EPZ Grounding Training
Castle Rock Safety, LLC
970-765-5542
A Safety Expert Committed to Excellence
Picking the right safety consultant can be challenging. You want a someone that has experience, industry knowledge, and, of course, innovative ideas.
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I have been developing and conducting electrical safety training programs for over 40 years. The programs that I have developed have been used to train electrical workers worldwide.
We have all seen the bumper stickers and signs on
our substation fences that read, “if it’s not grounded
it’s not dead”.
While this can be true, it does not really give us
the whole story.
It is more than that, it must be grounded and
bonded in such a way it ensures that the
circuit opens in the fastest available clearing time, and that the potential differences between conductive objects in the employee's work area are as low as possible.
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As we train our workers in personal protective grounding methods we must ensure that we teach them about the hazards of induced voltages and how to think of themselves as part of an electrical circuit, if they put themselves in series with a difference of potential there will be a voltage drop and a resulting current flow. All conductive objects in the work area that can be reached by the workers must be electrically bonded to eliminate differences in potential that the worker may be exposed to.
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Grounds installed only on either side of the work location or bracketed grounds do not prevent potentially lethal current from reaching and flowing through the worker. There is a belief with grounding that somehow those bracketed grounds are going to stop the electric current from reaching and flowing through the worker and it simply doesn't happen, the current takes every path.
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EPZ grounding is a reasonable and technically sound provision for protective grounding of lines and equipment and it is fundamental to the safety of line workers. I find it remarkable that this well recognized concept of creating an equipotential work zone is not better accepted and established.
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TESTIMONIALS
What Our Clients Have to Say
Mike is one of the best Safety Consultants around. A true professional.
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B Vranes, AES Corporation
L Dyer, OEL
Mike's been doing some work for AES in this part of the world examining the Electrical Safety Rules and Work Management Processes a real insight where significant safety and reliability gains can be made, including training based on NFPA 70E.
We were hugely impressed how Mike dominates electrical safety and how easy he gets along with our operatives to understand the technical complexities, all his skillsets were of benefit for our AES sites in CIS, Asia, Africa and Europe.
Mike,
“Just wanted to say thank you for that department wide grounding class. It was a very good
education for our guys. This morning as a crew we discussed the class we had yesterday, and
everyone was very pleased with the formal training on such an important topic”
Mike,
“I just want to take the opportunity to say THANK YOU. You have a way of presenting the
Grounding information in a working man’s language. The feedback that we have been getting from the troops are all positive. Thank you Brother and it was a pleasure meeting you. The training Team is very much grateful”
Mike,
“I really think you did a great job not only being extremely knowledgeable on the topic but
having the background in the subject matter that made your stories and self-experiences, keep the class engaged. I wanted to sit in on these sessions with the hope of picking up a few items to help me going forward and to be honest, I learned a lot! Thanks again Mike”.
Mike Bahr
Mike brings over four decades of experience in the electrical field to his presentations and programs to help people avoid the pain and suffering of workplace injury to electrical workers. Mike has dedicated his career to the development of safety training programs for both private industry and government clients. He has developed and presented personal protective grounding and arc flash training worldwide and is a former principal member of the NFPA 70E committee (Electrical Safety in the Workplace). He also served as the principal investigator for the development of the Department of Energy (DOE) electrical safety program.
PERSONAL PROTECTIVE GROUNDING THINK ELECTRICALLY, NOT MECHANICALLY
Since 1994, OSHA has required grounding practices that will protect employees in the event that the line or equipment on which they are working becomes re-energized. The equipotential zone, or EPZ, is made to do just that.
OSHA’s requires the employer to install temporary grounds and bonds at the worksite in such a manner that keeps the worksite at the same potential and prevents harm to workers even if the line is accidentally re-energized or exposed to induced voltages.
This 1 day course will help participants to understand the current rules and regulations that require the employer to assess the workplace and develop grounding practices that will protect personnel working on or near deenergized lines and equipment.
This course will follow a review of several serious accidents involving improper grounding practices. The course will cover methods to manage electrical hazards effectively when dealing with deenergized electrical circuits. The course will cover the difference between grounding and bonding and help attendees to think electrically, not mechanically when installing personal protective grounds.
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By drawing from personal experience, Mike will answer important questions regarding Personal Protective Grounding, including, but not limited to:
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What regulations require personal protective grounding?
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What methods are available to perform equi-potential grounding?
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Single phase or three phase?
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Bracket or single point grounding?
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What type of work exposes an employee to a reasonable likelihood that an electrical exposure could occur?
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What are the hazards with working in series or parallel with the grounding system?
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What are the electrical sources that may endanger the worker?
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What is the equipotential zone of protection?
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What is the proper method for installing and removing grounds
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Learning Outcomes:
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Discuss developing a safe work plan
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Identify Potential Hazards
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Establish the Work Practices / Barriers for the Job to Manage the Hazards
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Define Background and Definitions
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What is the Difference between Grounding and Bonding?
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Applying Grounding
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Applying Bonding
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Power System Source
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Job Site and Work Area
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Downlead (Pole Ground)
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Induction
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Conductor Stringing Grounding
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Working from the Structure
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Working on the Ground
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Splicing Conductor
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Equipment / Material Entering or Leaving the Equipotential Zone
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Working from a Bucket
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Single Phase Line with System Neutral
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Working Procedures for Bonded Sections of Two or Three Phase Lines
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Wood Poles with Downleads
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Steel Towers / Steel Poles / Concrete Poles
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Cutting Open Wire or Jumpers
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Guyed Structures
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Grounding inside a Substation
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Underground Distribution
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Inspection and Maintenance
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Grounding Equipment and Vehicles
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Grounding Non-insulated vs insulated Aerial Devices
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Do you have EPZ grounding training needs? Let us know how we can help
Castle Rock Safety, LLC
2316 W Fox Park Rd
Montrose, Colorado 81401
USA
Email:
Phone:
970-765-5542