cal. vs. risk potential

[Barry1]

At what calorie level should you just refuse to work energized. Does 70E have a not to exceed level before it is mandatory the equipment is shut off. I know you always want to de-energize so don't tell me to always shut off. I want to know if the standard addresses this issue.

 

[jim dungar]

At what calorie level should you just refuse to work energized.

At the level which exceeds your PPE.

NFPA70E has Hazard Risk Categories of PPE that go to 40 cal/cm?, so this has become the defacto standard cut off point for the majority of employers.
Many companies limit their employees to a level of roughly 8 cal/cm?, for higher values they contract out the work.

Please remember that properly applied PPE gives you only a 90% chance of surviving an maximum level incident.

 

[zog]

And only a 50% chance of not getting 2nd degree burns.

 

[malachi constant]

Please remember that properly applied PPE gives you only a 90% chance of surviving an maximum level incident.

What do you mean by "maximum level incident"? At first read I thought you meant "whatever the maximum energy is for a given PPE before you have to go up to the next PPE level". Do you actually mean the maximum level incident is 40cal/cm^2? That would make more sense.

If there was a 10% mortality rate at the upper bounds of a given level of PPE, you would think they would redo the cutoffs.

In general - including conditions that are not worst case - what does wearing PPE (vs working hot and wearing none) do to the odds of survival? To the odds of severe energy? (2nd degree burns, lung or eye damage, etc)

Thanks!

 

[bure961]

It was said here that some companies limit their employees to work up to 8 cal cm2 and for higher ie they contract it out . Do these contractors have to follow Osha or 70e concerning energized work? Does the requirements for working energized have to be followed by electrical contractors, with such things as a energized permits ?

 

[captainwireman]

This is the OSHA standard

1910.333(a)(1)

"Deenergized parts." Live parts to which an employee may be exposed shall be deenergized before the employee works on or near them, unless the employer can demonstrate that deenergizing introduces additional or increased hazards or is infeasible due to equipment design or operational limitations. Live parts that operate at less than 50 volts to ground need not be deenergized if there will be no increased exposure to electrical burns or to explosion due to electric arcs.

Note 1: Examples of increased or additional hazards include interruption of life support equipment, deactivation of emergency alarm systems, shutdown of hazardous location ventilation equipment, or removal of illumination for an area.

Note 2: Examples of work that may be performed on or near energized circuit parts because of infeasibility due to equipment design or operational limitations include testing of electric circuits that can only be performed with the circuit energized and work on circuits that form an integral part of a continuous industrial process in a chemical plant that would otherwise need to be completely shut down in order to permit work on one circuit or piece of equipment.

Note 3: Work on or near deenergized parts is covered by paragraph (b) of this section.


Live parts MUST be deenergized!!! That's it. End of discussion. Do not let any "employer" bend these standards for their production or profit. Stand up!

 

[captainwireman]

The death rate of early electrical workers was one in three. These OSHA rules were not put into place "just because".

 

[captainwireman]

At what calorie level should you just refuse to work energized. Does 70E have a not to exceed level before it is mandatory the equipment is shut off. I know you always want to de-energize so don't tell me to always shut off. I want to know if the standard addresses this issue.

You now know the law. Not only is your "employer" responsible for an OSHA violation, but you are too. :rant:

 

[zog]

It was said here that some companies limit their employees to work up to 8 cal cm2 and for higher ie they contract it out . Do these contractors have to follow Osha or 70e concerning energized work? Does the requirements for working energized have to be followed by electrical contractors, with such things as a energized permits ?

Of course they have to follow OSHA and 70E.