Electricity Today T&D Magazine

On Distribution, Transmission or Substation equipment, testing for presence or absence of nominal voltage is mandated specifically by OSHA rule 1910.269(n)(5) which states “Testing. The employer shall ensure that, unless a previously installed ground is present, employees test lines and equipment and verify the absence of nominal voltage before employees install any ground on those lines or that equipment.”

The Bevins Company in Tulsa, Oklahoma has developed two new voltage indicators incorporating the latest technology which connects the voltage indicator to a remote smart device through Bluetooth® communication. This allows real-time remote monitoring of the voltage reading in both analog...

Protecting utility workers using mobile technologies

BY TOM OCONNOR, Panasonic Solutions for Business

Nearly every lineman has heard of a colleague who has been injured—or worse—while on the job. Because of the dangers inherent to their job (that is, electrical safety in the field), these brave men and women must take every precaution to get their work completed efficiently and safely. The realities of the economic slowdown add an additional level of complexity—the expectation that workers do more with less.

In an effort to increase their productivity in the field, linemen may be tempted to take shortcuts. A better...