Article - Arc Flash
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Transcript of Article - Arc Flash
Arc Flash
Hazard
Analysis
– Why Bother? With large companies in
specific heavy industries
making a push to implement
Workplace Electrical Safety
Programs (WESPs), you many
have noticed more
manufacturers offering
solutions minimizing hazards
related to Arc Flash and
electric shock. I first noticed
this new push for safety and
compliance when I was
working for a large
multinational mining firm in
Canada back in 2010. There
was a huge push to create an
all- encompassing guidance
document that would
provide Arc Flash safety
training requirements,
implement new personal
protective equipment (PPE)
standards, and require
precise study of electrical
systems to ensure safety to
operations and electrical
workers alike.
With the emphasis and
resources devoted to
gathering the top minds
within the organization, I
thought that it was an
industry requirement to
meet a standard that had
just recently been published;
I’m talking about CSA Z462 to
be exact.
As I discovered, these types
of WESPs were not
mandatory, but were more
of a precautionary measure
to ensure compliance within
legal precedence. For
example, if an employee was
injured while performing
routine maintenance on a
piece of electrical
equipment, an investigation
would be conducted. If the
investigation revealed that
the company had taken no
reasonable measures to
ensure the employee could
safely perform that routine
task, there would likely be
severe penalties for the
company. Accordingly, CSA
Z462 has been developed to
establish a well-recognized
hazard identification and
mitigation tool to be used to
promote a new culture of
safe electrical work. While
not mandatory, the expertise
collected within CSA Z462
can help shed light on
potential safety, economic
and technical issues in the
field.
As you may understand,
although not required, a
WESP could help reduce risk
of injury or death to your
workforce, as well as reduce
potential downtime from
equipment failure and the
associated economic impact.
Most importantly, you will be
ensuring that the people who
add so much value to your
company will be protected
and have greater confidence
in your leadership.
As awareness of social
responsibility becomes more
mainstream, corporate
interests can greatly benefit
from implementing a WESP
that places value on the
safety of their staff, while
also providing more reliable
and predictable electrical
equipment operation.
Utilizing experience in
development of large-scale
WESPs in accordance with
CSA Z462 and other
applicable maintenance
standards, a unique and
concise standard can be
developed for your particular
field. Become a leader in
safety and establish your
own corporate WESP to add
value to your business and
community.
Andrew Jensson is a
practicing professional
engineer working for the
consulting firm ICI Electrical
Engineering in the province
of British Columbia.