POWER DISTRIBUTION AND GROUNDING EQUIPMENT/GROUNDING TANK

Scope: This guideline outlines the hazards involved, and the precautions that should be taken, when working with electrical equipment or when working near electrical service lines. Introduction: The intent of this guideline is to prevent injury or harm to a person due to electricity. Electricity is potentially dangerous and should be treated with respect. References: Steel Plate Fabricators Basic Safety Rules, pages 11, 13 and 28 FTC Electrical Safety Program FTC Electrical Safety Training FTC Working Around Overhead Power Lines FTC Isolation of Electrical and Mechanical Equipment. National Electric Code (NEC) FTC Crane Manual #1 and #2

Definitions: Distribution Panel: A main electrical panel containing multiple circuit breakers to supply electrical power to multiple pieces of electrical equipment. Ground Fault Circuit Interrupter (GFCI): A safety device designed to automatically shut off power to a piece of equipment when a leakage of current is detected; protects personnel against hazardous electrical shock. A GFCI trips at 5 mA current loss. Competent Person: One familiar with construction and operation of the equipment and hazards involved; has the ability to recognize electrical system defects and knows lockout/tagout procedures. Qualified Electrician: Someone who demonstrates the ability through training and experience to work on or near exposed energized parts; familiar with skill and techniques to distinguish exposed live parts and other parts of electrical system; able to determine nominal voltage of a system; understand and use correct tools. (Where local laws require it, this person must be licensed.) FTC will hire qualified electricians through subcontractors or equipment manufacturers. Responsibilities: It is the responsibility of the Project Manager, Construction Manager, and Foreman to: Inform employees of the precautions that must be taken when working with electricity. Insure all electrical equipment is installed correctly. The employee has the responsibility of taking proper safety precautions when working with or around electricity. Test Equipment: The following pieces of test equipment are needed to install a power distribution system and a grounding system:

Biddle Model 25-0260 Earth Ground Resistance Tester or equal for 60 hz. systems. Extech Instruments model Mini Range Master Hertz Volt Ohm Meter or equal.

Low Voltage Conductors - 220/240 Volts Or Less

Month than Color Low voltage electricity kills more people annually high voltage electricity because of accessibility and the failure of personnel to recognize the hazard. January March White April for June Yellow Visually inspect all electrical equipment shorts, insulation breakdown, loose connections and July September Red tag to repair and return to foreman for repair or improper grounding prior to use. When faults are found, October December Blue replacement. Low Voltage Equipment Grounding: All low voltage single phase power equipment will use only 3conductor cable with one wire (green) being the grounding conductor; this includes lighting systems. Exception: The use of two wire, "Double-Insulated," tools are permitted providing all of the conditions are satisfied. Ground fault circuit interrupters GFCI shall be used on all single phase 110/120 volt outlets to which portable electrical equipment is connected. GFCI's shall be inspected and tested on a quarterly basis. Any defective equipment found must be tagged out or fixed.

All low voltage 3-phase electrical systems shall include a fourth wire (green), which serves as the grounding conductor. Each device is identified by number. The prefix number identifies the line or the chart where the device is found. The second set of numerals designates the ampere rating. The suffix "R" or "P" denotes the receptacle or plug. When ordering these from any manufacturer, use the NEMA identification number. High Voltage Conductors - Greater Than 240 Volts Overhead transmission and distribution lines and FTC equipment are the major sources of high voltage hazards. Any contact by employees, materials or machines must be avoided. If there is a problem concerning overhead voltage lines, contact the Construction Manager for instructions. Visually inspect all electrical equipment for shorts, insulation breakdown, loose connections and improper grounding prior to each use. When faults are found, tag Do Not Use for repair and return to foreman for repair or replacement. All electrical equipment must be grounded as described in this guideline. All high voltage, single-phase power equipment will use only 3-conductor cable with one wire (green) being the grounding conductor. All high voltage, 3-phase electrical distribution systems shall include a fourth wire (green) throughout its entire length, which serves as the grounding conductor.

Power lines on wooden poles usually carry from 110 to 69,000 volts. Power lines on steel towers usually carry from 69,000 to 345,

000 volts.

