Arc-Flash – What's going on for 2015 NFPA 70E

April 16, 2015

For The

Charlotte Regional Safety & Health School

By: John Welch

Arc Flash Video

• To raise awareness about Electrical

Safety and Arc Flash Prevention

• To discuss the 2015 changes

• Best Practices

• 5 to 10 people injured, 1 to 2 killed

each day in arc flashes

• Up to 80% of all electrical injuries

are burns resulting from the ignition

of flammable clothing caused by an

arc flash

• In 2007, OSHA mandated that

companies SHALL protect against arc

flashes

Electrical Statistics

• One person is electrocuted in the

workplace each working day.

• Over 2,000 workers are sent to burn

centers each year with electrical-

related burn injuries.

• About 8,000 electrical contact

injuries referred to emergency

rooms annually in the United

States.

Electrical Safety Statistics

OSHA

• OSHA – Occupational Safety and Health Administration

• Mission – “to assure the safety and health of America’s

workers by setting and enforcing standards; providing

training, outreach, and education; establishing partnerships;

and encouraging continual improvement in workplace safety

and health.”

• Fact – Since OSHA’s inception in 1971, nonfatal occupational

injury and illness rates have dropped 60 percent, and

occupational fatality rates have fallen to the lowest annual

preliminary total since 1992

1.5 OSHA vs. NFPA

• OSHA is the “WHAT”

• NFPA is the “HOW”

OSHA’s Mission

• To assure the safety and health of U.S. workers

• OSHA sets and enforces safety standards

OSHA 29 CFR 1910.332

OSHA 29 CFR 1910.332

• Qualified Person:

• “Those who have training in avoiding the electrical hazards of

working on or near exposed energized parts.”

• This is a broad description for a qualified person. An

electrical qualified person is more defined in the NFPA 70E

Article 110 (D)1-4

• (4) Decision-making process necessary to be able to do

the following:

• Perform the job safety planning

• Identify electrical hazards

• Assess the associated risk

• Select the appropriate risk control methods from the

hierarchy of controls identified in 110.1(G), including

PPE

OSHA 29 CFR 1910.332

• Training:

• “The skills and techniques necessary to determine

the nominal voltage of exposed live parts.”

OSHA 29 CFR 1910.333 (c)(2)

• Work on energized equipment:

• “Only qualified persons may work on electrical circuit

parts or equipment that have not de-energized under

the procedures of paragraph (b) of this section. Such

persons shall be familiar with the proper use of special

precautionary techniques, personal protective

equipment, insulating and shielding materials, and

insulated tools.”

Application of Safety Related Work Practices

• Responsibility (NFPA 70E 105.3)

• The employer shall provide the safety

related work practices and shall train the

employee, who shall then implement them.

NFPA Regulating Publications

Application of Safety Related Work Practices

• Electrical Safety Program (NFPA

70E 110.1(A)

• The employer shall implement and

document an overall electrical safety

program that directs activity appropriate to

the risk associated with electrical

hazards. The electrical safety program

shall be implemented as part of the

employer’s overall occupational health

and safety management system, when

one exists.

NFPA Now points back at OSHA

NFPA Regulating Publications

Application of Safety Related Work Practices

• Maintenance (NFPA 70E 110.1(B)

• The electrical safety program shall

include elements that consider condition

of maintenance of electrical equipment

and systems.

Without proper maintenance , we have

no confidence/proof/documentation

that a breaker (OCPD) will clear a

fault as designed during an arc-flash

event

NFPA Regulating Publications

NFPA Regulating Publications

• 110.2 Training Requirements

• (C) Emergency Response Training

• Contact Release (shock hazards) shall be

trained in methods of safe release of victims

from contact. Refresher training shall occur

annually

• First Aid, Emergency Response and

Resuscitation

• Trained in First Aid

• Trained in CPR

• Trained in AED

• Training Verification – Employers shall verify

Annually

• Documentation – Employers shall document

training has occurred

NFPA ARTICLE 130

• 130.2 Electrically Safe Working

Conditions. Energized electrical

conductors and circuit parts shall be put

into an electrically safe work condition

before an employee performs work if any

of the following conditions exist:

• The employee is within the limited

approach boundary.

• The employee interacts with equipment

where conductors or circuit parts are not

exposed, but an increased likelihood risk of

injury from an exposure to an arc flash

hazard exists.

1) Additional Hazards or Increased Risk–

Energized work shall be permitted where

the employer can demonstrate that de-

energizing introduces additional hazards

or increased risk.

2) Infeasibility – Energized work shall be

permitted where the employer can

demonstrate that the task to be

performed is infeasible in a de-energized

state

3) Less than 50V – Shall NOT be required

to be de-energized

NFPA 130.2(A) Energized Work

NFPA 130.3

• Appropriate safety-related work practices

shall be determined before any person is

exposed to the electrical hazards involved

by using both shock risk assessment and

arc flash risk assessment. Only qualified

persons shall be permitted to work on

electrical conductors or circuit parts that

have not been put into an electrically safe

work condition

Risk Register, JHA, AHA, are common

documents to capture these briefings among

our qualified people. Can be customized for

individual tasks allowing customization if scope

changes.

NFPA 130.4

• Approach Boundaries to Energized

Electrical Conductors or Circuit Parts

• (A) Shock Risk Assessment A shock

hazard analysis shall determine the

voltage to which personnel will be

exposed, the boundary requirements,

and the PPE necessary in order to

minimize the possibility of electric

shock to personnel.

