident energy.

Trusted By

  • Indiamart
  • Raymond
  • Mercedes Benz
  • VIP
  • Dabur
  • Coromandel
  • Ambar Group
  • Quinnox
  • Ramee Group
  • Grape CIty
  • Bentler
  • Everest
  • Magna Cosmo International
  • Atlas Copco
  • Executive Enclave
  • Brembo

What's included

PowerTech Arc Flash Study Checklist

The study follows the power from the incomer down to the last distribution board an electrician opens. Below is the equipment modelled in ETAP and labelled in a typical plant:

  • HT switchgear and incomer

    High-tension (HT) breakers, relays and the utility's fault level at the incomer, modelled so every fault current downstream starts from the right number.

  • Transformers and LT main switchboards

    Transformer ratings and impedances, the low-tension (LT) main boards and bus couplers, where the fault current is highest and the incident energy usually peaks.

  • Motor control centres (MCCs)

    Each MCC bus, its incomer and its feeders. Drive panels and soft starters too. The label reflects the bus, not just one starter.

  • Distribution boards and sub-panels

    Lighting and power distribution boards, field panels, control panels. These are the covers opened most often. None goes unlabelled.

  • Generators, UPS and solar tie-ins

    Diesel generators, the uninterruptible power supply (UPS) and any solar inverter tie-in, each a fault source that changes the incident energy when it is running.

  • Relays, breakers and fuses

    Every protective device's type, rating and as-found settings, read at the panel rather than off the drawing, since the trip time decides the incident energy.

Compliance mandate

Is an Arc Flash Study Mandatory in India?

Not by name, but the duty is. Below is how it applies:

  • Every installation: duty of safe working

    The Central Electricity Authority (Measures relating to Safety and Electric Supply) Regulations, 2023 make you responsible for safe operation and maintenance.

  • Group and customer standards: often required

    Plants that follow an NFPA 70E-based safety standard, or face a customer or insurer audit, are often asked for an incident energy analysis and labels on every panel.

  • Everyone else: voluntary

    No rule forces the study. The reason to conduct one is the electrician at the panel door, who should know the incident energy before the cover comes off.

How it works

Phases for Completing Arc Flash Assessment Successfully

Every study runs through the same five steps, whatever the size of the site:

  1. Data collection

    We collect the single line diagram, cable schedules, transformer nameplates, protective device settings and the utility fault level at the point of supply.

  2. Site verification

    Our engineers walk every panel, confirm nameplates, cable lengths, enclosure sizes and working distances, and correct the drawings where the plant has moved on.

  3. ETAP modelling

    We build your installation in ETAP software. A short-circuit study to IEC 60909 and a coordination study give every bus its fault current and clearing time.

  4. Incident energy calculation

    Incident energy and arc flash boundary are calculated at every bus with the IEEE 1584 method, for the operating scenarios, including generator mode.

Why PowerTech

Why choose PowerTech for arc flash studies

Four things that separate a study from a label-printing job:

  • A government-authorised engineer

    Every study is conducted by a Chartered Electrical Safety Engineer authorised by the Government of Maharashtra under the CEA (MSES) Regulations, 2023.

  • Validated ETAP software

    We model on ETAP v24.0.3, validated by OTI, its developer, with the Short Circuit, Arc Flash and Relay Co-ordination modules.

  • Every scenario modelled

    Utility, generator, and parallel modes are modelled where they apply, and the label carries the worst-case scenarios.

  • Advice you can act on

    A priority-wise mitigation list, from relay settings to arc-resistant switchgear, ordered by what cuts the most incident energy first.

End-to-End Electrical Safety Audit Services

Scope the study on its own, or fold it into a full electrical safety audit under the CEA (MSES) Regulations, 2023, where one site visit also covers earthing, thermography and protection.

The engineer who conducts your study

Meet our Government-Approved Electrical and Fire Safety Auditor

PowerTech's arc flash studies are conducted by Atul Kakad, Chartered Electrical Safety Engineer. He is also a government-approved fire and life safety auditor, so the same engineer reviews the fire side of electrical panels and equipment at your facilities at no extra cost to you.

  • Chartered Electrical Safety Engineer

    Regn. MAHCESE0001119052023, CEA (MSES) Regulations, 2023

  • Qualified Fire & Life Safety Auditor

    MF&ES/F&LSA/0029

  • Advance Diploma in Industrial Safety

    First Class

  • FSAI Accredited Professional

Who we work with

PowerTech Arc Flash Study Services for All Types of Facilities

Every facility with an HT incomer and LT panels has an arc flash hazard, whether it makes cars or runs servers. Our engineers scope the study to your switchboards and, once the labels are up, help your team work through the mitigation list.

