Overview

Introduction to the Distribution Safety and Work Practices Project

2024 updates | Deliverables | Past research

Project Description

Because electricity distribution involves multiple risks for both the public and utility workers, utilities put in place many risk-reducing procedures and processes. Improvements are always possible; new practices, protective approaches, equipment, tools, and technologies must be assessed carefully to evaluate the impact on worker and public safety. The goal of this research is to evaluate risks, protective approaches, and equipment and to investigate new technologies to improve safety.

Research areas include grounding and personnel protection, arc flash, downed conductors, and tools and technologies aimed at improving safety.

The operation of distribution circuits exposes workers and the public to hazards, including contact to energized objects (shock), arc flash from a system fault (burns), and step and touch voltages. This project aims to focus on these risks through research on:

  • Grounding and personnel protection
  • Arc flash analysis and protection
  • Detection and reduction of live, downed conductors
  • Stray and contact voltage
  • Manhole events
  • Evaluation and use of protective equipment
  • Technologies to improve worker safety

Key Research Question

What are the areas of greatest risk to workers and the public associated with distribution delivery, and what are the key technical challenges to reduce risk and improve safety for workers and the public?

Objective

Since electricity distribution can introduce hazards for the public and utility workers, utilities put in place many risk-reducing procedures and processes. Improvements are always possible; new practices, protective approaches, equipment, tools, and technologies must be assessed carefully to evaluate the impact on worker and public safety. The goal of this research is to evaluate risks, protective approaches, and protective equipment. New technologies to improve safety are also considered. Key research areas include grounding and personnel protection, arc flash, and downed conductors.

The operation of distribution circuits exposes workers and the public to hazards, including contact to energized objects (shock), arc flash from a system fault (burns), and step-and-touch voltages. This project aims to focus on these risks, with research on:

  • Grounding and personnel protection
  • Arc flash analysis and protection
  • Detection and reduction of live downed conductors
  • Manhole events
  • Evaluation and use of protective equipment
  • Technologies to improve worker safety
  • Work methods and other practices impacting worker safety

Approach

Research is intended to be provided in multiple forms, including:

  • Results from experimentation and analysis
  • Reference guides, practical manuals, and training videos
  • Workshops, meetings, and webcasts

This project examines the safety of utility workers and the public while they are on or near utility distribution equipment. Focus areas include work methods, equipment, and technologies to help utilities improve safety. The Safety research project for 2026 consists of the following tasks:

  • SIFs Workshops: Two workshops are aimed at serious injuries and fatalities (SIFs). These workshops may help utilities compare their practices and approaches with others in the industry. The workshops will also help prioritize future research. Results from these workshops include a package that allows utilities to use events from other utilities to self-review practices, training, and use of tools and personal protective equipment (PPE).
  • Workshop on Underground Safety: Key focus areas include lockout and tagout, manhole entry procedures, cable cutting, dealing with live-front equipment, cable identification, and other hazards. Hazards include arc flash, contact with live-front equipment, equipment failures, gases, and traffic.
  • Workshop on Overhead Safety: Key focus areas include use of coverup, practices for gloving, practices for hotsticks, and technologies for worker protection. Hazards include contact, arc flash, step-and-touch voltages, induction, traffic, and falls.
  • Downed-Conductor Prevention and Detection: Downed conductors remain a challenge for electric utilities. EPRI has investigated and evaluated various approaches to downed-conductor detection, including electrical measurement, high-speed signal processing, and methods based on advanced metering infrastructure (AMI). In 2026, plans are to continue working with Project Set 200D (Distribution Protection) to test various detection technologies and to continue to collect high-resolution electrical signatures to support development and assessment of new detection technologies.
  • Personal Voltage Detectors: Several products are available that can detect nearby voltage. These could help alert line patrollers and other field workers if there are nearby live conductors. In 2026, EPRI plans to stage tests to evaluate the performance of these products under different scenarios, including several downed-conductor scenarios and use in proximity to energized lines.
  • Arc Flash: Arc flash is a hazard to workers, and an effective worker-protection program involves many facets that touch on work methods, personal protective equipment, system protection, and analysis. Past work has included testing and evaluation of arc-flash hazards as well as evaluation of arc-rated PPE. For 2026, EPRI plans a series of updates and information exchanges to help utilities update and maintain their arc-flash programs.
  • Field Worker Focus Group: EPRI plans to engage utility field workers for information exchange on safety issues, including practices, use of PPE, tools, and new technologies. Engagement can be through web-based information exchanges, interviews, and/or workshops. Results will help information exchange between utilities and help advise EPRI research.

Approaches to Reduce Risks from Contact: Contact to medium-voltage lines is a leading cause of SIFs. Past research related to contacts has included use of fast hot line tags, use of conductive clothing, and improvements to practices. In 2026, plans are to continue pursuing changes to practices to reduce risks of contact. In addition, research on application of conductive clothing can help determine if this is a practical protective option. Development of an application to evaluate use and application of insulating conductor covers is also planned.

Research Value

These research tasks can help utilities improve safety for utility workers and the public. Specifically, the research results could help utilities:

  • Reduce hazards to workers from arc flash
  • Reduce hazards to workers from contact to energized conductors
  • Better use protective cover-up and other insulation techniques
  • Select and use personal voltage detectors
  • Improve public and worker safety through leading approaches for downed-conductor detection

Task-Force Roles

The Distribution Safety Task Force advises the Distribution Safety Project. This task force is generally staffed by subject-matter experts in areas related to public safety, worker safety, and work methods.

