A switchboard labeled “IP67” may not survive a hose-down, because what was tested was immersion, and the nameplate does not even say whether it can take a hit. The ingress protection rating (the IP rating, from Ingress Protection) is a two-digit code defined in IEC 60529 (from the International Electrotechnical Commission) that states how much dust and water can get into an enclosure; impact is measured by a different code, the IK rating of IEC 62262. This guide shows you how to read both on the nameplate of a switchboard or a switchgear panel.
Two facts explain why this matters now. UPME (Colombia's mining and energy planning unit) records 5,266.83 MW of solar and wind on the National Interconnected System (SIN) as of 3 October 2026, and every new megawatt brings outdoor switchboards and switchgear panels with it. And since 1 July 2026, Resolution 40284 has been in force, amending the Colombian electrical code (RETIE, the Technical Regulation for Electrical Installations).
The ingress protection rating is the system defined by IEC 60529 for enclosures of electrical equipment with a rated voltage up to 72.5 kV. The edition in force as of October 2026 is the consolidated edition 2.2 (1989 with amendments of 1999 and 2013). The IEC is working on a third edition that is not yet published; the related DIN project describes it as an editorial and cross-reference revision, with no technical changes announced.
The code consists of the letters IP, a first digit from 0 to 6 (access to hazardous parts and solid objects), a second digit from 0 to 9 (water) and optional letters. So IP54 means dust that, if it gets in, does not interfere with operation, plus protection against splashing water from any direction: a typical indoor industrial IP rating.
One rule prevents mistakes: the X replaces a digit whose requirement is not declared or was not tested. It does not mean zero or maximum. IPX4 declares water and does not declare solids; IP2X declares solids and does not declare water. If water is irrelevant in your application, write IP5X, not IP50.
First digit of the IP code: solids and access
Second digit of the IP code: water
Letters of the IP code
Letters A to D are added only when the access protection exceeds what the digit indicates, or when only access is declared (IPXXB). The minimum IP 2XC in RETIE means objects of 12.5 mm, water not declared and access with a 2.5 mm tool. Digit 2 is the electrical safety threshold for people.
Because from digit 7 onward, water protection stops being cumulative. Up to IPX6 each rating implies the lower ones; IPX7 and IPX8 do not certify IPX5 or IPX6 and require a separate designation.
The reason is physical. Immersion (IPX7) loads the gasket with uniform hydrostatic pressure: one meter of water is about 10 kPa. The powerful jet (IPX6) reaches 100 kPa, localized and moving, and can lift the lip of the gasket. An IP67 ingress protection rating can fail the jet test.
For the specification: if the equipment is hosed down and can be flooded, ask for dual marking IP66/IP67, with both tests and both codes on the nameplate. IPX8 has no universal figures: require a declared “IPX8: X m / Y h”.
Digit 9 (high pressure and temperature) has been in IEC 60529 since 2013, but the K in “IPX9K” comes from the automotive standard ISO 20653. Do not write “IP69K per IEC 60529”.
The IK rating is the code of IEC 62262 for external mechanical impacts (2002 edition, 2021 amendment). It is a separate standard: “IP65 IK10” are two codes, written separately, never “IP65-10” and never a third digit.
It measures energy. IK10 is 20 joules, a 5 kg mass dropped from 0.4 m. The test follows IEC 60068-2-75, with five impacts evenly distributed.
IK code: impact energy (IEC 62262)
The IK rating depends on where the enclosure is hit. A polycarbonate window and a solid door can have different IK ratings, and the standard allows them to be declared separately; RETIE does so for meter boxes (IK 10 polycarbonate window, IK 08 tempered glass, IK 09 body). And a hard blow degrades the IP rating: what fails is the gasket.
In low voltage, IEC 61439-1:2020 verifies the IP rating with covers and doors closed “as in normal use” (clause 10.3), by test according to IEC 60529 or by assessment. According to ABB's technical guide, it is declared by the original manufacturer, the closed assembly provides protection against direct contact of no less than IPXXB, and the IP rating must not be lower than IP2X once installed. With the door open or a device withdrawn there is no IP rating unless the manufacturer declares one.
There is a hidden cost: the higher the IP rating, the lower the heat dissipation. Oversizing the ingress protection rating forces you to derate currents or to ventilate through a filter.
In medium voltage, IEC 62271-200:2021 covers the degree of protection in clause 6.14 and the nameplate in clause 6.11 (Table 1). Installation guides place the minimum at IP2X; IP4X for the enclosure and IP2X between compartments is catalog practice, not standard text. Explore our medium voltage switchgear and our low voltage switchboards.
And one boundary: a high IP rating is not safety against internal arc. Arc has its own classification, IAC (internal arc classified; Annex A of IEC 62271-200: accessibility, sides, current and duration). We explain that reading in how to read Icw, Ipk and Icc on a switchboard nameplate (in Spanish).
