"OSHA recommends that employers consult consensus standards such as NFPA 70E to identify safety measures that can be used to comply with or supplement the requirements of OSHA's standards for preventing or protecting against arc-flash hazards. For example, Section 130.3 of the NFPA standard establishes its own mandatory provisions for flash-hazard-analysis, which sets forth the criteria to define a flash-protection boundary and the personal protective equipment for use by employees within the flash-protection boundary. The goal of this provision is to reduce the possibility of being injured by an arc-flash. The analysis is task specific and determines the worker's incident-energy exposure (in calories per square centimeter). Where it has been determined that work will be performed within the flash-protection boundary, NFPA 70E specifies that flame-resistant clothing and PPE use either be based on the pre-determined incident-energy exposure data or be in accordance with the Hazard/Risk Category Classifications and Protective Clothing and Personal Protective equipment (PPE) Matrix tables contained in Sections 130.7(C)(9) and (C)(10), respectively."

Information provided by James Norton, President of the JHN Group. He can be contacted regarding Machine Safety Consulting at jamesnorton@jhngroup.com or online at www.jhngroup.com.