AMEDK3-018A Task 1 - Know the electrical hazards and the legislation, regulations and standards related with working with electrical apparatus Transformers – The hazards associated with transformers are electrical shock, electrical burns & fire. As transformers are bulky and are prone to getting hot, one issue you may face if it is in a closed environment, it can cause problems for any other electrical components that it may be around therefore it can potentially cause a fire. The fire that is caused by the heat can lead to any person around it getting electrical burns. The health and safety at work act 1974 suggests that the employers have to make sure that the right precautions are undertaken against fire, which means that if a transformer catches on fire, there has to be a fire escape, and also the correct firefighting equipment. As well as this, transformers are also very heavy so that means that the employees will have to be provided with the correct PPE and they will have to have the correct manual handling training before moving them. As well as this the HSAW 1974 also suggests that the employee should not interfere with/misuse anything that is provided to protect health and safety. The electricity at work act can be used for transformers because it is in place to make sure that injury or death doesn’t occur while working with electricity. Furthermore, the electrical equipment safety regulations 1994 suggest that the requirement for electrical equipment to be safe includes protection against risks of death or injury to humans or domestic animals and damage to property. Electrical equipment that satisfies the requirements of the Regulations must have the “CE marking “affixed to it. As well as this, A written declaration of conformity containing specified information and certain technical information must be compiled and kept available for 10 years after manufacture of that particular equipment has ceased. You should always check to see if the transformer has an information plate so that you know what it is working at. This is important because that helps you understand that only trained personnel should use it, you should only work on it when it is dead unless necessary, you should use the correct tools and you should be wearing the correct PPE. Transformers often have 2 different types of working voltages and depending on whether it is step up or step down. Isolators – this is an example of an isolator (picture on right). An isolator is a mechanical switch that is often manually operated and is used for isolating a circuit/equipment from its source of power. In the open position of the isolator, it allows it to isolate the input and the output of a device. The main purpose of an isolator is so that you can isolate one part of the circuit from the other part or from the power source. Isolators can also be used in circuits where there are multiple power sources, this means that you have to make sure that the isolators have turned the power off to the part of the circuit that you want to work on. To do this you are going to have to test the part of the circuit that you want to work on using a meter. If the isolator is potentially going to be exposed to the elements or any sort of natural hazards, the EWR 1989 suggests that the isolator must be protected to prevent, as far as reasonably practicable, any sort of danger from those type of exposures. Isolators comply with regulation 13 and 14 of the EWR 1989. Regulation 13 reads, that the correct precautions must be taken to make sure the electrical equipment has been made dead before working on it. Regulation 14 suggests that “no person shall be engaged in any work activity on or so near any live conductor where danger may arise”. Both of these regulations point to isolators as the main purpose of an isolator is to help dead a certain part of the circuit where work needs to be done. The HSAW 1974 suggests that the isolators have to be maintained to ensure that they will work when they are needed.
