Handbook of electrical safety

Scope

This handbook provides general information to enhance understanding of national codes, national standards, local, state, and federal regulations. This handbook shall not supersede more stringent requirements in those applicable codes, standards, and regulations. Each entity should reference its contract documents and determine what legal requirements are to be followed in the area of electrical safety. These requirments may vary from locaction to location.

In this document, “shall” refers to requirements from regulatory standards such as OSHA and relevant DOE Orders that may or may not apply to your specific location. “Should ” refers to guidance from consensus standards such as the National Electrical Code (NFPA 70), National Electrical Safety Code (NESC, ANSI C2), and Electrical Safety Requirements for Employee Workplaces (NFPA 70E) which may or may not apply to your specific location (depending upon your contractual requirements).

No section or portion of this document is intended to stand alone. Each section or portion interacts with others that are appropriate to support referenced material.

The design of new facilities shall conform to relevant DOE Orders and should conform to industry recognized engineering design standards. Existing facilities should evaluate their systems and operations in relation to this handbook, applicable DOE Orders, national codes, national standards, local, state, and federal regulations, to determine if they comply or if a safety problem exists.

If the evaluation determines that a safety risk exists, corrective actions should be initiated to bring the systems or operations into compliance with current standards. In the case of a major renovation of an existing facility, the modification shall comply with current standards.