Overview
Equipment and/or outlets are not enclosed to protect against shock or electrocution.
This finding is similar to Question ELE04 but differs in that it will involve either a wall outlet or equipment being fed by the electrical distribution system. This checklist item does not refer to equipment guarding that is intended to prevent the operator from contacting moving parts which could result in crushing, cutting, amputation, and other similar injuries.
Above are some examples:
- Exhibit A - the outlet has pulled away from the surface and there is exposed wiring.
- Exhibit B - a plug that is not of a solid one-piece construction. Really old plugs often had a paper cover over the wiring, or a plastic disk like this one. These types of plugs are a shock hazard and are not acceptable. As a word of caution, auditors should not unplug equipment where they suspect this type of plug as it may be hazardous to do so.
- Exhibit C - a work bench in Electrical Engineering where they have removed the outlet cover to adapt the wiring to their needs.
- Exhibit D - a piece of unguarded equipment with exposed connectors and wiring.
- Exhibit E - two wall outlet boxes that are designed to hold four receptacles. A single receptacle has been installed without a cover plate on either outlet. It is common to find missing cover plates where receptacles for nonstandard (not 120 or 220 volts) have been installed or there are two mixed kinds of receptacles. In addition to missing or inappropriate cover plates, be alert to broken cover plates. As a rule of thumb, if the hole is greater than ¼”, then the cover plate needs to be replaced.