Design to Lightning Standard, NFPA-780-08 - a PDH Online Course for Engineers, Land Surveyors and Architects

Design to Lightning Standard, NFPA-780-08

Course Outline

This course starts with a generalized drawing of a lightning protection system and discusses each of the components, along with typical and minimum values. A guideform specification is presented along with a link to a proprietary specification. Then, the phenomenon of lightning is discussed to establish a qualitative understanding. Finally, internet resources are listed, along with brief commentary of the content.

The course includes a multiple-choice quiz at the end, which is designed to enhance the understanding of the course materials.

Learning Objective

At the conclusion of this course, the student will:

Have an intuitive understanding of lightning;
Understand the “complete circuit” of electrical flow in lightning;
Recognize the characteristics of milliAmperes, Amperes, 100’s of Amperes and 100,000’s of Amperes;
Recognize the characteristics of Volts, 100’s of Volts and 100,000,000’s of Volts;
Have a fair image of the national isokeraunic map and the newer flash density map;
Know the NFPA-780 threshold for recommending lightning surge protection;
Be able to distinguish between a strike termination device and an air terminal;
Know the air terminal tip radius recommended by experimentation;
Know the recommended terminal length;
Know the minimum terminal spacing on ridges or along the parapet;
Know the minimum terminal spacing on a large flat roof;
Know the minimum terminal connection cable size;
Know the minimum cross-connect cable-spacing for a large flat roof;
Know the acceptable layout of cross-connect cables;
Know what Class I and Class II installation means;
Know the minimum downcomer cable size for a Class I installation;
Know the minimum downcomer cable size for a Class II installation;
Know the required protection for the downcomer cable;
Know the minimum number and spacing of downcomers for a given structure;
Know the minimum ground rod specification;
Know the minimum ground loop specification;
Know the hardware acceptable for splicing and connecting to ground rods and loops;
Know the National Electric Code requirements for Surge Suppression Devices (SPD’s);
Know the National Electric Code requirements for bonding lightning, data and communications systems;
Recognize General Atmospherics, GAI, Vaisala, NLDG, NLI, NLSI, UL and NFPA;
Be able to apply the obsolete “cone of protection method”; and
Be able to apply the basic “rolling ball protection method”.

Intended Audience

Lightning may be the most destructive force of nature. This course will be of value to persons responsible for making decisions regarding expenditures for lightning protection, for persons who design lightning protection, for persons who value their own lives and the lives of others.

Benefit to Attendees

The primary thrust of this course is design of lightning protection to the NFPA Standard, 780-08. In order to achieve this, we must address the characteristics of lightning as the threat and the characteristics of the human body as the protected asset. Since most persons apply previous learnings to their understanding of lightning, related subjects, such as electrical circuit theory and meteorology will be coordinated with the lightning subject.

Course Content

In this lesson, you are required to download and study the following course content in PDF format:

Design to Lightning Standard, NFPA-780-08

Please click on the above underlined hypertext to view, download or print the document for your study. Because of the large file size, we recommend that you first save the file to your computer by right clicking the mouse and choosing "Save Target As ...", and then open the file in Adobe Acrobat Reader. If you still experience any difficulty in downloading or opening this file, you may need to close some applications or reboot your computer to free up some memory.

Course Summary

This course covered the concepts and available products for lightning protection systems. It introduced devices, interconnection diagrams, connection details and very general specifications. The links provide access to design and hardware suppliers. Following successful review of the reference material and the associated examination, the student should be able to discuss lightning protection principles, design and installation effectively with sales persons and management representatives.

Related Links and References

For additional technical information related to this subject, please visit the following websites or web pages:

Lightning Protection Hardware and Service Providers

http://www.erico.com/erico_public/general_info/LP-Placement.asp
http://www.glenmartin.com/catalog/lightning.htm
http://www.andrew.com/products/trans_line/heliax/sureground_details.aspx
http://www.harger.com/
http://www.novalynx.com/products-meteorological-towers.html
http://www.lightningrodparts.com/?gclid=CJjSs5-q-Y8CFQ9zHgodCQQQGg
http://www.lightningtech.com/d~ta/faq2.html
http://www.lightningrod.com/
http://www.omegaps.com/Interceptor_guide_form_spec_rev_7-2-02.
http://www.polyphaser.com/
http://www.lightningrodstuff.com/index_files/page0002.htm
http://bondedlightning.com/index.php

Quiz

Once you finish studying the above course content, you need to take a quiz to obtain the PDH credits.

DISCLAIMER: The materials contained in the online course are not intended as a representation or warranty on the part of PDH Center or any other person/organization named herein. The materials are for general information only. They are not a substitute for competent professional advice. Application of this information to a specific project should be reviewed by a registered architect and/or professional engineer/surveyor. Anyone making use of the information set forth herein does so at their own risk and assumes any and all resulting liability arising therefrom.