Case study: Safeguard from electrical shocks and turbine activation during maintenance

May 18, 2021, posted by savannahweeda

Securing the flow of green energy by safely servicing and maintaining fast growing numbers of wind turbines on land and at sea, is no small challenge. Part of that challenge is to optimally protect against electrical shocks and to make turbine activation impossible while maintenance is still ongoing.

The company needed a practical and reliable safety solution to keep maintenance safety at the highest levels.

Solution: Optimal safety with padlock & key

The company’s safety experts were already well informed about Lockout/Tagout, a safety procedure that can temporarily neutralise machines from their energy supply. Because of this, Brady was able to quickly offer dedicated Lockout/Tagout solutions with an optimal fit to our customer’s machines and electrical cabinets based on pictures shared by the customer.

After seeing videos of how to easily implement each Lockout/Tagout solution, our customer decided on Brady’s universal mini circuit breaker lockout device, the compact safety padlock with thin shackle and Brady’s standard safety padlock.

Brady supplied the solutions in practical Lockout/Tagout bags, 1 per maintenance professional. Each bag includes universal mini circuit breaker lockout devices to easily block circuit breakers in the off-position. Padlocks in the bag can be used to lock the universal mini circuit breaker lockout in place. They are personalised with an engraving, and keyed alike so that maintenance professionals can open all of their own padlocks with a single key. They are keyed different versus the padlocks in every other bag, so nobody can accidentally remove the padlock of a colleague who might still be servicing the machine. The padlocks are also colour-coded using green for all electrical lockout, and red for mechanical lockout.

The bag also holds a Lockout/Tagout hasp to allow multiple padlocks on a single universal mini circuit breaker lockout device. This will keep a machine neutralised until all maintenance professionals involved are finished and removed their personal padlock.

Results: Increased maintenance safety

Brady has also supplied its BMP21-PLUS Label Printer with B-427 vinyl labels. Brady’s practical mobile label printer makes cable labelling in the field that much easier and faster. On top of this, Brady also supplied custom signs and tags with advanced outdoors resistance to reliably communicate information and warning messages on outdoor electrical cabinets.

Together with the Lockout/Tagout devices and padlocks, labels, signs and tags provide protection and vital information to maintenance professionals in the field. They are important to avoid electrical shocks and accidental machine activation while maintenance is ongoing.

Check-out the wide range of Brady identification solutions for Renewable Energy industries >>

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