OSHA Inspection: NASHVILLE ELECTRIC-JOB SITE

Issued

Feb 21, 2007

Abate by

Mar 11, 2007

Issued

Feb 21, 2007

Abate by

Mar 11, 2007

Issued

Feb 21, 2007

Abate by

Mar 11, 2007

Issued

Feb 21, 2007

Abate by

Mar 11, 2007

Issued

Feb 21, 2007

Abate by

Mar 26, 2007

General-duty citation text

T.C.A. 50-3-105(1):  The employer did not furnish employment and a place
of employment
which were free from recognized hazards that were causing or likely to
cause death or serious
physical harm to employees in that employees were exposed to:
On 12-20-06, the employer had not developed or implemented safe working
procedures or
policies in the specific safe work practices for those employees working
on the Richards
Manufacturing Model 313NP 1875 amp Network Protector that was located in a
vault at the
Metro Courthouse. Employees were making an adjustment to the shunt trip
screw inside the
inner door. The employees had removed the door in order to make the
adjustment. As they were
putting the door back on, the inner door hinge contacted the energized
right side 480 volt outer
crossbar clamp and caused an arc blast. The distance from the top hinge of
the inner door to the
energized 480 volt outer crossbar clamp is approximately 3/4 of an inch.
The hinge pin of the
inner door assembly is approximately 11/16 of an inch. This only allowed
for 1/16 of an inch
clearance from the live 480 volt when putting the door back on. Safety
Information and
Procedures in the instruction manual state that the protector has to be
deenergized and racked
out before any maintenance procedure is performed.
The manufacturer's safety instructions and procedures were not followed by
the employer. Safety
Information and Procedures in the instruction manual state that the
protector has to be
deenergized and racked out before any maintenance procedure is performed.
In order to
deenergize the protector, the fuses and links must be removed. After these
are removed, the
protector has to be unracked to completely deenergize the protector.
Among other methods, one feasible and acceptable abatement method to
correct this hazard is,
the establishment and implementation of EFFECTIVE Safety Procedures for
working on the
network protectors that includes the following:
1.Conduct a job hazard analysis to determine the potential electrical
hazards associated with
the protector.
2.Develop and implement written safe working procedures according to the
manufacturer's
instruction manual.
3.Effectively train managers, supervisors and employees to recognize
electrical hazards or
risks associated with the network protector and how to minimize or
eliminate them, and
how to manage the procedures and policies developed for working on the
network
protectors.
4.Develop effective safe work practice controls according to the
manufacturer's instructions
to minimize the potential for electrical incidents when working on the
network protectors.