May is designated as National Electrical Safety Month, a time to raise awareness about the importance of safe electrical practices in homes, businesses, and communities. The month of May focuses on preventing electrical hazards, like fires, arc flashes, shocks, and electrocutions, through education and proactive measures. Over the years ESCO has developed electrical safe work practices policies, programs and trainings to accomplish our goals of education and leading preventative measures for our employee’s personal safety and well-being. Electrical safety month is a great reset and catalyst for discussing our Electrical Safe Work Practices (ESWP). ESCO leverages their weekly safety training sessions throughout the month of May to discuss their ESWP. This helps keep expectations and best practices fresh for qualified electrical workers. At ESCO, per the NFPA 70E standard, all employees exposed to electrical hazards in the workplace undergo at a minimum, a 4-hour electrical safety training session at a minimum of every 3-years. Electrical safety month helps refresh these expectations and spotlights our electrical safety focus.
In addition to training, qualified ESCO employees are issued a variety of arc flash and shock protection. Qualified workers are issued industrial grade Category 2 (8 cal/cm² minimum protection) arc flash uniforms for their daily wear as a base level of personal protective equipment. ESCO has been following this as their best practice since 2006. ESCO feels this is the right thing to do for the safety of our employees and provides a professional look for employees providing the electrical services for our customers, essentially, branding us as a safe and well-prepared company when we arrive on a client’s site.
The investment doesn’t stop at our daily wear. Employees are trained to perform arc flash and shock assessments for all tasks that present electrical hazards. The assessments could yield the need for increased arc flash protection beyond Category 2, typically achieved by the use of an arc flash suit, up to 40 cal/cm² (Category 4). Our best practice is anything over 8 cal/cm² and under 40 cal/cm² requires the use of a Category 4 suit.
Although, elimination of the hazard (de-energization), is our preferred method of hazard mitigation, we sometimes still have to ask our qualified electrical workers to work within the restricted shock protection boundary to verify elimination of energy or troubleshoot electrical issues. To properly protect employees ESCO provides an extensive amount of insulated tools and handling equipment for all Classes (voltage levels) of equipment they may encounter. This equipment is closely monitored and tested in accordance with ASTM requirements.
Overall, ESCO prides ourselves in keeping employees safe from all hazards, May is a great month to focus on Electrical Safety Hazards.
Written By: Quincey Luedeman, Director of Fleet, Facility, & Safety Operations