KANBrief 4/10
Government and industry bodies have made it their objective to put more electric vehicles on German roads. The current focus of research and development lies upon vehicle technology and upon the infrastructure that must accompany it. However, the new products also present a challenge for occupational safety and health, since their drivetrains make use of voltage at levels not commonly used in vehicles in the past.
With its National Development Plan for Electric Mobility, announced in August 2009, the German federal government formulated the political objective of a million electric vehicles being licensed in Germany by 2020. Germany is not the only country with such an objective. The electrification of road vehicles is to contribute to the specified climate targets being met, and is therefore a topical issue throughout the EU.
Implementation of these targets is conditional upon international harmonization and compatibility, without which electric vehicles will not meet with acceptance. Standardization has an important role to play here. Within the National Electric Mobility Platform, which has the function of supporting the National Development Plan for Electric Mobility, a “Standardization and Certification” working group has therefore been formed.
The task of the OSH lobby
The OSH lobby’s objective is to ensure that electric vehicles can be used safely in an occupational context. The new form of drivetrain gives rise to hazards not previously encountered in this sector. The high-voltage (Components in motor vehicles operated at over 25 V AC or 60 V DC are termed high-voltage systems) systems employed in hybrid and purely electric vehicles operate at voltages of between 200 and 800 V – far higher than those previously used in vehicles. A risk assessment must consider the entire life of the vehicle. Risks affect not only employees involved in manufacturing and maintenance, but also, for example, emergency services personnel who have contact with the vehicle in the event of an accident. Safe end-of-life disposal must also be assured. Other aspects are also relevant: charging of the high-voltage batteries must be possible with standardized connectors and without presenting excessive exposure to electromagnetic fields. Vehicles with electric drives are unusually quiet. This may give rise to new accident scenarios, which must be prevented. This applies not only to passenger cars, but also to buses and trucks, for which electric drives are also increasingly being developed at present.
Information for companies
The German accident insurance institutions have been active in this area for some time, and are raising awareness of the new topic in the affected sectors. Information is in preparation and in some cases already available. This includes, for example, information on servicing hybrid vehicles, and on the training of staff for work on vehicles employing high-voltage systems (BGI/GUV-I 8686). In addition, the DGUV will publish a brochure in 2011 providing information on the subject specifically for small and medium-sized businesses.
Technical standardization Standardization can also contribute to the safety of electric vehicles, by reducing the hazards through suitable technical product requirements. The following aspects should be included in considerations:
• Standardization of plugs, as is already required by the National Development Plan
• Uniform marking of high-voltage systems, in order to make hazardous parts immediately identifiable as such
• Uniform routing of high-voltage components to the extent possible, in order to save time in particular for emergency services during the rescue of accident victims
• Safe design of high-voltage systems such that they do not present a hazard even after an accident
The objective here must be international standardization, since the majority of vehicle manufacturers are active on global markets. The standards organizations are already drawing up documents dealing with the safety of the energy storage devices employed (batteries, fuel cells). Some manufacturers already employ harmonized marking; this has however yet to be formulated in standards.
The OSH experts of all affected sectors should participate in standardization work as actively as possible. In doing so, they will support the widespread adoption of the new drive systems, and contribute to the safe use of electric vehicles.
Dr. Michael Thierbach
thierbach@kan.de