I can combine the automotive reference and the reference to people who shouldn't be in the industry based on their lack of knowledge.
At one time I worked for a company where one of our electrical technician was using our arc welder to fix a loose heat shield over his car's catalytic converter. Our lab manager told the technician to make sure he was on a good ground for the welding. The technician, who was lying under the car at the time, responded "I am lying on the ground; how much closer can I get." Back on topic, I can state that American's understanding of "Earth" vs. "Ground" depends on their background. In my office, everybody is going to know what "Earthed" means. However, I have worked with electrical contractors who's staff only knows the term "Grounded". The terminology used may need to be tailored to the intended audience in the United States. On the other hand, if the person doesn't know the meaning of "Earthed", they probably are not the type who is going to read the manual anyway. Ted Eckert American Power Conversion/MGE http://www.apc.com/ The items contained in this e-mail reflect the personal opinions of the writer and are only provided for the assistance of the reader. The writer is not speaking in an official capacity for APC-MGE or Schneider Electric. The speaker does not represent APC-MGE's or Schneider Electric's official position on any matter. "Tarver, Peter" <peter.tarver@san mina-sci.com> To Sent by: <emc-p...@ieee.org> emc-p...@ieee.org cc Subject 02/29/2008 02:16 RE: Protective Earthing PM > From: John Merrill > Sent: Friday, February 29, 2008 8:44 AM > > I have a case where some want to substitute the word "Ground" > for "Protective Earth" in product manuals. The products are > marked with IEC 5019a protective Earthing symbol and I have > no trouble proving the requirements for that. It's in the > manual where references to Wire Size of Protective Earthing > conductor etc that some here want to change this to "Ground". > From the IEV > 60050-195 the term ground is a Local US term and the manual > has worldwide distribution in four languages. This is almost a nonissue, regardless of any alleged confusion for a circuit reference, which seems very unlikely to occur. If the product is deployed internationally, protective earth should be used. I'm not aware of anyone in the US or Canada who would misunderstand this term, if were not called 'ground.' If they do exist, they probably shouldn't be working on the equipment in the first place. If we're going to rely on the NEC and CEC, these refer to this as the equipment grounding conductor, to differentiate it from the grounded supply conductor (neutral), rather than just as 'ground.' OT Tidbit: The first place I encountered the term 'earth' in an electrical context, was related to an automobile (an 1970 MG B), in describing the chassis circuit reference as "negatively earthed." The car didn't have a drag chain and used the traditional nonconductive tires (oops, 'tyres'), so I expect there was no such thing as a 'earthed' part on the whole thing. Regards, Peter L. Tarver, PE ptar...@ieee.org CONFIDENTIALITY This e-mail message and any attachments thereto, is intended only for use by the addressee(s) named herein and may contain legally privileged and/or confidential information. If you are not the intended recipient of this e-mail message, you are hereby notified that any dissemination, distribution or copying of this e-mail message, and any attachments thereto, is strictly prohibited. If you have received this e-mail message in error, please immediately notify the sender and permanently delete the original and any copies of this email and any prints thereof. 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