Electrical & Product Safety Observations For 2012

It is hard to believe, but 2012 is almost over.  Last November, I wrote on the Electrical and Product Safety blog about the top safety mistakes that I observed in 2011.  Instead of looking at mistakes in 2012, I am going to look at both “good” and “not so good” observations related to electrical and product safety.

In the not so good category, my observations are follows:

·        Not designing or purchasing equipment that minimizes electrical hazards during operation or maintenance (repeat from last year)

·        Not using basic statistical techniques to determine equipment safety and reliability (repeat from last year)

·        Not using basic statistical techniques to identify vendor performance – more of quality problem than a safety problem, but still an important observation

·        Not fully understanding the design parameters associated with equipment

·        Organizations struggling with defining and implementing regular maintenance of electrical infrastructure equipment

·        Organizations struggling with management of change processes

 In the good category, my observations are as follows:

·        More people are aware of hazards associated with working on or near exposed live (energized) equipment

·        More people are asking for their equipment to be analyzed by safety experts

·        More people are participating in various type of webinars or classroom training associated with all aspects of safety

·        More organizations are conducting shock and arc flash hazard analysis of their electrical equipment

·        ElectricalProductSafety.blogspot.com has had a large increase in readers

In 2013 I plan on branching out from the requirements of NFPA 70E into other items associated with electrical and product safety.  I plan on looking at the design of equipment and applications.  Some of the topics will examine requirements from standards while others will be “best practices”. 

As you start thinking about your electrical and product safety goals for 2013, I would like to leave with one thought from a manufacturing colleague of mine from many years ago.  That thought is “What gets measured, gets done”. 

When you make you safety goals for 2013 (or anytime), make sure that these goals can be measured and do not be afraid to display your metrics.

Have a Safe and Happy New Year!