An Overview of Electrical Safety

failure of a series power switch under single fault conditions

As a responsible manufacturer, the safety of your product is of key importance. It has to be considered as part of the approvals process.

Safety failures are the most common reason for expensive and reputation damaging product recalls and the consequences of getting it wrong are serious.

The goal of Electrical Safety Testing is to protect people, animals and property from harm stemming from electric shock, high temperatures and the risk of fire. Mechanical, chemical and radiation hazards are also considered.

It can be a daunting field to approach with unfamiliar terminology, hundreds of different standards, obscure markings and tests requiring esoteric equipment.

 

Electrical Safety Services

Here at Unit 3 Compliance we help guide you through the entire process and assess your products to the required standards. Everything is explained in clear terms throughout the process.

  • Specification – what standards are required for my product?
  • Design & Analysis – what features need to be included in the design to meet these standards?
  • Testing – we have the skills and tools to test your products with insulation breakdown testers, thermal cameras, thermocouples, force meters, and environmental chambers in our laboratory. From single fault testing to battery circuit characterisation, we have it covered.
  • Documentation – A thorough report for your Regulatory Technical Documentation

 

Standards

Safety standards all try and achieve the same goal, but their approaches can differ slightly. The standards we work with the most are:

  • EN 62368-1 – audio/video, information and communication technology equipment. (This has now replaced EN 60950-1 for IT equipment and EN 60065-1 for AV equipment)
  • EN 61010-1 – measurement, control and laboratory electrical equipment
  • EN 60335-1 – Household goods and appliances

 

CE Marking Regulations for Safety

For CE marking, electrical safety falls under the Essential Requirements of the Low Voltage Directive (2014/35/EU) aka the LVD.

Whilst the scope of the LVD only applies to products operating at voltages above 50Vac / 75Vdc the Radio Equipment Directive, or RED, (2014/53/EU) specifically says

1. Radio equipment shall be constructed so as to ensure:

(a) the protection of health and safety of persons and of domestic animals and the protection of property, including the objectives with respect to safety requirements set out in Directive 2014/35/EU, but with no voltage limit applying;

This means that any product containing a radio (e.g. Wi-Fi, Bluetooth) has to be assessed for electrical safety of the LVD regardless of how it is powered.

 

UKCA Marking

At present, the regulations for Electrical Safety in the UK follows the same technical standards as that for CE marking. The documentation is slightly different in terms of the Declaration of Conformity but not significantly.

 

Other Marks and Regulatory Regimes

Rules and expectations differ globally. You can contact us to find out more.