This task force meets several times per year by WebEx or in person. There is usually one in-person meeting per year held in conjunction with the other P180 task forces. The in-person meeting is normally held in Spring in Lenox, MA, or Charlotte, NC.

Members are encouraged to participate in several ways:

  • Attend task-force meetings
  • Review and comment on reports and findings
  • Provide materials for testing or evaluation
  • Provide information on your company’s standards or practices (a survey for example)
  • Attend testing at EPRI laboratories
  • Present to the task force on company issues or initiatives
  • Submit safety incidents for EPRI review
  • For safety-related equipment failures, submit equipment to EPRI for forensic analysis
  • Reach out to Tom Short or other EPRI staff on matters related to safety and work methods

This task force is also a good opportunity to meet safety experts at other participating companies.

Common Questions

How do I subscribe to the task-force mailing list?

How do I unsubscribe to the task-force mailing list?

Who can attend task-force meetings?

  • Task-force meetings are for funders of the appropriate P180 project. This includes task-force members and guests from sponsoring companies.

Are there specific membership requirements?

  • The only requirement is to fund P180.004. Membership is rather loose. There are no meeting attendance requirements.

Can my company have more than one task-force member?

  • Yes.

Can I share task-force material within my company?

  • Yes.

Can I share task-force material outside my company?

  • Generally not. There are exceptions, so if you have a need, please contact Tom Short.

Are discussions covered by a non-disclosure agreement?

  • Yes. All EPRI member agreements include non-disclosure clauses.

If my company isn’t funding this, how can I sign up?

  • Each company has their own methods for selecting components of the annual EPRI research portfolio. Contact your METT for more information. Technical advisors from EPRI’s member services can also help. Find contact information here.

Collaborative Supplemental Projects

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Arc Flash Testing of 480-V Bypass Meter Sockets and CT Cabinets

Arc flash can be very equipment specific. This project aims to test equipment that doesn’t have adequate industry testing. Without industry testing, the fallback arc-flash estimates lead to burdensome PPE. This project aims to clearly define existing hazards, based on actual testing, to show employers the hazard and allow employers to provide sufficient PPE.

  • Determine hazards for various bypass configurations and CT cabinets

  • Explore simple modifications that could reduce risks

  • Determine most appropriate levels of PPE
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Advanced Applications to Assist the Distribution Workforce

This project aims to demonstrate digital technologies to assist the distribution workforce in complex and precision tasks. Plans include vendor demonstrations of digital work aides and demonstration of applications to quantify performance versus typical work methods.

  • Demonstrate digital technologies to assist the distribution workforce in complex and precision tasks
  • Develop guidance, based on utility SMEs, for vendor demonstrations of digital work aides
  • Engage with advanced technology vendors to demonstrate application approaches and technology options
  • Evaluate demonstration applications to quantify performance versus typical work methods

EPRI participants can engage EPRI with supplemental projects. When a company funds EPRI annual research, 25% of the funds are set aside as self-directed funds (SDF). Utilities can use this to fund supplemental projects. Please contact your METT for more information on how supplemental project funds are allocated in your utility.

For more on supplemental projects, see here. To discuss project ideas, contact Tom Short.

Implementation Opportunities

Supplemental projects can also be one-on-one efforts. Companies allocate their self-directed funds in different ways. Options for these projects can include:

  • Field pilots of technologies
  • Integration of research results
  • Teardowns of failed equipment
  • Test specific equipment or scenarios

Examples related to current research could include:

  • Pilots of real-world use of voltage detectors
  • Implementation of arc-detecting technologies for downed conductors

Services and Capabilities

EPRI has several capabilities available to utilities as part of research work, supplemental projects, or service agreements:

  • Arc-flash testing of equipment and protection
  • Tests or modeling of grounding configurations
  • Downed-conductor tests and other tests of energized objects
  • Forensics and material analysis of equipment failures
  • Custom tests of PPE, tools, or safety-related technologies

Other Programs

EPRI research related to distribution safety is found in several other areas.

Program 1: Power Quality

MyPQ | P1 | portfolio

Program 1 is responsible for stray voltage and contact voltage investigations. These are important issues for public safety. This includes urban scenarios as well as swimming pool and other shock hazards to the public. See here for an update on recent research. strayvoltage.epri.com is an important resource.

Program 60: Electric and Magnetic Fields and Radio-Frequency Health Assessment and Safety

P60 | portfolio

This program considers environmental health and safety issues related to public and worker exposure to electric and magnetic field (EMF) and radio frequency (RF) environments associated with electric power system infrastructure.

Program 62: Occupational Health and Safety

P62 | portfolio

EPRI’s occupational health and safety research produces actionable tools and insights aligned with the pressing challenges articulated by EPRI members in conjunction with thought-leadership initiatives of EPRI staff. Research results from this program are relevant to utilities globally.

Program 180: Distribution Systems

Equipment failures can often pose safety risks. In both the P180.001 Overhead and P180.002 Underground projects, the fundamental deterioration and failure modes of equipment are evaluated.

The P180.002 Underground project is also covering issues with manhole explosions from flammable gases and faults. See here.