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Featureby Joe Rachford, Gallatin Steel Co.

Don’t Forget About Me!I Want To Be Safe, Too!

A lot of effort has recently gone into training qualified electrical workers to meet OSHA and NFPA 70E standards. But in reality, the qualified electrical workers in a typical industrial environment account for less

than 15 percent of the total work force. What do you do for the other 85 per-cent of the work force that is unqualified and must use electrical devices in their everyday jobs? OSHA 29 CFR 1910.331 requires that unqualified workers shall also be trained in and familiar with any electrically related safety practices which are necessary for their safety.

This paper will describe an approach used by a steel company to train all of its unqualified, nonelectrical workers. The program was so successful, when initially implemented, that now all new employees are required to receive this training during their initial orientation sessions as an introduction to the safe work practices and hazards of energized electrical work.

This paper will review the process in which a combination of video films, lectures, and hands-on demonstrations are used to cover electrical safety. Use of standards such as OSHA, National Electrical Code, and NFPA 70E are utilized in this training. The format is to teach the subject matter in such a way that the material can also be used in a home environment.

The first criteria that must be established for training of this type in which technically complicated material is presented to people who, in some cases, don’t have the slightest understanding about the technology, is to make it fun. The class format must be light and not focused so much on the technology but how to use the technology. The best approach is to make the class about something that can also be used in the home. Most people can better understand things in the work area when those things can be associated with something in the home life or everyday experiences. Most adult people have experienced some form of a mild electrical shock. But how many people really understand why or how they received the shock in the first place?

The second important criteria is that the training must be based on current standards such as OSHA, NFPA 70E, and the NEC. It is important that cur-rent standards are used to prevent people from doing something that could be hazardous. For example, the following are direct quotes from an early printing of the American Electricians Handbook. Without knowing anything else, one would think this would be a good reference source.

• 115. Electricians often test circuits for the presence of voltage by touching the conduc-tors with the fingers. This method is safe where the voltage does not exceed 250 volt and is often very convenient for locating a blown-out fuse or ascertaining whether

or not a circuit is alive. Some men can endure the electric shock that results without discomfort whereas others cannot.

• 116. The presence of low voltages can be determined by “tasting.” This method is feasible only when the pressure is but a few volts and hence is used only in bell and signal work. Where the voltage is low, the bared ends of the conductor constituting the two sides of the circuit are held a short distance apart on the tongue. If voltage is present, a peculiarly mild burning sensation results, which will never be forgotten after one has experienced it. The “taste” is due to the electrolytic decomposition of the liquids on the tongue, which produces a salt having a taste.

Clearly, no one today would fol-low these standards. But in 1924, when these were written, these were the standards of the day. When these obsolete standards are presented in a classroom of nonelectricians, even they will understand that touching and tasting for the presence of voltage is not done in today’s world. This is a good example of making it fun and taking it home.

Use variety in the instructional methods and materials. There is nothing worse than going to a safety training session and sitting through a full session of watching videos. It is not any better to just sit and listen to someone talk for the entire time. There are many good commercial videos on the market that deal with electricity

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for nonelectricians. The key is to find the ones that are not just sales pitches. The best video is the one which covers the subject matter in a short presentation of about 10 minutes. You can add as many of these small sessions as you feel are necessary for the training time available. What really makes an effective class is to show a short video on a subject matter and then tie it directly to a particular plant situation with a reference to specific job procedures. You can do this with actual plant pictures or references to written policies. Now the video can have some meaning.

Another comment about videos is what is sometimes referred to as the “Ben Hur” effect. The movie Ben Hur ,with Charlton Heston, was a classic movie that was produced in 1959. Most everyone has seen it or heard about it. The most famous scene in the movie is the chariot race. In the movie, as the gates at the back of the stadium open for more bad guys to enter, a bright red Chevy can be seen in the background. Given that this movie time period was in old Roman times, it is obvious that the Chevy did not exist. The point is that videos will frequently have errors. In a safety video, these can be things like not wearing safety glasses or wearing jewelry. When playing a video, have your class look for the errors. It is one way to get them to pay attention.

Try to start each class with a high impact item. One of the normal day-to-day jobs that nonelectricians may have to do is to close a 480 volt switch to start up a piece of equipment. There is a right way and a wrong way to perform this simple task. We have developed a 480 volt switch that will explode when it is closed. For the class, you have a volunteer come up to operate the switch. See the picture below.

