Workers' Comp Rate for Furniture or Fixtures Installation - Portable NOC in Alabama (Class Code 5146)
Last verified: 2026-06-02
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About Class Code 5146: Scope, Inclusions, and Common Misclassifications
NCCI Class Code 5146 — "Furniture or Fixtures Installation — Portable — NOC" — is the workers' compensation classification for contractors who assemble and install freestanding, portable furniture and fixtures at the customer's location. It covers the installation of modular workstations and office systems, partitions, shelving, lockers, filing equipment, showcases, stock bins, theater seats, restaurant furniture, bulletin and chalk or cork boards, and similar pieces that are set in place rather than permanently built into the structure. The defining test is portability: 5146 applies when the item is delivered essentially finished and assembled or set on site, not constructed as part of the building.
The work is assembly-driven. Manufactured parts arrive completely finished except for assembly, and crews put them together with screws, nuts and bolts, or similar fasteners using simple hand tools or hand-held power tools. A minor amount of carpentry or sheet-metal work to adapt a piece to the site stays within 5146, but when installation requires electrical or plumbing work those operations are separately classified — electrical to Code 5190 and plumbing to Code 5183. This page compares filed base-rate estimates for 5146 across states so an installation contractor can see the spread before requesting a quote, and explains where the boundary against built-in carpentry falls.
What's Included Under Class Code 5146
5146 contemplates the on-site assembly and installation of portable furniture and fixtures that are received from the manufacturer in finished form. Typical operations include erecting modular office workstations and demountable partitions, installing shelving and storage systems, setting lockers and stock bins, placing showcases and store fixtures, and installing theater or restaurant seating. The classification anticipates the simple fastening of pre-finished components and the incidental carpentry or sheet-metal trimming needed to fit a piece to a specific space.
Because the items are portable, the exposure is materially lower than structural carpentry — the hazard is handling, lifting, and working from ladders or lifts rather than framing or erecting a building. That keeps 5146 below the heavy construction codes on the rate scale, though it sits above clerical and light-retail codes. As with all contractor classes, 5146 is assigned from the operations actually performed during the policy year, not from the business name, and payroll for separately classified electrical or plumbing work must be reported under its own code.
When Installation Is NOT Coded 5146
The most common boundary dispute is portable versus built-in. Cabinetry, casework, and fixtures that are permanently fastened into or constructed as part of the building — built-in kitchen cabinets, fixed millwork, store fixtures framed and attached on site — are interior carpentry, not 5146, and rate to the applicable carpentry classification. The 5146 test is whether the finished item is set in place and could be removed and relocated, versus whether it is constructed into the structure.
Two operations break out of 5146 even on a portable-fixture job: electrical hookups go to Code 5190 and plumbing connections go to Code 5183, each separately rated. Independent-bureau states matter here too — California (WCIRB), Pennsylvania (PCRB), Delaware (DCRB), New Jersey (NJCRIB), Michigan (CAOM), and North Carolina (NCRB) maintain their own rating systems and may assign portable-fixture installation to a different code number or phraseology than NCCI's 5146, so a contractor in those states should confirm classification with the state bureau rather than relying on the national number.
Sources
- GeneralLiabilityInsure — NCCI Class Code 5146 Fixtures or Furniture Installation — Portable — NOC (scope, assembly operations, separately-rated electrical/plumbing) (retrieved 2026-06-02)
- Class Codes — Workers Compensation Code 5146 Furniture or Fixtures Installation — Portable — NOC (portable-fixture phraseology and examples) (retrieved 2026-06-02)
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