The Institution of Engineering and Technology (IET) has announced it is working on a new Code of Practice for Electrical Safety Management.
There are currently numerous technical publications on specific aspects of electrical safety, but at present, no single authoritative source on good practice for managing electrical safety in organisations. The new Code of Practice will provide a high level understanding of what managing electrical safety entails and includes an innovative practical self-assessment process built on recognised health and safety management principles.
The new Code of Practice is currently in development and expected to be published in the summer of 2013.
Chairman of the IET Standards Committee developing the Code of Practice for Electrical Safety Management, and Unilever’s group process safety manager, Malcolm Sarstedt, said: “This new Code of Practice is eminently suitable for large and small firms and will be very useful for hard-pressed managers who do not have time to research what to do, and who would be reassured to comply with a product from an influential and authoritative source such as the IET.”
Director of IET Standards, Carolyn White, said: “Electrical safety management in organisations is often the responsibility of non-electrically-qualified staff. This new Code of Practice will give them the confidence to implement a number of good practice activities related to their workplace to manage the range of risks associated with the electrical system – and minimise the risk of serious injury or death caused by electrical incidents.
“This new Code of Practice, developed by a committee representative of key industry groups, will provide a systematic set of principles applicable to any business across all sectors of industry and the public sector.”
The publication will be useful to anyone responsible for electrical safety including electrical engineers, factory managers, facilities managers, risk managers, health and safety officers and others who may not have had systematic training in how to prevent electrical hazards in the workplace.
For more information visit http://www.theiet.org/resources/standards/development.cfm.