Arc Flash & Electrical Safety: November 2007

Friday, November 30, 2007

Removing the Confusion Over Electrical Standards

"Not sure whether to follow OSHA or National Electrical Code requirements for electrical safety at your construction site? Here is guidance to help you understand the differences in four controversial areas."

That is the subtitle for an article in Occupational Hazards Magazine. The article then defines the problem:

"Electrical safety on construction sites continues to be a major issue. While progress has been made over the years, electrical accidents continue to rank high on the list of construction accidents. In some areas of the country, they are the second leading cause of death or serious injury."

"One reason that electrical accidents occur is because of confusion between National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and OSHA requirements. Four areas in particular continue to spark controversy or are approached differently by different regulatory standards. There are ways to bring harmony to these four issues by providing recommendations to deal with the differences."

The four areas of confusion discussed in this article are:

Ground-fault circuit-interrupters and Portable Generators

Open Wiring on Insulators

Relocatable Power Taps

Arc Blast and Arc Flash Hazards

For the first three of the above there are updated codes that apply in these areas that are more restrictive than what OSHA requires. For example while OSHA does allow open wiring under some circumstance, NEC 527.4(B) and (C) does not allow it. The article recommends using the stricter code requirements, not because they are stricter but because they are safer.

Arc flash is on the list because arc flash hazards tend to be ignored during construction. The article states:

"In the last few years, considerable progress has been made in industrial facilities after the owners take occupancy. It is during the construction phase that there is little or no attention to this hazard. In many of our code classes for construction electricians, the majority states that this is the first time they have heard about this issue."

The article points out that arc flash is a danger during construction and the requirements of NFPA 70E must be followed during construction.

Labels: Arc Flash, Construction, NFPA 70E

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Wednesday, November 28, 2007

New NEMA Standards For Facility Signs

The National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) has published ANSI Z535.2-2007 American National Standard for Environmental and Facility Safety Signs. This publication contains the requirements for safety signs to be used to alert and inform viewers of the existence of potential hazards to personnel or property in the environment or in facilities, the nature and potential severity of the hazard, and the steps to be taken to avoid the hazard.

According to Allen Clapp, chairman of Subcommittee Z535.2 on Environmental and Facility Safety Signs, this document also includes requirements for signs describing safety procedures, the location of safety equipment, and directional arrows used to alert viewers of safe locations or safety equipment. The requirements cover both fixed signs and larger, movable signs that are sometimes used on large industrial sites with changing conditions.

"This edition helps users differentiate hazards that are likely to result in personal injury from hazards likely to result only in damage to facilities," Clapp said. "The safety sign formats in this standard are consistent with those of ANSI Z535.4 for product safety signs and labels, and ANSI Z535.5 for temporary safety tags and barricade tapes. This standard, however, appropriately reflects the different requirements for environmental and facility safety signs to alert viewers at greater distances, so that they may avoid entering—or take appropriate cautions before entering—the location containing the hazard."

This standard incorporates a new annex to help users estimate and evaluate risks from potential hazards in the environment or in facilities, and select the appropriate alerting signal word and sign format consistent with the type and degree of hazard. Updated references also help users design effective, efficient safety signs.

The table of contents and scope of ANSI Z535.2-2007 may be viewed, or a hardcopy or electronic copy purchased for $78 by visiting NEMA’s website at www.nema.org/stds/z535-2.cfm Copies may also be purchased by contacting IHS at 800-854-7179 (within the U.S.), 303-397-7956 (international), or 303-397-2740 (fax).

NEMA is the trade association of choice for the electrical manufacturing industry. Founded in 1926 and headquartered near Washington, D.C., its approximately 450 member companies manufacture products used in the generation, transmission and distribution, control, and end-use of electricity. These products are used in utility, medical imaging, industrial, commercial, institutional, and residential applications. Domestic production of electrical products sold worldwide exceeds $120 billion. In addition to its headquarters in Rosslyn, Virginia, NEMA also has offices in Beijing, São Paulo, and Mexico City.

Labels: Electrical Safety

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Thursday, November 22, 2007

Arc Flash Electrical Safety Discussion

We are featuring electrical safety videos this week. Today's post features two videos. The first video shows the arc flash that results when a workman touches a live circuit with a screwdriver. I can not tell if he was injured, but he has no PPE.

The following presents an arc flash safety discussion.

Labels: Safety Video, Understanding Arc Flash

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Wednesday, November 21, 2007

Electric TV.net Discusses Arc Flash

This video, from ElectricTV.net talks about arc flash and arc flash safety.

Labels: Safety Video, Understanding Arc Flash

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Tuesday, November 20, 2007

NFPA Electrical Safety Video

This week are are featuring electrical safety videos. Today's video is from the NFPA. It shows how to work safely with electricity.

Labels: Electrical Hazards, Safety Video

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Monday, November 19, 2007

The Funeral - WSIB Safety Video

WSIB pulls no punches in their safety videos. This one promotes electrical safety.

WSIB is the Canadian Workplace Safety and Insurance Board in Ontario, Canada. They oversee Ontario's workplace safety education and training system, provides disability benefits and monitors the quality of health and safety, and provides a workers compensation system.

Labels: Safety Video, Work Place Safety

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Wednesday, November 14, 2007

Interview With An Arc Flash Victim

In this six minute video arc flash victim Ed Manthei describes what happened when he was involved in an arc flash accident. He then goes on to describes the medical procedures that were required and what was involved in his recovery.

This video does not have the emotional impact of the Donnie's Accident video, but it still delivers a strong message about the dangers of arc flash.

Labels: Arc Flash Accidents, Safety Video, Work Place Safety

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Friday, November 09, 2007

House Moving Company Fined

The Medford Oregon Mail Tribune reported yesterday that: "The owner of a house moving company has been fined $18,000 for safety violations after an employee suffered life-threatening injuries from high-voltage power lines."

On June 6th Ken Olmstead was riding on the roof of a house that was being moved. His job was to lift up energized power lines so the house could pass under them. While lifting an uninsulated power line the D-ring on the back of his harness contacted the power line and created an "arc flash".

Read the complete story at: http://www.mailtribune.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20071108/NEWS/711080327

Labels: Electrical Injuries

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Wednesday, November 07, 2007

Ultrasonic Analysis and Arc Flash

"Another application that is often overlooked is the use of airborne ultrasonics as an added safety measure when opening electrical cabinets. An example of this might be during a routine IR thermography scan. Pre-screen the cabinet doors with an ultrasonic meter to detect any arcing that may be occurring in the breaker or starter. This arcing will ionize the air inside the cabinet. When the cabinet door is opened, the fresh air becomes a welcomed path to ground, producing an extremely dangerous arc flash."

The above is a quote from an article by Andy Page , "How are you using ultrasonic analysis?" in Reliable Plant Magazine. 11/2007

The article discusses ways in which structure-borne ultrasonic analysis can be used to improve safety. There are two types of ultrasonic analysis:

Pulse-echo ultrasound generates an ultrasonic pulse that is transmitted into a material. It is typically used for imaging, to measure material thickness or to locate material discontinuities.

Structure-borne ultrasonic analysis, also known as passive ultrasonic analysis, detects and analyzes the ultrasound coming from a equipment and is used to detect and predict various types of failures. In addition to numerous other applications, this article provides two examples of how passive ultrasonic analysis can be used to prevent arc flash incidents.

Labels: Electrical Safety, Preventing Arc Flash Accidents

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