NAES Corporation is the largest third-party operator of power plants in the United States, providing operation, maintenance, engineering, and compliance services to the traditional power and renewable energy industries. Driven by its commitment to outstanding safety culture and performance at its facilities, NAES engaged NFPA to provide onsite training for its employees on NFPA 70E®, Standard for Electrical Safety in the Workplace®. NAES operates in a competitive industry where electrical hazards pose high risks to employees, clients, and systems, so electric safety training in the workplace is paramount.
Mitigating Electrical Hazards Through Modern Training
Electrical events have the potential to do more than injure people; they can also disable the critical systems powering our world. Almost a decade ago, after an arc flash event in a facility drove home the dangers of electrical systems gone awry, NAES set out to ensure its operators and maintenance personnel had access to industry-leading training and knowledge on electrical safe work practices. Based on the values and reputation of NFPA for high-quality content and instruction, NAES felt confident in implementing NFPA 70E and associated trainings. Notably, NFPA 70E is updated and published on a three-year cycle, assuring NAES employees that they’re operating based on the latest information.
The NAES safety department organizes two “Electrical Safety in the Workplace” training sessions per year for its operations fleet. Each session is approximately three days of learning: two of these days are dedicated to the NFPA 70E training, and the other is focused on NAES’ internal electrical safety program. NAES has hosted 11 sessions to date that have significantly enhanced employees’ knowledge of work planning, energy control, and best practices to promote electrically safe working conditions.
Critically, the knowledge and training NAES employees gain through these sessions are not confined to the “classroom.” Participants are actively applying their learnings to their everyday work in the field, elevating the expertise and guidance NAES offers its clients. The trainings are also making a real-world impact and effecting change, influencing greater investment in safer engineering fixes to lower risks of arc flash events or other hazards.
“To safely and reliably provide energy to the grid for the communities we serve, NAES employees must have a strong grasp on electrical safety, installation, and maintenance,” said David Jackson, vice president of safety at NAES. “Our clients count on us to be well versed on the relevant codes and standards in effect today, as well as those on the horizon, and the standards and trainings offered by NFPA have played a vital role in helping us achieve excellence in the field and forge stronger client relationships.”
NAES Enhances Workplace Safety with NFPA Electrical Training Program
Since implementing the NFPA 70E standard as well as associated trainings, NAES has seen direct improvements in safe work planning and execution in its facilities, as well as an uptick in better engineering solutions. Not only are employees factoring electrical safety into new and more effective approaches to work, but also their education is empowering them to become even more trusted partners to clients. NAES personnel have more confidence to engage in key discussions around how projects can be planned and carried out with electrical safety at the forefront. Clients appreciate that NAES invests heavily in its people and processes to mitigate safety risks, making them more apt to follow their contractors’ guidance when it comes to investing in safety components and purchasing new equipment.
The ability to effect industry change is a powerful outcome of NAES’s approach to training. Historically, experienced operators and maintenance workers who have spent their entire careers in this sector tend to be set in their ways (and mindsets). However, through the NFPA 70E onsite training sessions and highly qualified NFPA instructors, this population of employees is more open to exploring new tactics in the spirit of safety.
“At NAES, investing in people and safety helps us achieve our mission of ‘Being Our Client’s Only Call.’ By implementing the NFPA 70E standard and associated trainings, we’ve not only gained a competitive edge in the industry, but, more importantly, we’ve been able to offer superior protection of our workforce in line with our core values.”
– David Jackson, vice president of safety at NAES
Each training session ends with the same key takeaway for attendees: this education is only valuable if they can return to their jobsites and start challenging traditional approaches to work that may be unsafe or outdated. NAES employees have taken this to heart by going back to power plants with renewed vigor and updated recommendations for industry leaders on how to reimagine workflows and projects. In some cases, plant managers may not flag safety hazards as issues, especially if they were not recognized as problems in the past. As a result, clients are relying on third-party expertise more than ever to keep them up to speed on the latest and greatest in electrical safety.
Over the years that it has offered NFPA 70E training to employees, NAES has seen higher levels of client engagement and shifts in safety protocols overall. For example, instead of assuming that personal protective equipment (PPE) is enough to prevent workers from harm in an electrical event, a growing number of plant managers are now investing in engineering controls like arc quenching and maintenance relays to reduce incident energy.
By investing in training and knowledge of codes, NAES is doing its part to inspire employees and clients alike to champion safer workplaces.