Status: Resolution 40117 of 2024 has been in force since 3 April 2024, Resolution 40304 of 2025 extended the transition deadlines to 31 December 2025, and Resolution 40284, issued on 23 June 2026, has been in force since 1 July 2026. Since 1 January 2026 no product certificates are granted under Resolution 90708 of 2013, and certification and inspection bodies have until 23 June 2027 to update their scopes.
Comparing the 2024 text with the 2026 consolidated version, the IP and IK requirements for switchboards and switchgear panels cited here remain the same: the new RETIE did not raise the IP rating. The text is in the compiled RETIE from the Ministry of Mines and Energy.
What RETIE says about IP and IK (2026 compiled text)
Two details carry weight. Paragraph 1 of 2.3.31.1 does not accept the enclosure's certificate as certification of the switchboard; the manufacturer or integrator is answerable. And RETIE does not set a single IP rating for “outdoor switchboards”: it asks for the one suited to the place of operation and for the producer to declare the environment (general or special use: corrosive, outdoor, flammable or explosive). In substations subject to flooding it requires IP 67 or NEMA 6, and in submersible ones IP 68. The specification sets the rest.
With 1,132.31 MW of solar and wind still in testing as of October 2026, that decision is already being made on site.
Under UL (Underwriters Laboratories) or for export, the language changes: NEMA 250 (from the US National Electrical Manufacturers Association) and UL 50E speak of Enclosure Types. NEMA is explicit and one-directional: a Type meets or exceeds an IP rating, but an IP rating does not equal a Type, because Types also consider ice, corrosion and oils (600 h of salt spray outdoors, 200 more for 4X). NEC (the US National Electrical Code) 110.28 says that IP ratings do not replace Types. NEMA to IP tables are indicative only: do not convert IP to NEMA.
Corrosion. The IP rating does not measure it. Classify the site with ISO 9223 (C1 to C5 and CX), choose the paint system per ISO 12944 and require salt spray testing (ISO 9227), with the hours set by the product: 240 and 400 in RETIE. On the coast it matters: a 2007 study by the Universidad de Antioquia rated the Barranquilla stations as “very severe” for chlorides.
Condensation. An IP66 enclosure breathes with the day and night cycle and draws humid air in through gaskets and cable glands. It is not an IP failure, it is thermal management: a heater with a humidistat, breathable membranes that keep the IP rating and, in shelters, air conditioning with humidity control.
Installed IP. The real IP rating is that of the assembled unit: cable glands, bushings and field cutouts define it. NEMA calls it the weakest link in the chain, and RETIE 3.17.8 q requires verifying it on site.
Specification lesson. Write the ingress protection rating in seven lines, not one: (1) IP with the right X and suited to the site, never “high IP” or “IP65 or similar”; (2) dual marking IP66/IP67 if there are both jets and flooding, and IPX8 with depth and time; (3) IK separately and per surface, with the RETIE minimums; (4) IP with the door open and withdrawable units removed, declared; (5) corrosion and condensation separately; (6) a verification report for the complete assembly and the RETIE certificate; (7) IP on the nameplate and a visual check on site before energizing.
One boundary: this article explains the codes. The IP and IK ratings of a piece of equipment are those on its nameplate, its datasheet and its verification report. Industrias Ectricol S.A.S. manufactures switchboards and switchgear panels in Funza and builds integrated solutions; on each project the IP and IK ratings are agreed in writing with engineering before fabrication.
It is a two-digit ingress protection rating. The 5 indicates dust protection (any dust that gets in does not interfere with operation) and the 4 indicates protection against water splashing from any direction. It is a common indoor industrial IP rating. It is not dust tight (that is IP6X) and it does not withstand water jets (IPX5).
The 5 in the second digit tests water jets with a 6.3 mm nozzle, and the 7 tests temporary immersion for 30 minutes at one meter. They are different physical stresses and they are not cumulative from digit 7: an IP67 does not certify IP65. If you need both, ask for dual marking IP65/IP67.
It is the most demanding rating in common use on switchboards and switchgear panels in IEC 62262: 20 joules, equivalent to a 5 kg mass dropped from 0.4 m, with five impacts. It is not part of the ingress protection rating; it is written separately, for example “IP55 IK10”, and can be declared per surface (door, window).
At least IP 2XC (IEC 60529) or NEMA 1, and in any case the one suited to the place of operation. In public-use spaces outdoors, IP 55 or NEMA 12 (3.20.7). The IP rating must be on the nameplate (2.3.31.2.4 e) with the type of environment declared, and it is verified on site after assembly.
No. NEMA says a Type can be stated to meet or exceed an IP rating, but an IP rating cannot be stated to equal a Type. Tables that place 4X near IP66 are indicative and vary between sources. In addition, 4X includes corrosion resistance, which the IP rating does not measure.
Are you specifying switchboards or switchgear for outdoor, coastal or solar plant use?
Let us talk about the ingress protection rating and IK rating your specification needs, with the complete code, the evidence you should demand and what RETIE requires on the nameplate.
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