S20.20 para 8.1Grounding

Technical Questions
#1

looking for some clarification on para. 8.1 is this talk about the facilities electrical grounding system and does it need to be qualifies if it all follows National Electrical codes. I have seen this done once and is extremely expensive.

thank you

#2

Hello Matt,

Usually the certificate of occupancy in the US is proof that the electrical system meets the national eclectic code. Since there is no requirement for compliance verification of the grounding system explicitly, there is no need to requalify the grounding system. The 2021 version of ANSI/ESD S20.20 does clarify this. It states,
“There are no requirements for a compliance verification plan for testing the ground system; only initial verification is required.”

If you have any other questions, please add it here.
John

#3

Thanks John
does anyone know of ESD safe document holders that do not have a shelf life

thank you
Matt

#4

Sorry Matt for the late reply. I don’t have any answers to the question but I would ask if you need to have ESD “safe” document holders or are just regular holders fine for the process.

#5

Regarding grounding, is there a requirement in the Standard to visually place a grounded cable on machines such as mats or workstations? I have the equipment connected to the receptacle with the correct orientation and the impedance <1 ohm, but I have no visual ground. can you help me with my question?

Note: Some machines have the ground point, and I do connect those, but other machines do not have that connection point. Can I omit them or does the standard require me to ground them?

Regards
Porfirio

#6

There is no requirement for a physical ground for ESD control. The best answer I can give is to measure the resistance to ground of any ESD control item. If it meets the requirements that it is acceptable.
There are many programs that use an ESD control floor as the grounding path. Worksurfaces are connected to the floor and the floor is connected to ground. The resistance to ground measurement of the worksurface is less than 10*9 ohms which meets the requirements. That would be considered acceptable.

#7

thank you John for the feedback.
I appreciate your support