NFPA 130.5

• Arc Flash Risk Assessment

• Shall determine appropriate

safety-related work practices

• Shall determine the arc flash

boundary

• Shall determine the PPE to use

within the arc flash boundary

• Shall consider the design of OCD

and condition of maintenance

• Shall be updated when a major

modification or renovations takes

place.

• Shall be reviewed periodically, not to

exceed 5 years.

• NFPA 130.5 (C) Equipment Labeling.

• Electrical equipment such as switchboards,

panelboards, industrial control panels, meter

socket enclosures, and motor control centers that

are in other than dwelling units, and are likely to

require examination, adjustment, servicing, or

maintenance while energized, shall be field

marked with a label containing all the following

information:

• At least one of the following:

• Available incident energy and the

corresponding working distance or the

arcflash PPE category in Table

130.7(c)(15)(A)(b) but not both.

• Minimum arc rating of clothing

• Site-Specific level of PPE

• Nominal system voltage

• Arc flash boundary

Limits of Approach

Any electrical alterations while

energized require an

energized work permit.

• NFPA 130.5 (C)(15)(A) Selection of PPE when

required

• (AC) Equipment. When selected in lieu of the

incident energy analysis of 130.5(B)(1), Table

130.7©(15)(A)(a) shall be used to identify when

arc flash PPE is required. When arc flash PPE is

required, Table 130.7©(15)(A)(b) shall be used to

determine the arc flash PPE category. The

estimated max available short circuit current

maximum fault clearing times and minimum

working distances for various ac equipment types

or classifications are listed. An incident energy

analysis shall be required in accordance with

130.5 for the following: • Tasks not listed in Table

• Power systems with greater than the estimated

maximum available short circuit current

• Power systems with longer than the maximum

fault clearing times

• Tasks with less than the minimum working

distance.

NFPA 205.3

• General Maintenance Requirements.

Electrical equipment shall be maintained in

accordance with the manufacturers’ instructions

or industry consensus standards to reduce the

risk associated with failure. The equipment

owner or the owners designated representative

shall be responsible for the maintenance of the

electrical equipment and documentation

NFPA 205.3

• Informational Note. Common industry practice

is to apply test or calibration decals to

equipment to indicate the test or calibration date

and overall condition of equipment that has

been tested and maintained in the field. These

decals provide the ‘qualified’ employee

immediate indication of last maintenance date

and if the tested device or system was found

acceptable on the date of test. This local

information can assist the employee in the

assessment of overall electrical equipment

maintenance status.

• Discuss kAIC

• Discuss clearing times

• Discuss Isc currents

Upper Management Support

• Culture building Top Down

• You will invest in an Incident Energy Analysis

• You will invest in electrical maintenance

• You will invest in PPE

• You will invest in Training

• You have plenty of resources to help

• Engineering Firms

• Training Organizations

• Asset tracking software

• Few can do all

• Process is key to national level

standardization

Perform an Incident Energy Study

• You will want an expert Engineer with

Maintenance Experience

• You will want to have electrical asset list

available if following RFP process

• This study will provide the necessary DATA to

support the safety programs arc-flash related

risk and steer PPE the individual shall wear

• Use this data to align “Qualified” People

• The Electrical Energy levels from the

incident energy study will help you align

the risk associated with your team’s

capabilities, resume’s and training.

• Deeming one “Qualified” is not easy, and

the employee and employer have to be

very clear, ‘task by task’ on RISK (Top

Down again) OPEN COMMUNICATION!

Training in 70e

• Every Year, Every 3 years Required

• NFPA 70e standard changes every 3 years….

• CPR, AED, First Aid for “Qualified” Annually

Document your Electrical Safety Program

• It includes your LOTO (you already have this

right)

• It gets customized to your systems/RISK

• It gets customized to your staff experience and

your tolerance for using subcontractors

• It instills a positive culture, allows for healthy job

briefings and WILL reduce your electrical

related risks.

John Smith

Joseph Albertson

Frank Kilpatric

Greg Murphy

Jeff Lunsford

Mark Phillips

Bill Murray

Fred Smith

8.1 cal/cm2 to 25 cal/cm2

4.1cal/cm2 to 8 cal/cm2

1.3 cal/cm2 to 4 cal/cm2

.0 cal/cm2 to 1.2 cal/cm2

25.1cal/cm2 to 40 cal/cm2

Hank Williams

Kelly Smith

Bernard Johnson

John Namoth

John Smith

Joseph Albertson

Frank Kilpatric

Greg Murphy

Jeff Lunsford

Mark Phillips

Greg Murphy

Jeff Lunsford

Paul Schieber

HV Subcontractor

J&J Electric

Greygate Electric

Generator Sub

Nixon Power

Kohler

Arc Flash Is…Costly

• Over $250 billion in losses each year:

• Damage to Equipment

• Lawsuits

• Business disruptions

• OSHA citations

• Increased insurance

• Increased Experience Modification

Rate (EMR)

• Bad public relations

Thank You!

John Welch

President

Bowtie Engineering LLC

309 Pirkle Ferry Rd. Building A-500

Cumming GA 30040

678-551-3606

Bowtie8.com

John.welch@bowtie8.com

John@my70e.com