New or growing production needs, new technology or business growth often motivate plant expansion projects. The installation of new equipment or enlargement of the electrical networks changes the number of circuits, their size and location, and the distribution of electrical power. These changes may impact fault currents, protective device coordination as well as overall workplace safety. That’s why arc flash assessments should be a key component of any plant expansion project—not an afterthought.
Why Electrical Risk changes with Plant Expansion?
As the facility grows, more transformers, switchgear, motors and distribution panels are added. Old electrical systems can also be upgraded to handle greater loads. Such changes can affect the magnitude of the fault current available in the system and the time it takes for the protective devices to clear a fault.
These additions can create new risks to a well-designed electrical system and need to be addressed. A new electrical safety assessment helps to identify risks in advance before the new infrastructure is put into operation.
The Importance of Updating an Arc Flash Study
An arc flash study that was conducted many years ago may not be reflective of the existing electrical system because it may not account for the expansion of the system. Changes in the types of equipment, power supply configurations and other power sources can greatly alter incident energy at different locations.
The updated study will ensure the safety labels and personal protective equipment (PPE) requirements are current and working distances are accurate. It also offers maintenance personnel and contractors up-to-date data for safe working around energized equipment.
Protecting People and Equipment
Electrical incidents have the potential to cause major injury, damage and expensive production losses. Assessing the electrical hazards in the planning phase can help organizations take preventive measures before the facility is fully operational.
These can range from the use of suitable protective devices, adjusting the settings of relays, improving the coordination of protective devices and equipment, and redesigning electrical connections, as necessary. Performing arc flash analysis as part of the expansion process can help create a safer working environment and minimize the risk of unexpected disruptions to operations.
Compliance & Operational Readiness
Many workplace safety standards require employers to identify and manage electrical hazards. Failure to update the electrical safety documentation when making changes to a plant can result in obsolete labels, wrong PPE usage, and non-compliance.
When an organization expands, an updated assessment is important to ensure that they continue to document accurately and exhibit the safety of their employees. It also ensures that the maintenance staff has the most up-to-date information regarding the system before starting on a new machine.
Planning for Future Growth
An expansion project is successful if it not only satisfies current production needs but also can be expanded in the future. Electrical engineers can design systems with future capacity for mind and ensure that safety is also taken into account.
Taking arc flash into account early in the project process enables the design team to compare various equipment configurations, choose the appropriate protection scheme and to minimize future changes. Hence, an approach that decreases future risks and promotes efficient plant operation becomes the need of the hour.
Conclusion
While growth opportunities are great with plant expansion projects, new electrical safety challenges arise. Any change in an electrical system can alter the level of hazard and affect workers safety. Through the planning, design and commissioning phase, arc flash assessments can be used to keep employees safe, enhance reliability of the system and ensure compliance with standards. Installing new electrical safety studies when expanding helps to grow without sacrificing safety and operational efficiency.
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