How Today’s Technology is Enabling Next-Generation Electrical Safety
Ensure worker safety with technology that launches safety into the next generation.
- By Marty Kronz, Rachel Bugaris, Alan Bond
- Jun 01, 2022
Electrical energy is present and poses hazards to workers in all industrial and commercial facilities. The presence of electricity often presents unique challenges due to its invisible nature. Electrical violations consistently appear within the top ten most cited violations by OSHA in the USA. However, electrical safety is often neglected until an incident occurs. Electrical incidents can be one of the most fatal and costly accidents to happen in the workplace. From heavy industry to commercial and everything in between, identifying and controlling electrical hazards is an important part of every safety program.
It is Time to Take a Fresh Look at Electrical Safety
When working on or near electrical equipment, it is important to de-energize the equipment, follow lockout tagout procedures, and verify the absence of voltage. In the past, the verification step was performed by electrically qualified workers in personal protective equipment (PPE) utilizing portable voltage test instruments. The traditional electrical LOTO process is an administrative control based on a manual process that relies on flawless human performance to be effective. Recent advances in technology make it an ideal time to take a fresh look at this process and examine opportunities to prevent exposure to the electrical hazards encountered during this testing process. Substituting a manual process that relies primarily on administrative controls like PPE and training, with an automated process that leverages engineering controls designed into a system provide an enhanced level of safety, increase the reliability of the process, and decrease the risk of exposure to electrical hazards. This is critically important, especially for a process that is performed multiple times per day.
These are the principles behind the Absence of Voltage Tester (AVT). An AVT is a permanently mounted tester that can help make the absence of voltage verification step safer, faster, and less complex. Pushing a button initiates the absence of voltage test from outside the equipment before doors and cover are removed, reducing exposure to electrical hazards. The steps performed by an AVT are automated, leading to a consistent and efficient process performing steps that typically take anywhere from 10 to 20 minutes in less than ten seconds.
In addition to reducing exposure to electrical hazards, reducing downtime and generating labor savings, AVTs help minimize human performance factors that often lead to incidents with portable test instruments. Specific Absence of Voltage Testers reliably meet or exceed UL 1436. NFPA 70E/CSA Z462 acknowledges the benefits and allows permanently mounted AVTs to be used as an alternative to handheld testers when verifying the absence of voltage.
This article originally appeared in the June 2022 issue of Occupational Health & Safety.