Pioneering protection in electrified industries

Workers in these professions are confronted with a range of risks that require new ways of protection, for example:

• Operating within the realm of high-voltage equipment, workers are exposed to the imminent dangers of electric shock, arc flashes, arc blasts and explosions.
• The use of high-voltage batteries in electric vehicles (EVs) can lead to the development of new types of fires, requiring specialised methods for detection and extinguishing.
•  The use of hazardous chemicals in battery manufacturing introduces the risk of chemical splashes.
• Contact with hot equipment and heat conductive materials poses a significant risk of burns.
• Workers in power plants or substations may be susceptible to heat-related illnesses due to high ambient temperatures.
• Workers operating wind farms, often offshore, face exposure to unpredictable and extreme weather conditions including high winds, cold and extensive wet conditions.

The combination of risks calls for new ways of protection

It is not only the risks themselves, but their combination that poses an additional challenge. For instance, the manufacturing of car batteries with high density often uses chemicals such as lithium, cobalt, nickel, and other hazardous material compounds, making the batteries highly flammable and explosive if not handled properly. Workers are potentially also exposed to extremely dangerous arc flash incidents. According to industry experts, highly dangerous incident energy of up to 29 cal/cm² is generated when attaching batteries with the engine in EV car manufacturing. When installing charging stations for EVs, the energy can even exceed 50 cal/cm². Direct contact with these incident energies would end fatally if workers were not protected sufficiently.

Renaissance of Direct Current (DC)

One hazard that stands out in all the new professions is the renaissance of direct current (DC) as the dominant electric current in new applications and industries: Many renewable energy sources, such as photovoltaics and wind power, initially generate DC. It can be more efficient for transmitting electricity over very long distances, such as from offshore wind farms, because it has fewer line losses. And because electric vehicles need DC to charge their batteries, the charging infrastructure and on-board systems of the vehicles are based on DC power technology.

"Contact with DC is more dangerous than alternating current (AC)," explains Oliver Polanz, head of health, safety, environment, and quality at SPIE Germany and Central Europe. "DC can cause continuous muscle tetanus, making it more likely to “freeze” a victim in a shock scenario. Thus, we make an extra effort to sensitise and train our employees for DC-related dangers."