  • Manufacturing plants

    Automobile and auto ancillary, pharma, chemical, steel and FMCG plants. HT switchgear, LT main boards and every MCC in scope.

    Request a study
  • Power plants

    Generation and switchyard auxiliaries, where fault levels run highest and the operating mode changes through the day.

    Request a study
  • Data centres

    Round-the-clock loads on UPS and generator backup. Every source that can feed a fault is modelled, not just the utility.

    Request a study
  • Foundries and mines

    Heavy electrical environments where panels are opened often and the working distance is rarely the ideal one.

    Request a study
  • Hospitals and healthcare

    Essential and non-essential supplies with generator changeover, on a site that cannot take a floor down to test.

    Request a study
  • Offices and IT parks

    Multi-tenant boards and busbar risers, where the electrician opening a panel is often not the one who wired it.

    Request a study

Arc flash study: FAQs

What plant heads and electrical managers ask us before they book:

What is an arc flash study?
An arc flash study, also known as an incident energy analysis, calculates the heat an arc inside a panel would release at the working distance, and how far it would reach. The inputs are the fault current at that bus and the upstream clearing time. The IEEE 1584 method covers equipment from 208 V to 15 kV, which takes in the LT and 11 kV systems in most plants. Anything above that range is assessed separately.
Is an arc flash study mandatory in India?
No Indian statute lists the arc flash study by name. What the CEA (MSES) Regulations, 2023 require is that the installation is operated and maintained safely, and an incident energy analysis is the recognised way to show that the PPE and work rules match the hazard. Group safety standards based on NFPA 70E, and some customer and insurer audits, ask for the study and the labels outright.
What data do you need before the study?
The single line diagram (SLD), the connected load list, transformer nameplates, cable sizes and lengths, the protective device list with settings, and the fault level your utility states at the point of supply. Old or incomplete drawings are common. Our engineers verify and correct them at the panels during the site visit, so missing data slows the study rather than stopping it.
How long does an arc flash study take?
Typically 1 to 3 days on site to collect and verify the data, depending on the number of panels. The modelling, calculations, report and labels usually follow within 3 to 6 weeks of the site visit. A multi-substation plant or a site with poor drawings takes longer. We confirm the timeline in the scope of work before we start.
What does the cal/cm² value on a label mean?
It is the incident energy: the heat that would land on a person standing at the working distance if an arc struck inside that panel, in calories per square centimetre. Arc-rated clothing carries its own rating in the same unit. The PPE's arc rating must be at least the number on the label. The label also shows the arc flash boundary, the distance from the panel beyond which the energy falls below the second-degree-burn level.
What do we receive at the end of the study?
Three things. A report that lists every bus with its fault current, clearing time, incident energy, arc flash boundary and the PPE required, plus the updated single line diagram and the changes that would lower the energy, in priority order. Labels for every panel, printed and fixed by our team. And a briefing for your electricians on what the labels mean. The report is signed by PowerTech's Chartered Electrical Safety Engineer.
How often should an arc flash study be updated?
NFPA 70E asks for the study to be reviewed at least every five years, and sooner whenever the system changes in a way that affects the results: a new transformer, a change in the utility fault level, a captive plant or solar tie-in, or any change to breaker and relay settings. Note that a setting changed on its own can upset coordination, so setting changes belong in the study, not after it.
How much does an arc flash study cost in India?
It depends on the number of buses and panels to be modelled, the voltage levels involved, the number of operating scenarios and the state of your drawings. A single LT substation costs a fraction of a multi-plant site with HT distribution and captive generation. Send us the single line diagram and a panel count, and we will return a fixed scope and commercial terms. Asking carries no obligation.

Request a study

Book an arc flash study for your facility

Send us a few lines on your site and what prompted the enquiry: a group standard asking for labels, a flashover or near-miss, or a new transformer or tie-in. We reply within 24 hours, then send a fixed scope.

  1. We get in touch A short call or email about your switchboards, voltage levels, panel count and the standard you must meet.
  2. You get a scope A fixed scope of work and commercial terms, based on your SLD and panel list.
  3. The study runs Site work typically takes 1 to 3 days. Labels follow within 3 to 6 weeks.
  • Conducted by a Chartered Electrical Safety Engineer
  • Independent findings, no equipment sale
  • Labels to IEEE 1584 and NFPA 70E

Make an enquiry

A few details now, a fixed scope to follow.

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