Greg ... though not specifically a "safety" example, you have stumbled upon a great example of the 'blame game.'
OK, so the NEC requires some disconnecting means, but is silent on the specifics. Somehow, everyone agreed that the little plug&socket connectors met the requirement. So far, so good.
Issue #1: Who installs them? Is it the electrician, the fixture maker, or the ballast maker? I notice that new fixtures come with them already installed, but that replacement ballasts do not. From this I deduce that it is the fixture maker who installs them.
Issue #2: For old work and maintenance, the things obviously need to be installed by the electrician. Since he's likely to be replacing the ballast at this point, it would make sense if the ballast came with the devices. They do not; it's up to tge sparky to obtain them.
Issue #3: Where do you get them? Well, the electrician goes to the parts house, where he is almost certain to find ones made by Ideal. Alas, I have never seem a luminaire manufacture waiting in line there; they must have other resources.
Issue #4: What should these devices look like? Despite the very existance of NEMA - it's no accident that bulb sizes are standardized - there's been no effort made to standardise the plug&socket. Therefore, it is wuite possible that every maker of these connectors will come up with a different arrangement, using different design criteria.
The result: Monies spent on these connectors by manufacturers are monies wasted. Since the replacement connectors will not matych the existing ones, we're back to working 'hot,' as we replace the connectors.
Oddly enough, the solution lies with not just the ballast makers, but with one in particular: Advance. With their large share of both the new fixture and ballast markets, whatever connector they choose will become the "norm." Yet, they are the one party involved that is under no obligation to instal the things.
Were Advance to settle on a design, I suspect that Ideal would find a way to supply this design to the parts houses - even if their current design is not the one selected.
The only reason that there is no 'industry standard' is that the NEMA members don't want there to be one. Everyone wants 'their' design to remain exclusively theirs ..... and the one guy with the market power to impose a decision is keeping out of the fray.
What we have here is the equivalent of every toaster maker either not supplying a plug, or supplying one that matches no known receptacle - and the solution laying in the cord-maker's hands.