ALL POWER LINES ARE DANGEROUS! FTC equipment shall not be operated within the minimum clearance distance per FTC Electrical Safety Program. If there are power lines in the work area, warning barricades must be positioned to prevent crane boom from violating the minimum distance. Power Distribution Power supplied by a utility company or on site generator requires the same distribution standard. Current produced by a generator set is just as deadly as that flowing through power lines and should be handled accordingly. When current is supplied by a utility company, the transmission lines to the job site must terminate in switch boxes. These switch boxes must be properly fused and protected from the weather. Each unit of electrical equipment MUST be correctly grounded as per the FTC Grounding Procedure Equipment. Wiring equipment for hookup to a power source must be performed by a qualified electrician who is authorized by the foreman. Connection of three phase outlets and set up of skidded electrical equipment must be performed by a competent person. Each item of electrical equipment MUST have its own fused disconnect switch or circuit breaker. All 3-phase electrical distribution systems shall include a 4th wire throughout its entire length for grounding. Whenever it is necessary to touch any part of the power system, be sure the power is off; remove fuses or lock switches open to be sure it STAYS off. Uninsulated wire must never be used (except for grounding conductors). Wire on which the insulation has been cut or damaged must be replaced or repaired immediately. In the latter instance, enough tape shall be used to insure proper insulation and moisture resistance. Where outer insulation is all that is damaged, a competent person may make the repair. Where outer and inner insulation over wire conductor is damaged, the repair is to be done by a qualified electrician. Before turning power on, inspect switch-gear metal covers and doors, etc., prior to use to be certain nothing extraneous is touching any part of the electrical circuit. Also inspect all earth ground connections to be sure contact points are secure and the ground wire unbroken in the switch gear. Never stand in water when performing any work which requires touching electrical equipment.

Distribution Lines-Conductors Leading from a Distribution Point (3-Phase, Greater than 240Volts):

Flexible service lines must be marked as high voltage lines and protected against damage. FTC's policy is to elevate flexible service lines off the ground at all times, except at crossings. Flexible service lines at crossings should be run through pipe of

adequate strength to prevent crushing. Service lines can be elevated on wooden frames, steel "Y" supports, clean and gas freed drums or boxes. Lines are to be elevated even on fire walls.

Do not work on the primary or secondary side of any distribution line without disconnecting the power and performing the proper "Lockout/Tagout procedures. Service Lines-Conductors leading to a Distribution Point: Only a qualified electrician shall install a service-drop or service-lateral. The size of a distribution line determines the size of the current-limiting device required to protect the system. Check the current-carrying capacity of the wire size and select the current-limiting device accordingly. When connecting into a power supplier's line, insure that the current-limiting devices are rated lower than the supplier's line or master switch. Failure to do so can cause an injury or equipment damage. EQUIPMENT GROUNDING General: It is important to properly ground all electrical equipment. Adequate grounding will prevent serious shock hazards to workmen and damage to equipment. Federal Regulations for grounding require a maximum resistance to ground of 25 ohms. A safe method of determining this is to measure the resistance to ground with an approved instrument, such as Biddle's Model 25-0260 Earth Ground Resistance Tester for areas using 60 hz systems. All earth grounding (i.e. grounding electrode) systems should be tested, this includes customer grounding grid systems, if used. If testing cannot be done, a minimum of two grounding devices tied together must be used. By following the requirements contained in this standard, a grounding system which will assure the minimum resistivity to ground can be determined. Testing will be carried out by the Safety Director or designated person during normal job site visits. A record of this test must be maintained in the Safety Questionnaire. Types of Grounds: A grounding device may consist of a driven pipe, driven rod, buried plate or other approved device. Grounding Rods - Grounding rods of steel or iron shall be at least 1 inch diameter. Minimum length is 8 1/2 feet. Pipe - Grounding rods of pipe or rigid conduit shall not be smaller than 1.5" diameter. Minimum length is 8 1/2 feet. Grounding Grid - Some customers may allow the jobsite to connect to a grounding grid which is part of the grounding for the permanent structure. This is a designed grounding system. Sheet Piling - Driven sheet piling makes an excellent grounding system. Plate - Each grounding plate shall present not less than 2 square feet of surface to contact the soil. Grounding plate of iron or steel shall be at least 1/4" thick. Plate shall be embedded below permanent moisture level. Water Pipes - A water piping system is an approved grounding method if it includes 10 feet or more of buried, uninsulated metal pipe.

Note:

Never use a pipe containing gases or other flammable substances for a grounding device.

