Electrical Industry Canada: Arc Flash, Shock Hazard, & Fire Safety - 13

Development, Implementation & Auditing Your Electrical
Safety Program        
The CSA Z462 Workplace electrical safety Standard published its
2021 Edition in January. A mandatory requirement for an employer is
developing, implementing, and auditing an Electrical Safety Program. If
you have an Electrical Safety Program, is it up to date in its policies,
practices and procedural requirements, is it performing as expected?
Workers do not necessarily do what you expect, they do what you
inspect! Management of change is required.
I have been involved in supporting industry with respect to shock and
arc flash hazards in the workplace and in understanding what needs to
be done to ensure worker safety, that effective defendable due
diligence is established, and evidence of compliance is available related
to occupational health & safety regulations both Provincial, Territorially
or Federally. I am in Ontario this week completing a detailed Electrical
Safety Audit at multiple enterprise facilities.
Historically I have identified that buying arc flash PPE, sending your
Qualified Electrical Workers on " arc flash training " or " arc flash
awareness " training, having an arc flash hazard incident energy analysis
study completed, and applying arc flash & shock equipment labels to
electrical equipment is not adequate due diligence. I call this " bottom
up hierarchy or risk control methods. "
In CSA Z462 Clause 4.1.7 Electrical Safety Program, Clause 4.1.7.2
Auditing it outlines mandatory requirements that the employer's
Electrical Safety Program be: " audited to verify that the principles and
procedures of the Electrical Safety Program are in compliance with this
Standard, " and that " field work be audited to verify that the
requirements contained in the procedures of the Electrical Safety
Program are being followed. "
Clause 4.1.7.2 also includes a
requirement that separately mandates an employer's lockout program
and procedures shall be audited by a qualified person at intervals not to
exceed 1 year. The Electrical Safety Program audit frequency should not
exceed one year, while field work audits should be completed annually.
ELECTRICAL INDUS TRY CANADA
With respect to developing the Electrical Safety Program, CSA Z462
Workplace electrical safety, Clause 4.1.7 Electrical Safety Program the
notes reference the user of CSA Z462 to Annex A where a framework is
provided for establishing a comprehensive Electrical Safety Program
based on the requirements of CSA Z45001 and as a component of the
employer's overall occupational health and safety program.
" Systematic, independent and documented process for obtaining
audit evidence and evaluating it objectively to determine the extent to
which the audit criteria are fulfilled.
Note 1: An audit can be an internal audit (first party) or an external
audit (second party or third party), and it can be a combined audit
(combining two or more disciplines).
Note 2: An internal audit is conducted by the organization itself, or by
an external party on its behalf.
VOLUME 1, ISSUE 6
13
Figure 1 - Hierarchy or Risk Control Methods
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Electrical Industry Canada: Arc Flash, Shock Hazard, & Fire Safety

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