With significant updates and changes from the NEC® (National Electrical Code), we are fielding multiple questions regarding NFPA 70E from safety and maintenance leaders.
NFPA 70E, what’s going on in 2023?
The NFPA 70E standard for electrical safety in the workplace is updated every three years, with the last release in 2021.
Over the last two years, the NFPA 70E technical committee has gone through an extensive process that entails gathering public input, creating drafts of the updated standard, gathering comments, reviewing those comments, and finally arriving at the consent standard that gets released to the public.
As of the publishing of this blog, The NFPA 70E 2024 edition is still under review, and we expect the updated standard to be finalized by July 2023. However, we will know with more certainty after the NFPA technical meeting in June at the NFPA Conference and Expo.
What are some of the anticipated changes in the NFPA 70E 2024 edition?
- Global change to add the word “electric” in front of the word “shock” for consistency.
- Explanatory materials – Section No. 90.5(C), unless the standard reference includes a date, the reference is to be considered the latest edition of the standard.
- Article 100 updated definitions of electrically safe work condition.
- Updates to the purpose of Article 105.2 describe the purpose of the standard in terms of risk reduction.
- Clarify the meaning of “hot sticks” as “live line tools” in Section 250.2.
What changed during the NFPA 70E 2021 revision?
Read the comprehensive recap from our safety experts here: NFPA 70E 2021 Changes & Updates
- Multiple Article 100 definitions
- Article 120 Establishing an Electrically Safe Work Condition
- Process for Establishing and Verifying an Electrically Safe Work Condition: Article120.5
- Article 130 Work Involving Electrical Hazards
While we wait for the updated standard, remember you can reach out to our team of safety, maintenance, and training experts to answer your questions.