2024 Safety Project Tasks

Workshops: Two workshops are aimed at serious accidents 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. These were first initiated in 2023. 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 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 2024, plans are to test technologies acquired in 2023 under various scenarios. Part of this effort plans to collect high-resolution electrical signatures to support development and assessment of new detection technologies.

Arc Flash: Arc flash is a hazard to workers, and an effective worker-protection program involves many facets that touch on work methods, personnel protective equipment, system protection, and analysis. In 2020, EPRI produced an arc-flash guidebook that covers recent changes in the industry. For 2024, EPRI plans to continue to evaluate ratings and selection of arc-rated FR clothing. In 2022 and 2023, testing showed that samples had wide ranges of performance, with some that were 40% below the advertised rating. Follow-up testing with more vendors and more types of clothing will be evaluated. New approaches to test and evaluate fabrics are also planned.

Overhead Line Worker Practices; Proximity Awareness and 3D Mapping: EPRI intends to research human and machine collaborative field processes to reduce unintended wire strikes and worker electrocution. Advancements in 3D mapping technologies combined with other sensing modalities may support proximity-based tracking, alarming, or even collision avoidance. EPRI intends to experiment with these systems in lab environments in 2024.

Technologies to Improve Utility Truck Safety: Bucket trucks and derricks are used every day in utilities. Each year, there are serious injuries related to the use of these machines due to falls, collisions, pinching, and tipping accidents. In this project, EPRI proposes to experiment with technologies that may reduce these accidents.