ELECTRICAL SAFETY
WORK SAFE BC MANUFACTURING
SAFETY CONFERENCE
Terry Becker, P.Eng., C.E.M.,CEO, Senior Management
November 20-21, 2007
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Overview
• Introductions, Terry Becker
• Provide brief overview of presentation, content,
and Q&As.
• Overview of electrical safety in existing
regulations and evolving changes:
– BC OH&S Act, Part 19 Electrical Safety.
– AB OH&S, Part 18, Personal Protective Equipment.
– SK OH&S Act, Part VII, PPE, 94, Skin Protection.
– Canadian Electrical Code, Rule 2-306, Warning Arc
Flash & Shock Hazards, Appropriate PPE Required.
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Overview
• Industry Electrical Safety Standards:
– NFPA 70E Standard for Electrical Safety in the
Workplace, 2004 Edition. 7th Edition in 2009.
– CSA Z462 Workplace Electrical Safety Standard,
2009, 1st Edition.
– CSA Z460 Lockout
– CSA Z1000, Occupational Health & Safety
Management System
• Electrical Hazards – Arc Flash/Blast, Shock &
Electrocution. Toxic Energy.
• Electrical Hazards, What has changed?
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Overview
• Case History – Arc Flash in Commercial Building
• Case History – Arc Flash in Food Manufacturing Plant
• Case History – High Voltage Shock, Paul Herbert
• Better management of electrical hazards, an Electrical
Safety Program.
• Qualifications and Training.
• Electrical Specific PPE, “Arc Rating & Arc Thermal
Performance Value (ATPV).”
• Electrical Safe Work Procedures
• Changes in Engineering, Equipment and Maintenance,
“Safety by Design.”
• The future??
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Regulations & Standards
• BC OH&S Act, Part 19 Electrical Safety:
– Overview of this section.
– General Electrical Requirements.
– Working on Low Voltage Electrical Equipment
• Working close to energized equipment
– Working on High Voltage Electrical Equipment
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Regulations & Standards
• Canadian Electrical Code, Part 1, Rule 2-306:
– (1) Electrical equipment such as switchboards, panel boards,
industrial control panels, meter socket enclosures, and motor
control centers that are installed in other than dwelling units and
are likely to require examination, adjustment, servicing, or
maintenance while energized shall be field marked to warn
persons of potential electric shock and arc flash hazards.
– (2) The marking referred to in Subrule (1) shall be located so that
it is clearly visible to persons before examination, adjustment,
servicing, or maintenance of the equipment.
• Simple Arc Flash & Shock Label:
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Regulations & Standards
• Canadian Electrical Code, Part 1, Rule 2-306.
• Detailed Arc Flash & Shock Label:
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Regulations & Standards
• NFPA 70E Standard for Electrical Safety in the Workplace 2004, 6th
Edition and 7th Edition, 2009.
– electrical hazard identification
– task based
– arc flash incident energy
– boundaries for shock and arc flash
– electrical specific PPE
– Electrical Hazard Risk Analysis (JHA) process
– Energized Electrical Work Permit
– GOOD document, no other comprehensive document of this nature is
available
• CSA Z462 Workplace Electrical Safety Standard, 1st Edition, 2009.
– Adaptation and adoption of NFPA 70E to Canada. National Standard of
Canada, non-mandatory unless adopted into law by Provinces &
Territories.
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Regulations & Standards
• CSA Z460, Lockout, 2006
– new lock out standard for Canada
• CSA Z1000, Occupational Health & Safety
Management, 2006
– new standard for guidelines to establish an
comprehensive Occupational Health & Safety
Management System. Use it to improve
performance, and help to reduce or prevent
occupational injuries, illnesses, and fatalities.
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Hazards of Electricity – Arc Flash/Blast, Shock &
Electrocution
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Hazards of Electricity – Arc Flash/Blast, Shock,
& Electrocution
Short Circuit
Contact from Fault Current
energized
equipment to
ground
Distance the
Worker is from
the Fault
Clearing
Time Note: 1.2
cal/cm2 , 2nd
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Hazards of Electricity – Arc Flash/Blast, Shock &
Electrocution
• Shock & Electrocution:
– Electrical current passing through the human
body is shock. Death due to shock is
electrocution.
