Working with Electricity – example of work management guidance

Definition of competence

To be "assessed as competent", a person must demonstrate the ability to identify, recognize, and mitigate electrical hazards associated with a given piece of equipment.

Note - it is possible to be "competent" on one piece of equipment, but not "competent" on another

Work Management guidance for electrical work

1)All electrical work shall be performed in an ELECTRICALLY SAFE WORK CONDITION, unless such condition is not possible or creates a higher risk. To be placed in an ELECTRICALLY SAFE WORK CONDITION, electrical circuits and / or conductors shall be:

  1. DE-ENERGIZED (electrically disconnected from any source of voltage or electric charge),
  2. ELECTRICALLY ISOLATED (disconnected from every source of electrical energy in such a way that this disconnection is secure), and locked / tagged in accordance with established standards (lock and test lock),
  3. TRIED - attempt to operate or start load (e.g., Hand-Off-Auto, Start/Stop motor switch, or control system force) to confirm and demonstrate that the correct source has been DE-ENERGIZED,
  4. VOLTAGE TESTED (using an approved voltage testing method and approved voltage testing device) to confirm the absence of voltage, and
  5. GROUNDED (if determined necessary) to prevent inadvertent energization.

2)All personnel working on electrical equipment SHALL be protected and test electrical equipment before touching or working on exposed electrical conductors.

3)Management of Change is required for temporary power leads kept in place for longer than 6 months.

4)Portable electrically powered hand tools and equipment (excluding battery powered devices) shall be powered by:

  1. GFCI device with tripping current of 30 mA or less, OR
  2. safety transformer with restricted secondary voltage < 50V, OR
  3. electrical secondary transformer per IEC 60364-4-41

5)Electrical inspection shall be conducted by a qualified person and the frequency of inspection shall be prior to use, prior to initial energization, prior to re-energization, and at least annually for equipment in service. Inspection shall confirm that tools, electrical jumpers, shorts, grounds, and other such devices have been removed, and conduct tests and visual inspections as necessary.

6)Portable electric equipment and flexible extension cords used around water or conductive liquids, shall be approved for those locations

7)Such personnel shall be trained and assessed as competent, where “assessed as competent” is as defined in item 1, above.

8)PPE and Standby Requirements for Electrical Work shall be as per the below table:

9)Hearing protection should be considered when the calculated incident energy exposure is greater than 1.2 cal/cm2. Personnel should as a minimum wear outer garments with a standard ATPV rating for fire- and arc-flash of 8 cal/cm2. No synthetic undergarments should be worn.

10)Arc Flash Hazard Warning labels shall be maintained on, or close to, energized electrical equipment and include details of required Arc Flash PPE and the Arc Flash Protection Boundary.

11)Safe Approach Distances from EXPOSED ENERGIZED conductors (i.e., PROXIMITY WORK), for both qualified and unqualified workers, shall be as defined in the below table:

12) When required as per the table in item 10, above, a second person not directly performing the electrical task (“standby person”) shall be assigned to continuously observe and possibly intervene during safety critical tasks. A STANDBY PERSON shall:

  1. Keep non-essential persons out of the work area,
  2. Consider verbally communicating and verifying each critical job step, where detailed step-by-step procedures exist for higher risk/complex activities,
  3. Be able to recognize and watch the worker(s) for signs of distress,
  4. Be capable of removing the victim from the electrical hazard without endangering themselves (e.g., use insulated shepherd’s hook),
  5. Know where and how to DE-ENERGIZE the electrical circuit or equipment if there is any sign of worker distress,
  6. Summon help if required to ensure first aid, including Cardio Pulmonary Resuscitation (CPR), is started as soon as possible.