MINING professionals are being asked to participate in the upcoming Electrical Arc Flash Technical Forum which has been created to help drive our industry towards the completion of the Australian standards for arc flash safety.
IDC Technologies is for a number of presenters to submit an abstract and present their papers at the conference which will be held in Melbourne, Australia between 14 and 15 April 2010.
An arc flash is the explosive release of energy occurring when there is a phase-to-phase or phase-to-earth fault. This may be due to such varied items as accidental contact, unsafe work procedures or corrosion, insulation failure and conductive dust or moisture/liquids. Heat generated by an electric arc is capable of reaching temperatures of around 1000°C, thus causing a significant amount of damage. The rapid heating of the air and vaporization of the conductive metals creates an intense pressure blast which impacts on the electrical worker with shrapnel, air, vaporised metal, intense UV exposure and heat.
Typical injuries resulting from this include: burns, blindness, deafness, broken bones, lacerated and burnt skin and damaged internal organs and can result in death or serious permanent disablement and disfigurement exacerbated by the heat and intense UV light.
IDC Technologies says arc flash is arguably today one of the most topical issues being discussed in the electrical engineering community in Australia (especially in the mining industry).
Technology and safety procedures have significantly reduced most other forms of electrical injuries; however incidents related to arc flash have surfaced as one of the leading causes of injury and death to workers. The technical aspects and physics associated with arc flash are still somewhat debatable. And there has been some concerns about the physics of electrical arcing faults being significantly different to those established by the USA with the NFPA 70E and the IEEE 1584 standards and the Canadian Standards Association (CSA) new arc flash safety standard CSA-Z462. Although arc flash is a contentious & critical issue in Australia there are still no official Australian standards that deal with arc flash safety.
IDC Technologies is seeking speakers who have a desire to discuss the issues involved and want to help in reducing the number of arc flash incidents in Australia. The group needs electrical professionals who are passionate about improving the procedures of arc flash safety and want to move closer to setting the Australian standards on this critical industry problem rather than glibly following other countries existing standards.
Technical Information - At the conclusion of this forum delegates should have a thorough understanding of arc flash hazards, analysis concepts and selection of appropriate personal protective equipment.
All Submissions Welcome
What is Required of You?
Write a technical paper and present it at this much needed & critical forum using PowerPoint to illustrate your main points. (Paper and presentation required). You can play a role in helping to make Australia a safer place to work in.Abstract: To express interest in presenting at the conference please send a 100 word abstract outlining the topic you would like to present at the event.
Please contact Sarah Montgomery, your Conference Manager if you would like to present a paper, sarah.montgomery@idc-online.com
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