It is rigged with a trip wire and an exploding device that gives a loud bang and a small fireball out of the top of the switch when operated. This loud bang is designed to illus-trate what can happen when a switch like this is energized. It is clearly an attention getter for beginning the class.

Give a simple overview of how electricity works. There are many commercial videos on this subject. Some make reference to a water model. Your local utility company may have a presentation they use when covering electrical safety in the schools. Keep it simple, but technically correct.

Be sure to cover proper grounding. Explain why the so called “cheater plugs” that allow a three-prong plug to be used in a two-prong outlet are never allowed in industrial facilities. Explain the reason for the third grounding prong on standard electrical equipment.

Discuss the proper use of extension cords. Explain why it is important to check them before each use. Cover the five main criteria for use of extension cords in the work place.

1. Do not use them for permanent wiring installations.2. Do not pass them through a hole in the wall.3. Do not pass them through doorways.4. Do not permanently attach them to a building.5. Always make sure the ground pin is intact.

It is very helpful if you do a plant survey prior to the class and capture digital pictures of improper use of extension cords in the plant environment. Trust me; it will not be very hard to find examples in the plant. Show these on the board for everyone to see and recognize the hazard. If you are teaching a class of attendees from different operating departments, try to get examples from each area. This way, it will not look like you are singling out one department.

Give a brief explanation on how a GFCI works. Explain that there are limits to the protection of the GFCI. There is no ground fault current if the current path through the person is from the hot to the neutral lead, and GFCIs can-not protect for this situation. Describe how the modern day bathtub is now made of acrylic. If all of the piping is PVC, there will probably not be a ground path should an electrical device fall into the tub. The best way to illustrate this it to take a plastic bucket, fill it with water, and place an operating hair dryer connected to a GFCI in the water. The hair dryer should continue to run. You can take bets on who thinks it will keep running or who thinks the GFCI will trip. The picture below shows this experiment. When the ground rod on the right hand side is inserted in the water, the GFCI should trip. Use regular tap water and not filtered water as the conductivity of the filtered water is so low that the GFI may not operate. This is another example of how you can make the class fun and also be useful at home. Just be sure to turn the heater element off on the hair dryer or you will crack the heater element.

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One really good subject matter is the effects of electrical current on the human body. There are many good references on this subject. They do not all agree on what current level does what to the body. However, they are all in the same order of magnitude. Find a good video that covers the sub-ject matter. The key thing is to explain that current does its most damage inside the body. This can best be illustrated by energizing a hot dog on a 115 volt circuit and then cutting the hot dog open to show how the damage is done inside. See pictures below.

The one thing to keep in mind for this experiment is that hot dogs, like people, are not created equal. In order to get the effect you want to illustrate, you need to buy inexpen-sive hot dogs because they have higher moisture content. As a result, they will arc and burn better when put on the experimental “hot dog cooker’.

Include in your training some high impact pictures of electrical accident scenes. The more visual the pictures, the better the impact. You want to get the message across that electricity is a serious energy force and must be handled only by properly qualified people. Explain that qualified people are the only ones allowed to enter the high voltage substa-tions in your plant. When the sign on the door says “Danger High Voltage Authorized Personnel Only,” it means to stay out unless you are qualified.

Conclude the training by issuing a copy of your company’s electrical work practice policy. Review the highlights of the policy, so they know what they can or cannot do when it comes to working with electrical devices.

If you keep the class fun and make it so they can take information to their homes, you will find that people will retain the training better. Not only will they improve in their work environment, they will also make things safer at home.

Joe Rachford is the Process Manager High Voltage Systems and Facilities Maintenance, Gallatin Steel Company located in Ghent, Kentucky.

Joe Rachford has been in his current position since 2001. Mr. Rachford is responsible for all power distribution systems from the incoming 345 kV lines down to the 480-volt distribution breakers. In addition, he has recently taken over the Facilities Maintenance group, which handles

all of the general maintenance of the plant. He has been working in an electrical engineering maintenance position in the steel industry for 43 years.

He holds a BSEE from the University of Cincinnati and a MS degree from Purdue University. He is a member of IEEE, an Affiliate of the International Electrical Testing Association (NETA), and a Life Member of American Iron and Steel Technology (AIST). He holds one patent and has presented several technical papers to IEEE, NETA, and AIST.