Safety Compliance Assessments
Every year OSHA issues over 10 million dollars in citations for electrical safety violations. OSHA’s legal power can be costly and unpleasant. Even if a proposed penalty is cut substantially in a legal contest, the cost of fighting OSHA can be staggering. While many safety areas are easy to interpret and implement, electrical safety requirements consistently create confusion for organizations in a wide variety of industries.
Top OSHA Electrical Violations
1. 1910.147 The control of hazardous energy (lockout/tagout)2. 1910.305 Wiring methods, components, equipment for general use
3. 1910.303 Electrical systems design, general requirements
4. 1910.335 Safeguards for personnel protection
5. 1910.333 Selection and use of work practices
6. 1910.269 Electric power generation, transmission and distribution
7. 1910.332 Training
8. 1910.334 Use of equipment
9. 1910.137 Electrical protective devices
Top Industries for OSHA Electrical Violations
1. Manufacturing (Over 67% of all electrical citations!)2. Transportation, communications, electric, gas, sanitary services
3. Services
4. Wholesale trade
5. Retail trade
6. Construction
7. Agriculture, forestry and fishing
8. Mining
9. Finance, insurance and real estate
Being prepared doesn’t require a fixation on OSHA standards. OSHA inspects for “recognized hazards” which also include hazards identified in industry consensus standards like NFPA 70E and the National Electrical Code. Understanding the complex relationships of different regulations can be quite overwhelming. Below is a brief list of electrical standards that organizations need to comply with, depending on their industry.
Electrical Safety Compliance Checklist
⃞ NFPA 70E Electrical Safety Related Work Practices⃞ National Electrical Code® (NFPA 70)
⃞ National Electrical Safety Code
⃞ OSHA General Industry 29 CFR 1910 Subpart I, Personal protective equipment
⃞ OSHA General Industry 29 CFR 1910 Subpart R, Special industries
⃞ OSHA General Industry 29 CFR 1910 Subpart S, Electrical
⃞ OSHA Construction Industry 29 CFR 1926 Subpart K, Electrical
⃞ OSHA Construction Industry 29 CFR 1926 Subpart V, Power transmission and distribution
⃞ OSHA Shipyard Employment 29 CFR 1915 Subpart L, Electrical machinery
⃞ OSHA Marine Terminals 29 CFR 1917 Subpart G, Related terminal operations and equipment
⃞ OSHA Shipping 46 CFR
⃞ OSHA Mining 30 CFR
⃞ State OSHA Plans (Alaska, Arizona, Connecticut, California, Hawaii, Indiana, Iowa, Kentucky, Maryland, Michigan, Minnesota, Nevada, New Jersey, New Mexico, New York, North Carolina, Oregon, Puerto Rico, South Carolina, Tennessee, Utah, Vermont, Virgin Islands, Virginia, Washington, Wyoming)
⃞ OSHA Interagency Authority and Jurisdiction (Nuclear Regulatory Commission, Department of Energy, MSHA, etc.)
⃞ ANSI Standards
Conducting an electrical safety compliance assessment helps you prepare for an OSHA inspection and reduces the likelihood of electrical accidents at your facility. Are you under a deadline? Are you a safety expert, with little electrical knowledge or an electrical expert, with little safety knowledge? It takes a unique set of skills and experience to recognize electrical compliance issues on sight.
An expert third party perspective will provide you with an unbiased and accurate report of your electrical safety compliance status.
Perform a walk through facility inspection
Have an electrical safety expert document an inspection of your electrical systems with photographs and descriptions of safety and compliance issues. The inspector should have a thorough understanding of the standards applicable to your facility(OSHA, MSHA, CalOSHA, NEC, NESC, NFPA 70E, ANSI, IEEE, etc).
Review your PPE program
Review your Personal Protective Equipment (PPE) storage, maintenance, testing and documentation procedures for compliance.
Review the tasks associated with each job
Identify job responsibilities for Qualified and Unqualified workers and the tasks required for each responsibility. Use this information to evaluate procedures, training programs and the need for a detailed Job/Task Analysis.
Review your electrical safety program
Review all components of your electrical safe work program and safety procedures for standards compliance and practical implementation.
Make a plan
Compile all identified issues and prioritize recommendations. Even if compliance won’t be achieved overnight, having proof that you know about issues in your facility and you are implementing a practical plan to get back on track, can make a big difference.While electrical safety compliance may be a new initiative for your organization, thousands of organizations, many similar to yours, have already been through this. The right partner will know what to look for at your facility, the right questions to ask you and your staff, the current applicable standards and the most economical way to get you in compliance fast. The duration of the assessment depends on your organizations electrical system size, but generally five days on site is standard. You will get a preliminary verbal report at the end of day five and a final report delivered soon afterwards.
Download our free Compliance Assessment Questionnaire
Use this form to prepare for your compliance assessment. Correct responses are necessary to create an accurate understanding of your objectives and put together a quote.
Schedule a free consultation today to discuss your electrical safety compliance assessment.