The First Step In Arc Flash Risk Assessment Is On-Site Data Collection

As required by the NPFA 70E and OSHA’s regulations in protecting workers from electrical hazards, Electrical Safety Specialists offers electrical Arc Flash Risk Assessments to determine the hazards that are present for all areas in which your employees perform work. This is critical to ensuring worker safety. The purpose of our visit is to help save lives and money by safe work practices and minimize the possibility of injuries and lost time accidents.

 

An arc flash is an explosive release of energy caused by an electrical arc due to either a phase to ground or phase to phase fault. This fault can be initiated by many causes, such as accidental contact with electrical systems, build up of conductive dust, corrosion, dropped tools, and improper work procedures. An arc flash can produce some of the hottest temperatures known to occur on earth – up to 35,000 degrees Fahrenheit. In comparison, the surface of the sun is only 9,000 degrees Fahrenheit. Not surprisingly, the risk of serious and fatal injury from these incidents is severe.

 

Our arc flash Engineering Technicians have years of experience in commercial/industrial electrical installations and maintenance. They also have extensive training on the intricacies of the data collection process for Arc Flash Risk Assessment, Selective Coordination, Equipment Evaluation, just to name a few.

 

The first step of performing an Arc Flash Hazard Assessment is the on-site data collection. An ESS technician will collect the necessary information to perform an Arc Flash Hazard Assessment. The arc flash hazard assessment identifies the presence and location of potential hazards and provides recommendations for Personal Protective Equipment, limited, restricted approach boundaries, recommendations for flash protection, and safe work practices. 

 

As part of Phase I, the electric utility company will be contacted to determine the short circuit current available at the facility’s metering point. It is imperative that we collect the correct information needed to perform the assessment. Many factors such as conductor size/length, over current protection device (breakers, fuses), settings, transformer sizes and impedances, as well as looking for all areas requiring labels per National Fire Protection Agency (NFPA) 70E, the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE 1584) will be documented and physically verified on-site. Generally, all the data can be collected without disturbing facility operations.

  

For the last 25 years, several members of our leadership team have worked together developing relationships with various individuals that are all at the top of the electrical safety industry. Electrical Safety Specialists built a team of professionals to provide the highest quality of service available and recognizes the fact that each skill-set requires a lifetime commitment. To contact ESS, call (816) 925-0443 or email info@archflashpro.com,