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User ManualNeed configuration, code or deployment details? In the Technical Manual: Estimator Electrical Module

Feeders

A feeder is one run of the feeder schedule or the one-line diagram, such as MSB to panel LP-1. You enter the run, the conductors and the raceway. The feeder then makes the lines of the estimate: the conduit with couplings, connectors, elbows and straps, the conductors with their makeup, the ground, the lugs and the pull boxes.

MenuOpen the workspace of an estimate, then click Feeders
PermissionView all projects and bids to see the feeders. Manage all projects and bids, or manage own projects and bids, to change them
FeatureEstimator Electrical
Can't find it?

What you see depends on your role. If the menu, a button or a setting on this page is missing, ask your administrator to give you the permission listed above or to turn on the feature. Only administrators can turn features on and change site settings.

The feeders belong to the current revision of the estimate. A new revision gets a copy of each feeder with its lines. A revision that is in review, approved or submitted is locked: its feeders do not change.

Add a feeder​

  1. In the workspace, click Feeders, then click Add feeder.
  2. In Run, enter:
    • The Name, as the feeder schedule names it, such as F-1.
    • From and To, such as MSB and Panel LP-1. These are optional.
    • The Length of the run in feet, from the drawings.
    • The Breakdown node that gets the lines, such as Service and distribution.
  3. In Conductors, enter:
    • The Parallel sets. Each set runs in its own conduit.
    • The Conductors per set: the phase and neutral conductors, such as 4 for three phases and a neutral.
    • The Size and the Material of the conductors.
    • The Ground: the size of the copper equipment ground of each set, or No ground.
  4. In Raceway, select the Conduit type: EMT, PVC or rigid steel. Keep The smallest the fill allows as the Trade size, or select the size of the drawings.
  5. In Allowances, check the values:
    • Makeup at each end: the extra conductor at each end, 3 ft by default.
    • Offsets and bends: the extra conduit for offsets, 10% by default.
    • Elbows per 100 ft: 2 by default.
    • A pull box every: the distance between pull boxes, or 0 for none.
    • Price the lugs and the terminations at both ends: selected by default.
  6. Click Save and make the lines.

The page then shows What the feeder makes: each catalog item with its quantity. An item that is not in the catalog shows Not in the catalog. Its line has no price until you add the item.

Read the conduit fill​

The feeder shows how full the conduit is and the limit for its number of conductors: 53% for one conductor, 31% for two, and 40% for three or more. When you select a trade size, the feeder keeps it even if it is too full, and shows the smallest size within the limit.

The fill is an estimating aid from the conductor and conduit areas of NEC Chapter 9. It is not a code determination. Check the design.

Change or delete a feeder​

Change a feeder on its page, not its lines in the workspace. When you save a feeder, its lines are replaced with what it makes now. Click Delete on the feeders page to delete a feeder and its lines.

Checks​

The checks of a revision include two electrical rules. Click Open on an issue to open the feeder.

RuleSeverityWhat it finds
ELEC-005BlockingA feeder without a length, or without its terminations
ELEC-007WarningA feeder whose conduit is fuller than the limit, or whose conductors fit in no trade size