ELECTRICAL HAZARDS GENERAL CONTROL MEASURES BASIC INFORMATION AND TUTORIALS

General control measures for electrical hazards

The principal control measures for electrical hazards are contained in the statutory precautionary requirements covered by the Electricity at Work Regulations. They are applicable to all electrical equipment and systems found at the workplace and impose duties on employers, employees and the self-employed.

The regulations cover the following topics:

S the design, construction and maintenance of electrical systems, work activities and protective
equipment
S the strength and capability of electrical equipment
S the protection of equipment against adverse and hazardous environments
S the insulation, protection and placing of electrical conductors
S the earthing of conductors and other suitable precautions
S the integrity of referenced conductors
S the suitability of joints and connections used in electrical systems
S means for protection from excess current
S means for cutting off the supply and for isolation
S the precautions to be taken for work on equipment made dead
S working on or near live conductors
S adequate working space, access and lighting
S the competence requirements for persons working on electrical equipment to prevent danger and injury.

Detailed safety standards for designers and installers of electrical systems and equipment are given a code of practice published by the Institution of Electrical Engineers, known as the IEE Regulations. While these regulations are not legally binding, they are recognized as a code of good practice and widely used as an industry standard.

The risk of injury and damage inherent in the use of electricity can only be controlled effectively by the introduction of employee training, safe operating procedures (safe systems of work) and guidance to cover specific tasks.

Training is required at all levels of the organization ranging from simple on-the-job instruction to apprenticeship for electrical technicians and supervisory courses for experienced electrical engineers. First aid training related to the need for cardiovascular resuscitation and treatment of electric burns should be available to all people working on electrical equipment and their supervisors.

A management system should be in place to ensure that the electrical systems are installed, operated and maintained in a safe manner. All managers should be responsible for the provision of adequate resources of people, material and advice to ensure that the safety of electrical systems under their control is satisfactory and that safe systems of work are in place for all electrical equipment

For small factories and office or shop premises where the system voltages are normally at mains voltage, it may be necessary for an external competent person to be available to offer the necessary advice.

Managers must set up a high voltage permit-to-work system for all work at and above 600 volts. The system should be appropriate to the extent of the electrical system involved. Consideration should also be given to the introduction of a permit system for voltages under 600 volts when appropriate and for all work on live conductors.

The additional control measures that should be taken when working with electrical or using electrical equipment are summarized by the following topics:
S the selection of suitable equipment
S the use of protective systems
S inspection and maintenance strategies

SAFETY MONITORING SYSTEM THAT YOU CAN PUT IN PLACE TO DEVELOP SAFETY AWARENESS

SAFETY MONITORING SYSTEM

Safety monitoring is concerned with the measurement and evaluation of safety performance. It may take the following forms:

1. Safety surveys: This is a detailed examination of a number of critical areas of operation or, perhaps, an in-depth study of all health and safety related activities in a workplace.

2. Safety tours: These are an unscheduled examination of a working area, frequently undertaken as a group exercise (eg foreman, safety representative and safety committee member), to assess general compliance with safety requirements (eg fire protection measures and use of machinery safety devices).

3. Safety audits: A safety audit fundamentally subjects each area of an organisation’s activities to a systematic critical examination with the object of minimising injury and loss. It generally takes the form of a series of questions directed to examining factors such as the operation of safe systems of work, compliance with the Statement of Health and Safety Policy and the operation of hazard reporting systems.

4. Safety inspections: A scheduled inspection of a premises or working area to assess levels of legal compliance and observation of company safety procedures. Safety inspections are frequently undertaken by company safety specialists and trade union safety representatives.

5. Safety sampling: A system designed to measure by random sampling the accident potential in a workplace or process by identifying defects in safety performance or omissions. Observers follow a prescribed route through the working area noting deficiencies in performance, eg concerning the wearing of personal protective equipment or the use of correct manual handling techniques.

In some cases, individual topics in the safety sampling exercise are ranked according to importance with a maximum number of points achievable. At the end of the exercise a total score is identified which gives an indication of the performance level at that point in time.

6. Hazard and operability studies: Such studies incorporate the application of formal critical examination to the process and engineering intentions regarding new facilities. The principal aim of such a study is to assess the hazard potential arising from the incorrect operation of equipment and the consequential effects on the facility. Such an operation enables remedial action to be taken at a very early stage.

7. Damage control: Levels of damage are an indication of future accident potential. Damage control operates on the philosophy that non-injury accidents are just as important as injury accidents. The elimination of the causes of accidents resulting in damage to property, plant and products frequently results in a reduction in injury accidents.

ACCIDENT PREVENTION STRATEGIES FOR AND BY MANAGERS AND SUPERVISORS

MEANS OF ACCIDENT PREVENTION THAT CAN BE INITIATED BY MANAGERS

As a Manager, there are means and ways that can prevent accidents that you may initiate.

Means of preventing accidents

Strategies for preventing accidents take many forms. These include:

1. Prohibition: Some processes and practices may be so inherently dangerous that the only way to prevent accidents is by management placing a total prohibition on that activity. This may take the form of a prohibition on the use of a particular substance, such as an identified toxic substance, or of prohibiting people from carrying out unsafe practices, such as riding on the tines of a fork-lift truck, climbing over moving conveyors or working on roofs without crawlboards.

2. Substitution: The substitution of a less dangerous material or system of work will, in many cases, reduce accident potential. Typical examples are the introduction of remote control handling facilities for direct manual handling operations, the substitution of toluene, a much safer substance, for benzene, and the use of non-asbestos substitutes for boiler and pipe lagging.

3. Change of process: Design or process engineering can usually change a process to ensure better operator protection. Safety aspects of new systems should be considered in the early stages of projects.

4. Process control: This can be achieved through the isolation of a particular process, the use of ‘permit to work’ systems, mechanical or remote control handling systems, restriction of certain operations to highly trained and competent operators, and the introduction of dust and fume arrestment plant.

5. Safe systems of work: Formally designated safe systems of work, with high levels of training, supervision and control, are an important strategy in accident prevention (see below).

6. Personal protective equipment: This entails the provision of items such as safety boots, goggles, aprons, gloves, etc, but is limited in its application as a safety strategy

Safe systems of work

A safe system of work is defined as ‘the integration of men, machinery and materials in the correct environment to provide the safest possible working conditions in a particular working area’.

A safe system of work should incorporate the following features:

(a) a correct sequence of operations;

(b) a safe working area layout;

(c) a controlled environment in terms of temperature, lighting, ventilation, dust control, humidity control, sound pressure levels and radiation hazards; and

(d) clear specification of safe practices and procedures for the task in question.

Safe systems of work are generally designed through the technique of ‘job safety analysis’.