I'm sure there are those who will argue this is a code violation and cite code sections.
However, this is a very common commercial/industrial practice because of the reasons you just gave...machinery moves around...equipment is in the middle of the floor (of a 20,000 s.f. room)...it is common to run conduit over the ceiling, use SO cord with a strain relief at each end and terminate in a box ([400-7(a)(1)]says pendants are allowed). A building I've worked on for over 10 yrs. has these in the warehouse and production areas - the inspector has never challenged the installation.
P.S. (re: Joe's comment) - I've only seen this approved when using boxes with a threaded entry (like the Killark FS boxes), no KO's.
[This message has been edited by dana1028 (edited 07-24-2003).]
