Over here in New Zealand, we are required to test each and every portable appliance in a
commercial and Industrial workplace and affix a plastic safety tag to the flex on the said appliance.
This is a relatively new concept over here, but good all the same, but testing these things every 3-6 months, does become a pain,
especially if you only do Commercial and Industrial work.
Is there a similar system in place in your country?.
Your comments, please-

Never heard of 1 here in the south.

Well I have seen inspection stickers on medical equipment but I'm not sure what all is tested or how often.

[This message has been edited by txsparky (edited 02-09-2003).]

Yes, there is a requirement for regular appliance testing in workplaces in the U.K.

As I'm not involved with anything above very light commercial work, I don't know how vigorously or otherwise it is enforced by our HSE (Health & Safety Executive).

Certainly in the small retail shops, pubs, etc. around here you'd have a hard time finding a recent test sticker on most of their equipment.

Trumpy & Pauluk,
Can you provide information on what specifically is required for the testing?
Are you required to test for say equipment grounding conductor continuity similar to the "assured equipment grounding conductor program" required / per NEC article on Temporary wiring or are the appliance tedsting requirements you mention more detailed? Insulation testing ? Megger ? Hi Pot tests?
Any info on this would be greatly appreciated.
OSHA Professor - Grizzy

Grizzy,
Over here in NZ, we have a Standard, called
AS/NZS 3760, that tells us what is required for these tests, and also how often they should be done.
Try, www.ess.govt.org.nz, not sure if it is there are not.
But, long story longer, when testing appliances, it depends upon what Class of
Equipment it is:
Class I: Earthed, with metal casing.
Class II: Double Insulated, with non-conductive casing, but may have exposed metallic parts, which are isolated from Earth.
Class III:Protected by RCD(GFCI).
Now, for a Class I appliance, a Resistance test with an Ohmmeter, between the Earth pin of the Plug and the Metal case of the said appliance, this must not be any higher than
0.5Ohm, for safety reasons.
Also, an Insulation Resistance Test, using a Megger, should be applied, by bridging out the Phase and Neutral pins of the plug and connecting the other lead to the Earth pin of the plug, anything less than about 100Megohms, should worry you.
Finally, with Class II appliances, there is really only the Insulation Resistance test, that can be done on these appliances,but the probe that would normally be fitted to the Earth pin is connected to any exposed metal,(like Drill chucks, etc), a very high reading is expected from this test,(>200MOhms).
A Class III appliance, is tested in the same way as the Class I appliance, except the RCD is disconnected first and tested seperately,with a dedicated RCD(GFCI)tester.
As a side note, when doing any appliance testing, it is good practice to check the
appliance for physical faults, too, especially with flexible cords, run the whole length of the flex, through your closed hand, any irregularities, felt, should be checked.
Hope this helps.

[This message has been edited by Trumpy (edited 02-10-2003).]

Trumpy:

Would this also apply to the small electric radio, lamp or pencil sharpener sitting on ... say a secretary's desk?

They're similar requirements here: Insulation test, earth continuity test for grounded equipment, and yes, a high-pot "flash" test for some equipment.

Sven,
Yes, if it means that safety compliance is achieved, then that's just the way life is.
This is just how silly things have got, in the world of safety practices, over in this neck of the woods!.

Thanks Gentlemen,
Couldn't get to the URL.
The requirements you outline certainly go beyond the NEC, in terms of testing to verify the requirements. For class I,It's is very similar to the assured equipment ground program.

The majority of industrial electrocution accidents & fatalities here in the US among unqualified electrical workers (general worker population) are due primarially to one primal causal factor --lack of sufficient grounding. Il be willing to bet that those high statistics are not the case in New Zeland.
BTW can you qualified electrical folks guess what is causing 80% of the electrically related accidents and fatalities among qualified electrical workers here in the US ?
Thanks again for the information.
Regards,
OSHA Professor

Disregarding safety procedures and lack of PPE would be my answer.

80% of the electrically related accident incidents and fatalities among "qualified workers" are due to arc blast/arc flash!
Be safe out there!
OSHA Professor
Grizzy

80% here Grizzy?

Does this also follow suit in countries that incorporate RCD or similar protection?

[This message has been edited by sparky (edited 03-09-2003).]

<pet peave>
85% of all round number statistics are made up...

I find it hard to believe that 80.000% of electrical accidents are arc related...

Maybe if it said 79.965% or 80.072%, then it would be more believable.

I still think cuts are the number one hazard for us, anyway.

</pet peave>

Besides, the big money we all enjoy compared to our counterparts is because of the risks we take. Get rid of the risks, and surely, this would be a minimum wage job.

Frankly, I can't handle any more wage cuts, so the riskier the job, the better.

well Virgil, i would say that we have a riskier environ that elsewhere, given Trumpy's insightful post (et all) re; methods, field practice, life safety installation, etc.

The picture painted portrays a wide gap bettween what is instituted vs. what is beuracratic wind

The latter which i've always taken as proportional to the 'lack of' here