In the past, electrical safety has been somewhat ignored by the corporate safety professionals. It has always been up to the electrician to protect himself from the known hazards of his chosen field of work. Unfortunately, a lot of the safety training that the electrician received was inadequate, to say the least.

Then about 17 years ago, a group of people began a project to “change the culture” of electrical safety in the workplace. This endeavor has evolved to the IEEE IAS Electrical Safety Workshop, which takes place annually around the first of the year. This year it will be in Memphis, Tennessee, Feb. 1-5.

Electrical safety training saves lives, and Tom Norwood, instructor at AVO Training Institute, has made electrical safety one of his primary passions. Norwood has presented a session on safety training requirements for electrical workers at the workshop and regularly attends as well. His interest in this subject preceded the beginning of the current safety training revolution. Starting out as a substation maintenance person in the late 1960s, he had first-hand exposure to some of the issues that plagued the electrician of the time. Understanding the hazards involved and ensuring his own safety became paramount.

Thirteen years ago Norwood joined the AVO Training Institute and has become involved in the crusade of educating the electrical workers in the daily hazards that are ever present in their work environment.

He has an extensive knowledge of the OSHA regulations and has been a member of the Technical Committee on Electrical Safety in the Workplace as an alternate to Dennis Neitzel since 2002. This committee’s primary responsibility is the NFPA 70E, Standard for Electrical Safety in the Workplace.

When asked, Norwood’s passion for the subject becomes obvious. “I have a personal commitment to providing an understanding of the hazards of electricity to those who work in this arena, because without that knowledge, we will continue to have unnecessary injuries and fatalities.”

With the recent recognition of the arc flash and arc blast elements of electrical systems, major strides have been made in protecting the electrical worker.

“It is very rewarding to me when I get a call from someone who was in one of my classes and they want to thank me for saving their life. There is not much that can top that,” Norwood said.

In addition to electrical safety, Norwood also teaches fiber optic splicing and testing courses for AVO. Along with Norwood’s affiliation with the NFPA, he is also a member of IEEE and ASSE.

Norwood has other passions such as rockhounding and birding, but they take a back seat to electrical safety in his scheme of things.