How to Maintain Electrical Safety in the Workplace

Electrical safety is vital in the workplace. As well as your moral and legal responsibility to protect staff, it minimises the risk of damage to your site, equipment and other assets. In this post, we’ll look at three key areas when maintaining electrical safety in the workplace…

1. Start with your installation

The first port of call is your electrical installation. This is the mains system from which everything is powered at your premises. As such, any problems with it will undoubtedly compromise electrical safety in the workplace.

In terms of safety, the golden standard is an electrical installation condition report (EICR). This is a comprehensive inspection and test of all your installation’s components in line with British Standards.

At the end of it, you’ll get a report or certificate outlining any issues that have been found. They will be marked as C1, C2, C3 or FI to indicate their urgency. All you need to do is get them resolved to keep your installation safe and fully functional.

It’s then up to you to arrange another EICR in the timeframe recommended by your inspector. This is typically every 5 years, but it can vary based on the type of installation, surrounding environment and other factors.

2. Check your equipment

Next is everything that’s plugged into your system – the equipment or appliances. Again, there’s a very simple course of action to keep everything safe. In this case, it’s portable appliance testing (PAT).

PAT testing is required for any portable appliance that’s plugged into your mains electricity or any other generator. That covers everything from mobile phone chargers and extension leads to large appliances like freezers and machines.

A qualified and competent contractor will complete a visual inspection and electrical test for each appliance, then document the results in an inventory. All passed items will be listed with a due date for their next test, with failed items highlighted for urgent repair or replacement.

To maintain electrical safety in the workplace, you’ll simply need to arrange repairs for failed items or replace them and have new items PAT tested. Then make sure you keep up to date with PAT testing in future.

3. Uphold safe working practices

Finally, there’s the people using your system and appliances. To really drill down on electrical safety, it’s best to keep your workforce switched on – if you’ll excuse the pun. This includes:

• Getting everyone familiar with the HSE’s safe working practices for anyone working on or near electrical equipment.
• Encouraging staff to report any issues they find – and ensuring they know who to report them to.
• Ensuring no untrained staff tamper with the electrics under any circumstances.
• Making sure everyone knows their responsibility, whether that’s a site manager arranging PAT tests or a machine operative following HSE guidelines.

Electrical safety made easy

Volta Compliance is a one-stop shop for Yorkshire businesses that want to maintain electrical safety in the workplace. Our experienced, qualified team provides top-rate PAT testing and EICR services to keep your site safe and compliant for everyone using it.

To find out more or arrange a site visit, don’t hesitate to contact us on 0113 436 0402 or email [email protected].