1. Electrical Hazard & Safety Awareness

2. What are the hazard and safety priorities?
Electrical hazards exist everywhere - in almost every workplace and in the home. Common causes of electrocution are:
making contact with overhead wires
undertaking maintenance on live equipment
working with damaged electrical equipment, such as extension leads, plugs and sockets
using equipment affected by rain or water ingress

3. How do you respond to electrical incidents?
If you come across a person receiving an electric shock:
assess the situation – never put yourself at risk
take precautions to protect yourself and anyone else in the vicinity
if possible, disconnect the electrical supply (switch?)
assess the injuries and move the casualty to a safe area if required
administer first aid if trained (e.g. DRSABCD)
seek urgent medical attention
D - Danger
R - Response
S – Send for help
A - Airway
B - Breathing
C - CPR
D - Defibrillation

4. What are the types of injuries?
Burns
Shocks
Arc
Fire
Explosion
BSAFE
Keep safe
Know how to control electrical hazards

5. What are the levels of effect of current?
AC current (mA)
Effect on human body 1
Slight tingling sensation
2-9
Small shock
10-24
Muscles contract causing you to freeze
25-74
Respiratory muscles can become paralysed; pain; exit burns often visible
75-300
Usually fatal; ventricular fibrillation; entry & exit wounds visible
>300
Death almost certain; if survive will have badly burnt organs and probably require amputations

6. What electricity can do - some photo’s……..

7. What electricity can do – some headlines…..
Does your electrical safety management stand up to scrutiny?
“Safety management has to be made accessible to technical and non-technical people so that risks to people and their business are safely reduced.”
So says Bill Bates, a former principal Health and Safety Executive inspector with over 20 years of investigating electrical safety breaches.
The statistics speak for themselves: 2015/16 figures from HSE and CPOFS report 696 cases of safety non-compliance, with 660 convictions – a 95% conviction rate. £38.3million of fines were issued, compared with £18.1million in 2014/15, and the estimated cost of workplace injuries is running at £4.8 billion, including 144 fatalities.
Source SHP

8. What electricity can do – some headlines…..
Coroner warning after man electrocuted in bath charging iPhone
A man died after being electrocuted while charging his phone in the bath, an inquest has heard.The death of Richard Bull, 32, which occurred when the iPhone fell into the water, was accidental, the coroner ruled. Dr Sean Cummings said he would also send a report to the phone’s manufacturer, Apple, to warn about the dangers.
“These seem like innocuous devices, but they can be as dangerous as a hairdryer in a bathroom. They should attach warnings,” he told the inquest. “This was a tragic accident and I have no reason to believe at all that there anything other than it being completely accidental.”
According to Sheila Merrill, the public health adviser to the Royal Society for the Prevention of Accidents, this sort of incident is rare. Nevertheless, she said, “people need to be aware of taking an electrical appliance into the bathroom”.
She told the BBC: “The advice has always been given with regard to hairdryers and radios – not to use in the bathroom.
Source The Guardian

9. What should you do in an electrical emergency?
For low voltage electricity >50 V AC and 110 V DC
remove the source of electricity supply
commence CPR if trained
call the emergency services
For high voltage electricity >1000 V
don’t go near the casualty
don’t touch the casualty or try to free them with anything

10. Should you report electrical incidents?
Electricity is invisible – this in itself makes it dangerous
It has great potential to seriously injure or kill
Every company has a duty of care to its employees and contractors
Everyone is exposed to electrical hazards, not just electricians
Report all electrical shocks and near misses
All employees can be exposed to electrical
Hazards. they should receive electrical hazard
training at the commencement of their
employment and REGULAR REFRESHER TRAINING.

11. UK Electricity Supply System
Electricity supplied to factories, offices and homes at 230 volts
Large factories at volts or above
Supply has alternating current (a.c.)
Alternates at (frequency) of 50 cycles per second (50 Hertz or Hz)

12. How do we protect from the supply?
Earthing
Double insulation
Fuses and circuit breakers
Residual current devices – RCDs
Low voltage
Battery power

13. How do we protect? Electric Circuit Earthing
Very important for safety !
Prevents conducting parts of equipment (ie. metal frames or lids), which do not normally conduct electricity from becoming live during faults
Double Insulation
Lots of portable equipment is Double Insulated
Extra layer of insulating material over live conductors to prevent exposure of conductors
Can mean that an earth conductor is not required – risk reduced by additional insulation.

