NFPA 70E changes for year 2000

The recognized and generally accepted good engineering practice (RAGAGEP) covering electrical safety in the workplace was adopted in the fall of 1999. The National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) accepted several significant changes to Standard 70E entitled “Electrical Safety Requirements for Employee Workplaces”. The changes resulted from public proposals and comments based on new technology and developments, substantiated by testing. Each recommendation was reviewed, discussed and approved by the NFPA 70E Technical Committee during actions on the proposals and comments over the past two years. Text was updated to conform to the 1999 National Electrical Code. All definitions were placed in one section under Introduction. All training requirements and qualifications were placed in one chapter. Additional methods were provided for identifying the level of electrical arc flash hazard, determining safe approach distances, and selecting personal protective equipment appropriate for the degree of hazard available at the work place. Part IV was added to provide guidance for safe work practices around special electrical equipment and systems such as electrolytic cells, batteries, lasers, and power electronic equipment