Arc Flash Hazard Analysis

Second degree burns occur at the relatively low incident energy level of just 1.2 calories per centimeter squared, and arc flash incidents are known to kill workers and other unprotected individuals in the area of an incident up to – and beyond – 10 feet away from the source. The Informative Annex K to the NFPA 70E points out that temperatures in a typical arc flash incident can reach 35,000° F and thousands of people are hospitalized or admitted to burn centers each year due to severe burns from arc flash incidents. This is exactly why Wisconsin-based Archer Electric, LLC, urges the use of safe working practices so strongly, always placing equipment in an electrically-safe and de-energized condition before beginning any service or repair, and ALWAYS wearing the appropriate level of PPE for a given task or piece of equipment. The relative danger level of an electrical panel or piece of electrical equipment, expressed as a hazard category, is not something that can be guessed at. This determination of incident energy and related hazard category requires the use of very specific, sophisticated engineering calculations based on numerous component variables that all have to be taken into consideration to accurately generate the available incident energy that any piece of electrical equipment or electrical panel has. This is the main purpose of performing an arc flash hazard analysis engineering study.