Martindale Electric is running a new awareness campaign ‘STOP. No Check. No Contact!’ reminding anyone working on or near electricity not to take any chances with exposed metal parts and to always check first, as they may be live.
“Standard industry-wide safe isolation procedures safely disconnect the supply from the circuit to allow safe rework, maintenance, or installation to take place,” says Steve Dunning, Managing Director at Martindale Electric.
“They do not cover checking for live metal parts though, so incorporating this discipline into established work processes will further minimise risk and help ensure safer working practices. Remember, if the metalwork is not checked for being live don’t touch it: Stop. No check. No contact!”
The company says that one potential cause of danger, being widely discussed, is the Protective Earth Neutral or PEN fault – where a break or ‘open circuit’ occurs in a PEN conductor, which serves as both the neutral and protective earth. A broken or faulty PEN conductor, it says, can cause dangerous voltages to appear on metalwork, creating an electric shock risk and equipment damage.
For potentially live metallic items, the company says that performing a touch test is essential. Single pole contact indicators, such as the Martindale VT7, can be incorporated into touch test safety procedures, however, it says, this class of tester should be thoroughly checked to be functional before each use. Correct use should also be included in relevant safety training.
For the latest electrical safety information and downloads visit: https://martindale-electric.co.uk/safe-isolation-7/
