Despite awareness campaigns, industry statistics and loss summaries, annual safety conferences and numerous industry associations driving the safety message, our approach to electrical safety is often reactive rather than proactive.

You have enough to think about when you are focused on the task at hand. Excavating to a deadline, and wishing to maintain your exemplary levels of quality workmanship and safety. This latest job has you working close to power lines and both you and your spotter have been working for the better part of the day.  Knowing that these high voltage lines impose yet another additional demand upon your multitasking mind, you begin to juggle priorities, quality, safety, dead lines. This struggle leads you down a dangerous path. 

Although arc flash hazards have existed since mankind began using electricity, increasing deaths, injuries and property loss from arcing faults have led to increased awareness of the issue and investigation into methods of protection.

According to statistics compiled by CapSchell Inc, a Chicago-based research and consulting firm that specializes in preventing workplace injuries and deaths, there are five to ten arc-flash explosions that occur in electric equipment every day, resulting in medical treatment.

The Ontario Ministry of Labour will conduct an enforcement blitz at mining operations throughout the province in September to “check for hazards involving live electrical equipment,” in order to reduce workplace injuries.

The blitz is part of the Safe at Work Ontario campaign, which was launched last summer, and will see inspectors checking for electrical hazards that can result in death or injury, and inspecting electrical equipment and practices at underground mines, aggregate operations and surface plants.  

A day on the job for electricians can be risky business, but the risk is even higher if they’re performing live work on energized electrical equipment. That’s why the Electrical Safety Coalition of Ontario has launched its Just Don’t Ask campaign with the goal of stopping the demand for live work, in order to prevent serious injury or death.

While most of us are familiar with electric shock, there’s significantly less awareness around arc flash – and people can die from these sudden exposures.

“Z462 deals with both electric shock and arc flash, but arc flash was seldom recognized in the past as being a hazard,” says the CSA’s Dave Shanahan. But an arc flash can occur at any time – when systems break down and fail, or when work is being done on a system.

There are 600 to 800 electrical accidents in Canada every year – not to mention related deaths. To help reduce that number, the Canadian Standards Association has come out with a new standard that deals with electrical safety and ties into the 2009 edition of the Canadian Electrical Code.

The new Schneider Electric Square D brand MD50 motor disconnect receptacle switch provides reliable, safe and quick power connections for motors, the company says. IEC 60309-compliant technology helps the Square D brand MD50 increase plant floor safety by making it virtually impossible to plug in a power receptacle having different voltage and ampere ratings. A mechanical interlock requires the operator to insert a plug before power can be turned on, and to turn power off before the plug can be removed. Pre-wired for quick and easy installation, the Square D MD50 is appropriate for applications like food processing, packaging, automotive assembly, material handling/conveyance, textiles, mining, petrochemical refining and pulp/paper manufacturing, Schneider says. The IEC-compliant platform of the Square D MD50 provides a quick and easy method for companies to standardize their electrical component specifications worldwide, because it is compatible with any manufacturer’s product conforming to the IEC 60309 standard and colour coding. A watertight ground hub and two grounding blocks provide both equipment and metallic system grounds for the Square D MD50. In addition to pre-wiring, it features moveable mounting feet for irregular surfaces, and internal mounting tubes help when mounting space is limited.
www.schneider-electric.ca

Hoffman introduces Utility Junction (UJ) Sectionalizing Enclosures, designed to provide aboveground housing for sectionalizing, tapping or terminating underground distribution systems while resisting challenging outdoor conditions. UJ enclosures are offered in single- and three-phase models. With resilient steel or aluminum construction and a tamper-resistant design, UJ enclosures withstand the toughest environmental abuse to deliver extended operational life and minimize replacement costs. Each UJ enclosure features a self-engaging wind stop that holds the cover in the open position for easy access to terminations. A recessed pentahead latch and interlocked padlock provision ensure the enclosure closes securely. The UJ enclosures, now available in a variety of standard sizes, also meet ANSI C57.12.28 Pad-Mounted Equipment Enclosure Integrity industry standards, Hoffman says. Each of the 15 UJ enclosure models is available in large or small orders with short lead times, providing the convenience of in-stock solutions with the flexibility to meet diverse application needs.
www.hoffmanonline.com

Changing a light bulb is one thing. Working with live, high-voltage electricity is quite another. For workplaces that don’t understand this, a new CSA standard is about to make it clear.