14. How do we protect? Fuses and RCD’s Fuses RCD’s
essential for safety, will cut off supply at a certain current level i.e. 13A, 5A, 3A mains supply fuse
Fuse has a ‘fuseable’ wire element which heats up when current flows
Excessive current = excessive heat & wire melts preventing current flow
RCD’s
Residual current device
Compares current in Live & Neutral if different and above a certain value supply switched off

15. Conductors and Insulators
Remember
Conductors and Insulators
Conductors conduct electricity
Insulators don’t
Metals conduct
Wood, plastic, air, oil and rigid glass do not conduct electricity (most of the time)

16. What are other safety measures?
Warning signs
Use the right equipment
Study the operation manual
Take care of extension leads
Use only approved extension lamps
Don’t pull on leads

17. Regular safety inspections
are a part of all OUR jobs...
Electrical equipment should be checked each time before use for defects
If not tagged or the tag is out of date then report it and place it out of service

18. Electrical inspections
Fixed wiring
Should be checked every at regular intervals
Any issues raised must be rectified
It is a legal requirement (HSAW/EAW)
Portable Appliances
Must be checked at appropriate intervals
New appliances should be visually inspected before use
See HSE website for test frequency
Must be undertaken by a competent person

19. Should you be aware of powerlines?
Do you know if there are overhead powerlines on your site?
Do you know where they are located?
Do you know what the safe work clearance is?
Strict regulations are laid down to cover any work that may have to be performed close to overhead powerlines

20. What is a powerline corridor?
HSE GS6 defines a powerline corridor as the area under any overhead powerline that has not been properly isolated, and 10 metres either side of the powerline.
It is essential that these areas are respected. They are there for the safety of everyone
Do not store equipment, machinery, portable buildings or structures in powerline corridors
Do not construct, fabricate or maintain structures, buildings, machinery or equipment in powerline corridors
LOOK UP AND LIVE

21. Who can access substations/electrical cabinets?
Only trained and authorised personnel may enter and work inside a substation
Access is restricted for any cabinet with exposed energised parts
All electrical work must to be recorded and
UNDERTAKEN BY FULLY TRAINED PERSONNEL

22. Extension leads and adapters
How to uses extension leads and adapters safely
Check the current rating of the lead before plugging appliances in
Know its limit and do not exceed – most are 13amp but some only 10amp
Never overload a lead by plugging in appliances that exceed its limit
Only use one extension lead per socket
Avoid the use of block adapters wherever possible
Always fully unwind electrical cable reels
If you regularly rely on extension leads or adapters consider installing more sockets

23. Extension leads and adapters (Cont’d)
Check extension leads and adapters regularly - looking for the following signs of danger:
A smell of hot plastic or burning near an appliance or socket
Sparks or smoke coming from a plug or appliance
Blackness or scorch marks around a socket or plug, or on an appliance
Damaged or frayed leads
Coloured wire inside leads showing at the plug or anywhere else
Melted plastic on appliance casings or leads
Fuses that blow or circuit-breakers that operate for no obvious reason

24. Do you have permission to dig?
Be aware of the potential hazard from buried electrical cables for the following activities:
excavation
drilling
trenching
levelling
digging
driving of stakes or pegs
Do not commence excavation work near buried cables unless a permit has been issued by an authorised person
Do you know what precautionary measures need to be taken?

25. What risk assessment?!

26. More information
Electrical power is measured in watts, W, a unit of power
Electrical current is measured in amps, A, the rate at which it flows
The fuse in a plug is a safety device designed to protect the lead
The blown fuse cuts off the electricity to stop overheating and causing a fire
If you have to replace a fuse, it's essential, having checked and corrected the reason for the fuse blowing, to replace it only with another of the same rating

27. More information (Cont’d)
As a rule of thumb, fuses are rated according to the power rating of the
appliance.
Plugs for appliances rated up to about 700 watts should have a 3 amp fuse
(coloured red).
Plugs for appliances rated between about 700 watts and 3000 watts (the
maximum rating of a wall socket) should be fitted with a 13 amp fuse
(coloured brown).
Some older appliances are fitted with 5 amp fuses (coloured black). These
fuses are still available to buy.
For more information on safely working with electricity check out:
safety

28. The key messages are…
The risk of electric shock from correctly installed and maintained power sources is negligible, provided that sensible precautions are taken by the operator and correct work procedures are followed
Ensure that the right person is carrying out electrical work – fully trained versus just competent
Electricity is essential but, improperly used, it can be DEADLY!
To STAY ALIVE, you have to STAY ALERT

29. To STAY ALIVE, you have to STAY ALERT
And to finish…
Thanks for listening
ANY QUESTIONS?
To STAY ALIVE, you have to STAY ALERT