– A 120V, 60 Watt light bulb requires 0.5 Amps
of current (500mA), 50-80 mA will cause your
heart to stop. At 15mA your muscles contract
and you cannot let go.
– Thermal burns occur at exit and entry sites on
the body.
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Electrical Hazards. What has changed?
• In the past electrical hazards were not given enough
respect.
• Limited specific content in existing curriculum, electrical
safety documents for companies, or nothing in place at
all.
• Assumed the electrical worker had it under control.
• Safe work permits didn’t recognize the electrical hazards
appropriately, and operations staff didn’t respect the
electrical hazards or felt the electrician would “take care
of it, he/she knew what they were doing.”
• Wrongly assumed that the electrical worker was qualified
and had the right tools, and PPE for the work task.
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Case History – Florida Commercial
Building, Arc Flash
• The O/H power line contact hazard was
identified, but no emphasis on the arc flash
potential, just shock and electrocution.
• Limited to no specific guidance on electric arc
flash, and contact (i.e. shock or electrocution)
with respect to energized electrical equipment
and circuit parts in Safe Work Permits (if used).
• No emphasis on requirement for detailed
electrical specific Job Hazard Assessment or
detailed Electrical Safe Work Procedures.
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Case History – Arc Flash in Florida
Commercial Building
What went wrong, was there a work plan, were the right tools and PPE used,
was the second person qualified to be there?
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Case History – Arc Flash in Food
Processing Plant
What went wrong, was there a work plan, were the right tools and PPE used,
was the second and third person qualified to be there? Did they understand
the potential risk? Could this incident have been avoided?
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Case History – High Voltage Shock,
Paul Herbert
Paul Herbert survived a 14,400V shock. He was a Power Linesman. Paul
lost both of his legs, his right arm, fingers on his left hand and was burned at
entry point. What went wrong, could Paul’s incident have been avoided?
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Better Management of Electrical
Hazards – Electrical Safety Program
• Can we make improvements in training, PPE
and procedures. YES WE CAN!
• Put down what you are going to do in writing.
You need written documents.
• Recommended that you put all documents in a
structured Electrical Safety Program (ESP).
• The ESP is included at part of your overall
Occupational Health & Safety Management
System.
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Qualifications & Training
• More emphasis on this coming for electrical
workers. Neglected in the past?
• Qualifications, experience, competency, and
evidence of the same required.
• Frequency of training, due diligence required.
• Non-electrical workers will require more
awareness training.
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Electrical Specific PPE
• We know FR, but do you know what ATPV is?
You will have to know now.
• Arc Thermal Performance Value or Arc Rating.
• Arc Flash Incident Energy level, cal / cm2, at 1.2
cal /cm2, 2nd Degree Burn.
• FR and ATPV are different.
• You will require the electrical worker to have
appropriate and approved electrical specific
PPE.
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Electrical Safe Work Procedures
• May not of had these in the past, or not
enough of them.
• Templated and site specific.
• Must be in writing, recorded and available
for audit.
• Must ensure electrical specific JHA.
• Use Energized Electrical Work Permit
(EEWP) process.
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Changes in Engineering, Equipment, &
Maintenance – “Safety By Design”
• We can reduce the arc flash and shock
hazard by engineering the risk of exposure
to the hazards down. Focus on safety
first, then damage and reliability.
• We can specify safer electrical equipment
or components for the equipment.
• We can ensure we actually do electrical
equipment maintenance, and at an
acceptable frequency.
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The Future
• Regulations are changing.
• Different than today, new culture with respect to
dealing with electrical hazards evolving in
Canada.
• New electrical safety standards established,
setting new industry best practices.
• More regulatory risk for all industry sectors.
• More need for demonstrating appropriate due
diligence, specific electrical JHA, training, PPE,
written safe work procedures, etc...
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The Future
• Get educated about what is happening.
• Take appropriate action.
• Ensure you company has taken
appropriate steps to prove due diligence.
• We need to do a better job at protecting
the electrical worker from the electrical
hazards when working on energized
electrical equipment.
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Electrical Safety
• Thanks for your time.
• Q & As
• Contact information for WorkSafeBC
Prevention Services:
– 604-276 3100
– 1-866-922-4357
• Contact information for Terry Becker:
– terry.becker @espsi.ca
– 1-403-465-3777
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Program Solutions INC. 2007