If the resistance to ground for a single grounding device is higher than 25 ohms, two or more grounding rods, connected in parallel, a minimum of 8 feet apart, may be used to reduce the resistance to ground. Installation of Grounding Rods: Grounding rods should be embedded below the permanent moisture level. Except where rock is encountered, pipes or rods shall be driven to a full depth of 8 feet regardless of the size or number of grounding rods used. When rock is encountered, grounding rods must be buried in a horizontal trench at least 2.5 feet deep, or driven at an oblique angle, not to exceed 45 degrees from vertical. The upper end of the grounding rod shall be no more than 6 inches above ground level. The grounding rod used must comply with diameter and length requirements of this guideline. Each grounding rod shall be separated by at least 8 feet from any other grounding rod. Seasonal Variation: Grounding rods which are not driven below the frost line will show a great variation in resistance throughout the seasons of the year. There is some variation even when driven below the frost line because the frozen upper soil has the effect of shortening the active length of the rod. The depth of the grounding rod and soil moisture are important factors in electrical performance. Driven grounding rods should be long enough to reach the permanent moisture level of the soil. Failure to reach moisture may result not only in high resistance, but also may cause large variations of resistance during seasonal changes. In most locations, the 8 1/2 feet long grounding rod or pipe is sufficient to reach permanent moisture. Grounding Connections: There must be no grounding system connections which could cause a resistance that would reduce the effectiveness of the grounding system. All connections when made must be clean and free of paint and rust. Grounding conductors, using copper lugs, are to be bolted to steel connection tabs (minimum size tab is 4"x4"x1/4" carbon steel plate) and those connection tabs are to be welded to the grounding device and structure. No more than two conductors are to be connected per bolt. The grounding conductor lug MUST NOT be stacked. If a third grounding conductor must be added, a second steel connection tab must be provided. It is NOT acceptable to tack weld the steel connection to the grounding rod or device and structure. Welds must be made the full width of the connection tab. Wedge connections are NOT acceptable, i.e. bullpin and erection nuts. In providing a ground, remember that the lower the resistance, the greater the current-carrying capacity. This is important because, if a person with low resistance comes in contact with an energized enclosure, though the enclosure is grounded, a portion of the leakage current will flow through him instead of through the grounding wire. This may be fatal. Lowering Ground Resistance: If the earth grounding rod's resistance is not low enough, there are several ways to improve it:

Lengthen the grounding rod in the earth. Use multiple rods. Keep the earth around the grounding rod moist.

All electrical equipment and structures utilizing electrical equipment, (e.g. trailer or skid-mounted portable engine-driven welding machines, subpanels, extension panels, foremen shacks/trailers, crew shacks/trailers, office trailers, etc.), MUST be grounded per this guideline.

To assure continuity of the grounding wire prior to each set

up, use an ohmmeter/VOM set to the ohm

(R) x 1 scale to check the continuity of the grounding conductor. Test by holding one probe on the equipment frame/chassis and the other probe on the grounding conductor in the plug or receptacle. A full scale deflection of the ohmmeter/VOM needle indicates the continuity is good. If a full scale deflection does not occur, the grounding conductor is broken; find the broken grounding conductor, repair or replace the cable, then retest. Grounding System for Generators: The National Electric Code (250-6) permits the frame of a portable generator to serve as the grounding electrode for a system supplied by the generator providing:

The generator supplies only equipment on the generator or cord- and plug-connected equipment through receptacles mounted on the generator, and 2 The noncurrent-carrying metal parts of the equipment and the equipment grounding conductor terminals of the receptacles are bonded to the generator frame. Since FTC's generators are trailer mounted, except weld-gen-air units, the trailer must be grounded per this guideline. Note: The structure or large ground assembly must still be tied to earth ground, in all cases, to protect against an outside source of electricity or lightning. Special Applications - Greater Than 240 Volts (3-Phase) On The Structure In cases where 3-phase 240 volts or greater are used within a structure or on scaffolding, a special procedure is required. The Project Manager must receive approval by the Construction Manager and the Safety Director to use this system. Training Employees shall be trained in and be familiar with electrical safety related work practices and procedures. A qualified electrician shall be trained in:

The skill to distinguish exposed live parts from other parts of electric equipment. The ability to determine nominal voltage of exposed live parts. Know the minimum approach distances for high voltage systems he is exposed to. The proper use of PPE, insulating tools, mats, etc., for working on exposed energized

parts. A competent person shall be trained:

To recognize and report system defects. To hook up skidded electrical equipment To install receptacles and plugs on single phase 110 or 220 volt electrical extension cords or tools. All employees will be trained to recognized and report system defects and FTC Isolation of Electrical and Mechanical Equipment guideline.