12.6 OSHA Electrical Standards, Lockout/Tagout & Jobsite Safety

12.6 OSHA Electrical Standards, Lockout/Tagout & Jobsite Safety

Section 12.4 covered NFPA 70E, a consensus standard. This section covers the federal regulations that carry the force of law and that an OSHA compliance officer will cite. Safety Information is worth five questions on the Alabama Electrical Journeyman exam, which is the same weight as Overcurrent Protection, so it deserves real study rather than a skim.

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The Two OSHA Electrical Standards

A useful memory hook: 1910 is where it already is; 1926 is where you are building it. The same electrician can move between both standards in a single day, and the requirements are not identical.

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Temporary Power on Construction Sites: GFCI or AEGCP (1926.404(b)(1))

Construction sites run on cord sets and temporary receptacles in wet, dirty, mechanically hostile conditions. OSHA gives the employer a choice of two compliance paths, not a menu of three:

Option 1: Ground-Fault Circuit Interrupters

All 125-volt, single-phase, 15-, 20-, and 30-ampere receptacle outlets on the site that are not part of the permanent wiring of the structure and that are in use by employees must have GFCI protection for personnel. Receptacles on a two-wire, single-phase generator portable or vehicle-mounted generator rated not more than 5 kW, where the circuit conductors are insulated from the generator frame and all other grounded surfaces, are exempt.

Option 2: Assured Equipment Grounding Conductor Program (AEGCP)

If the employer does not use GFCIs, it must implement a written AEGCP covering all cord sets, receptacles not part of the permanent wiring, and cord-and-plug-connected equipment. The program requires:

• A written description available at the jobsite, with one or more competent persons designated to implement it.
• Each cord set, attachment cap, plug, receptacle, and piece of cord-connected equipment visually inspected before each day's use for external defects and evidence of internal damage.
• Two electrical tests on each item: a continuity test on the equipment grounding conductor, and a test that the equipment grounding conductor is connected to its proper terminal.
• Those tests performed before first use, before equipment is returned to service after repair, before use after any incident that could have caused damage, and at intervals not exceeding 3 months. Cord sets and receptacles that are fixed and not exposed to damage may be tested at intervals not exceeding 6 months.
• Records of the tests kept and available.

Most contractors choose GFCIs because the recordkeeping burden of an AEGCP is substantial. Note that the AEGCP does not reduce shock risk the way a GFCI does; it only assures the grounding path is intact.

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Control of Hazardous Energy: Lockout/Tagout (1910.147)

OSHA 1910.147, "The Control of Hazardous Energy," is the standard behind every lock you hang. It governs the servicing and maintenance of machines and equipment where the unexpected energization, start-up, or release of stored energy could injure an employee.

The Six Steps of a Compliant Shutdown

1. Prepare for shutdown. Identify every energy source: electrical, hydraulic, pneumatic, mechanical, thermal, chemical, and gravitational.
2. Notify affected employees that the equipment is going down and why.
3. Shut down the equipment using its normal stopping procedure.
4. Isolate the equipment from each energy source: open the disconnect, close the valve, block the ram.
5. Apply lockout/tagout devices, each employee applying their own personal lock.
6. Release stored energy (bleed pressure, discharge capacitors, block suspended parts) and then verify isolation by attempting a normal start and by testing for absence of voltage.

The Rules That Get Cited

• One employee, one lock. Each authorized employee working on the equipment applies a personal lock, and only the employee who applied a lock may remove it. Group lockout uses a hasp or lockbox so every worker's lock must come off before the equipment can be re-energized.
• Locks and tags must be durable, standardized, substantial, and identify the employee who applied them.
• A tag alone is a warning, not a restraint. Tagout is permitted only where the energy-isolating device is not capable of being locked out, and then only with additional safety measures.
• Periodic inspection: the employer must inspect the energy control procedure at least annually to verify it is being followed, and must certify the inspection.
• Training: authorized employees are trained to apply the procedure, affected employees are trained to recognize it, and other employees are trained not to disturb it.

The construction counterpart is 1926.417, which requires controls that are deactivated to be tagged, equipment to be rendered inoperative where the design permits, and tags to remain until the work is complete. 1926.416(a)(1) adds the underlying duty: no employee shall work near any part of an electric power circuit that they could contact unless the employee is protected by de-energizing and grounding the circuit or by guarding it with effective insulation.

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Overhead Lines and Approach Distances

Contact with overhead power lines remains one of the leading causes of electrocution in construction. Two rules define the working envelope:

• Unqualified persons (1910.333(c)(3) / 1926.1408): an unqualified person, and any conducting object they are handling such as a ladder, pipe, or scaffold section, must stay at least 10 feet away from overhead lines rated 50 kV or less. Above 50 kV, the clearance increases by 4 inches for each additional 10 kV.
• Cranes and material handling equipment (1926.1408): where the equipment operates near a power line up to 350 kV, the employer must either de-energize and visibly ground the line, maintain a 20-foot clearance, or determine the line voltage and maintain the specific minimum approach distance from Table A of that section.

Qualified persons working closer must follow the minimum approach distances for their voltage class and use appropriate insulating PPE, insulated tools, and cover-up.

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The Everyday Jobsite Hazards

• Ladders (1926.1053): side rails must extend at least 3 ft above the upper landing surface. Non-self-supporting ladders are set at a 4:1 pitch, one foot of base for every four feet of working length. Where an employee or the ladder could contact exposed energized electrical equipment, the ladder must have nonconductive side rails, which is why fiberglass, not aluminum, is the electrician's ladder.
• Fall protection (1926.501(b)(1)): in construction, fall protection is required at 6 feet above a lower level. In general industry under 1910.28 the trigger is 4 feet.
• Confined spaces (1926 Subpart AA): a vault, manhole, tank, or pit that is large enough to enter, has limited means of entry or egress, and is not designed for continuous occupancy is a confined space. Where it also contains a hazardous atmosphere, an engulfment hazard, or a configuration that could trap or asphyxiate, it is a permit-required confined space demanding atmospheric testing, ventilation, an attendant, and a rescue plan.
• Personal protective equipment (1926.95, 1926.100, 1926.102): the employer must provide and require PPE appropriate to the hazard, including head protection where there is a risk of falling objects or electric shock and burn, and eye and face protection where there is a risk of flying particles or injurious radiant energy such as arc welding.
• Housekeeping and access (1926.25, 1910.303(g)): working space around energized equipment must be kept clear and must not be used for storage. A panelboard barricaded behind stacked material is both an NEC 110.26 violation and an OSHA citation.