Injury, death, and loss of property are the potential for any manufacturer that makes electrical fans and blowers; I can share an actual incident to our safety community. Several years ago, a town in New York called us to describe an explosion that occurred in one of their pump sewage buildings where our equipment was being used. The event was described by the gentleman who was contacting us before filing a liability lawsuit to ask if we wanted to comment. Our first question was to ask the person if he knew the model number and serial number of the piece of equipment. The fan was our model number and serial number and described a standard electrical blower. Immediately, we knew the item purchased by the town was not the correct blower. Working around pump sewage areas, there is always an explosive potential for hydrogen sulfide or methane gas; the city should have purchased an explosion-proof blower. The town immediately dropped the lawsuit.

Federal OSHA has no requirements for manufacturers and distributors to sell products tested and certified for use in the United States. OSHA requires the company or person purchasing the electrical fan or blower to ensure that the product is “acceptable” to U.S. OSHA. More than 25 years ago, OSHA started the Nationally Recognized Testing Laboratory (NRTL) to use nationally recognized electrical standards for testing portable fans and blowers. NRTL has a list of approved companies and organizations that meet OSHA’s requirements to certify products and to use their logo on the product to signify the product has passed U.S. (or Canadian) electrical standards. Here are only a couple NRTL-approved organizations — Intertek and Canadian Standards Association: