1910.331: Electrical Safe Work Practices Scope

(a) Covered work by both qualified and unqualified persons. The provisions of §§ 1910.331 through 1910.335 cover electrical safety-related work practices for both qualified persons (those who have training in avoiding the electrical hazards of working on or near exposed energized parts) and unqualified persons (those with little or no such training) working on, near, or with the following installations: Open (a)

(1) Premises wiring. Installations of electric conductors and equipment within or on buildings or other structures, and on other premises such as yards, carnival, parking, and other lots, and industrial substations;

(2) Wiring for connection to supply. Installations of conductors that connect to the supply of electricity; and

(3) Other wiring. Installations of other outside conductors on the premises.

(4) Optical fiber cable. Installations of optical fiber cable where such installations are made along with electric conductors.

See § 1910.399 for the definition of “qualified person.” See § 1910.332 for training requirements that apply to qualified and unqualified persons.

(b) Other covered work. The provisions of §§ 1910.331 through 1910.335 also cover: Open (b)

(1) Work performed by unqualified persons on, near, or with the installations listed in paragraphs (c)(1) through (4) of this section; and

(2) Work performed by qualified persons near the installations listed in paragraphs (c)(1) through (c)(4) of this section when that work is not on or directly associated with those installations.

(c) Excluded work by qualified persons. The provisions of §§ 1910.331 through 1910.335 do not apply to work performed by qualified persons on or directly associated with the following installations: Open (c)

(1) Generation, transmission, and distribution installations. Installations for the generation, control, transformation, transmission, and distribution of electric energy (including communication and metering) located in buildings used for such purposes or located outdoors. Open (c)(1)

Work on or directly associated with installations of utilization equipment used for purposes other than generating, transmitting, or distributing electric energy (such as installations which are in office buildings, warehouses, garages, machine shops, or recreational buildings, or other utilization installations which are not an integral part of a generating installation, substation, or control center) is covered under paragraph (a)(1) of this section.

For work on or directly associated with utilization installations, an employer who complies with the work practices of § 1910.269 (electric power generation, transmission, and distribution) will be deemed to be in compliance with §§ 1910.333(c) and 1910.335. However, the requirements of §§ 1910.332, 1910.333(a), 1910.333(b), and 1910.334 apply to all work on or directly associated with utilization installations, regardless of whether the work is performed by qualified or unqualified persons.

Work on or directly associated with generation, transmission, or distribution installations includes:

(1) Work performed directly on such installations, such as repairing overhead or underground distribution lines or repairing a feed-water pump for the boiler in a generating plant.

(2) Work directly associated with such installations, such as line-clearance tree trimming and replacing utility poles, when that work is covered by § 1910.269 (see § 1910.269(a)(1)(i)(D) and (E) and the definition of “line-clearance tree trimming” in § 1910.269(x)).

(3) Work on electric utilization circuits in a generating plant provided that:

(A) Such circuits are commingled with installations of power generation equipment or circuits, and

(B) The generation equipment or circuits present greater electrical hazards than those posed by the utilization equipment or circuits (such as exposure to higher voltages or lack of overcurrent protection).

This work is covered by § 1910.269.

(2) Communications installations. Installations of communication equipment to the extent that the work is covered under § 1910.268.

(3) Installations in vehicles. Installations in ships, watercraft, railway rolling stock, aircraft, or automotive vehicles other than mobile homes and recreational vehicles.

(4) Railway installations. Installations of railways for generation, transformation, transmission, or distribution of power used exclusively for operation of rolling stock or installations of railways used exclusively for signaling and communication purposes.

[55 FR 32016, Aug. 6, 1990, as amended at 59 FR 4476, Jan. 31, 1994; 79 FR 20692, Apr. 11, 2014; 80 FR 60039, Oct. 5, 2015]