An essential element for electrical safety and reducing electrical accidents is to ensure any electrical equipment is in an electrically safe condition before work begins. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA 70E and 70B) and the Canadian Standards Association (CSA Z462 and Z463) provide references for facilities to meet the requirements of electrical workplace safety and outline the best practices for setting up and maintaining an Electrical Preventative Maintenance (EPM) program.
Most industries currently use condition-based maintenance (CBM) equipment such as infrared thermography to inspect their electrical systems. Thermography is a proven technology for detecting elevated temperatures within energized electrical distribution systems. Typically performed on an annual basis, infrared inspections can detect evidence of overheating caused by loose/deteriorated connections, overloaded circuits and imbalanced loads. These inspections can help prevent unexpected failures, but like all CBM technologies, they only provide a single “snapshot in time.” The subject systems are unmonitored for the balance of the year.