The Art and Science of Switching Orders

Electrical switching orders are step by step instructions that are critical to ensure personnel safety and equipment availability. The switching orders are used to either place equipment in an electrically safe working condition or to bring equipment back into service. The switching orders ensure that the work is done safely and establish a clear communication between the person calling out the instructions and the person receiving the instructions. The "science" aspect involves certain criteria that every switching order should contain, such as: only one instruction per line, every action line has a verification line, etc. The "art" aspect involves including lessons learned that may vary from each person who writes the switching order, such as: steps to notify Operations, steps to open all substation gates, etc. This paper will also emphasize: the need to call out each step, have each step repeated back, have proper reviews and sign offs of the procedure, and to have an accurate one-line diagram to accompany the procedure.