ECAP GUIDANCE NOTE NO.

3
ECAP Implementation Guide for Contractors

A high percentage of ABB’s recorded electrical incidents can be attributed to the activities of its contracted personnel,
therefore the introduction of ABB’s ECAP program requires that all contracted persons who work on behalf of ABB are
competence assessed and authorized before being allowed to undertake work on behalf of ABB.

As part of the CQP (Contractors Qualification Process), it is not enough that your company only provides written
answers to the questions asked. In order to pass this process and attain approval to work you are now required to
provide evidential documents, particularly those that relate to the electrical competencies of the persons that you
allocate to undertake electrical work for ABB.

This process equally applies to any sub-contracted resources that you provide. This is particularly the case where greater
than 10% of the work scope involves work on or near live electrical systems, irrespective of voltage.

The approach to such authorizations is the same as that taken with ABB employees. Detailed below are the basic steps
that you need to take to ensure compliance and enable you to undertake electrical work on behalf of ABB.

If you have not previously done so, you must complete a CQP Pre-Qualification Questionnaire,
STEP 1: providing examples of your employees’ technical training if you wish to be considered for work
with ABB.
Nominate someone with electrical knowledge and/or experience from within your business to
STEP 2: implement and oversee ABB’s ECAP requirements. Notify your ABB SCM and local ESC as to whom
this person is and provide their e-mail and telephone contact details
Have your nominated person complete and return a copy of ABB’s ECAP CV form to your local ABB
STEP 3:
ESC

STEP 4: ABB will provide details of the next available ECAP Assessor online training course.

On completion of training, your ECAP Assessor will need to identify all persons within your
STEP 5: business who may be called upon to undertake electrical work for ABB and have them complete
and return to them an ABB ECAP CV Form.
Your ECAP Assessor will need to determine the level of authorization of your company’s staff using
STEP 6: the guidance provided in ECAP Guidance Note No.2, the information provided on each CV and any
additional input from their line manager.
Persons identified as being at Levels 1 and 2 can be issued with an authorization certificate or card*
without the need for an interview. Persons at Level 3 will need to be interviewed by your ECAP
STEP 7:
Assessor to validate their training, knowledge and experience, as detailed on their CV. Persons at
Level 4 will need to be interviewed by an ABB ESA.
An ECAP Assessment Form will need to be completed by your ECAP Assessor for each candidate,
and a copy of the completed form and draft certificate will need to be issued to the local ABB ESC
STEP 8:
for review and sign off. Please note that a digital photo of the candidate MUST be included on the
assessment form and certificate.
Once the local ABB ESC has agreed to the level of authorization and signed off the assessment, the
STEP 9:
candidate can be issued with their ABB authorization certificate or ECAP card.

SCM = Supply Chain Management | ESC = Electrical Safety Champion | ESA = Electrical Safety Authority

Training Requirements

ABB’s ECAP program now requires all contractor and sub-contractor personnel to have completed basic First Aid
training that includes instruction on the use of AED devices and application of CPR (Cardio-pulmonary Resuscitation).
This will be a pre-requisite for any electrical work and will be provided by each contracting company at their own cost.

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In addition to the First Aid training, contractor and sub-contractor personnel also need to complete the following ABB
e-learning courses, and preferably before they are ECAP assessed:

 Electrical Safety Fundamentals

These courses provide your staff with details regarding ABB’s minimum acceptable standards, as well as arc flash
workwear and PPE requirements. Access to these courses is via ABB’s LMS (MyLearning) platform and will require each
candidate to create an online account within LMS. Details regarding access and login to LMS can be found in ABB’s ECAP
Guidance Note No.8.

Digital Photos

On completion of the ABB ECAP assessment and authorization process, each of your employees will be issued with
either 1.) An ABB Authorization Certificate, or 2.) An ABB ECAP Authorization Card (see samples below) either via your
ABB contact or from the ECAP Assessor within your own company.

Joe Bloggs

(Blue dot denotes PICW)

It is imperative that all certificates or ECAP Cards issued contain a clear passport-sized digital photo of the person to
whom the certificate or card belongs. This is to ensure that only those persons who have been assessed and deemed
competent under the ABB ECAP program can access our projects or facilities to undertake electrical work for ABB.

Please note: If any certificates or cards are produced that do not have a photo of the holder displayed, then the
certificate or card will be withheld by ABB and the holder will NOT be able to access the site or facility.

Accessing ABB Projects and Facilities

Copies of completed ECAP CV Forms shall be provided to the ABB Project or Facility Manager in advance of any persons
turning up on site to undertake electrical work. This enables ABB staff to be aware of the names of those persons from
your company who have been familiarised with ABB’s standards and safe working practices, and whom you have
deemed competent to undertake electrical work on behalf of ABB.

Wherever possible, you shall notify the ABB manager in advance the names of those persons from your company who
will be attending site on any given day or shift. When your staff arrive on site, they will be asked to present their ECAP
authorization certificate or ECAP card as proof of their identity and assessment.

Please note: Persons who cannot provide their certificate or card for inspection shall not be allowed to enter the site.
Similarly, anyone who has an expired certificate or card or have not been formally notified in advance to ABB, may
also be refused entry. The only exception to this is when such persons routinely undertake work for ABB, are known to
the Facility or Project Manager and the ECAP CV of the individual concerned is retained on-file.

Sub-Contracting your Work

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If you choose to sub-contract your work to another contracting company, this must first be agreed in writing with the
ABB Facility or Project Manager. It is the responsibility of the Contractor to ensure that any sub-contractors that they
utilise are made aware of ABB’s ECAP requirements and to check that such companies also have arrangements in
place to produce an ECAP CV and certificate/card for each of their employees.

Copies of the completed ECAP CV Forms should be provided to the ABB Facility or Project Manager in advance of any
persons turning up on site, and all sub-contracted persons shall present their ECAP certificate or Card for inspection
and verification by the ABB Facility or Project Manager when they arrive on site. Persons who cannot provide their ECAP
certificate or card for verification shall not be allowed to undertake any work for ABB. The only exception to this is when
such persons routinely undertake work for ABB, are known to the Facility or Project Manager and the ECAP CV of the
individual concerned is retained on-file.

Keeping your Authorizations Up to Date

Details of all authorizations held by your staff can be kept on a simple MS Excel spreadsheet; a copy of which your local
ABB Electrical Safety Champion (ESC) can provide.

Please note: All electrical authorizations are valid for a period of three years from their date of issue. Before
authorizations expire, your nominated ECAP Assessor shall review, and renew, those certificates or ECAP Cards that
have less than three months validity. If your cards or certificates were issued by ABB, then your ECAP Assessor shall
notify your ABB contact of those persons whose authorization is coming up for renewal.

During the authorization review, your ECAP assessor should look at any additional training or skills that the candidate
has acquired within the three-year window and, if appropriate, consider if any changes are required to that person’s
level of authorization or operational restrictions. Such changes should then be discussed and agreed with your local ABB
ESC before the changes are made and a new certificate or card issued.

Notifying ABB of any Changes

Should a member of your team, who is authorized to work for ABB, choose to leave your employment, you should notify
your ABB contact(s) as soon as possible. It is possible for such persons to continue to use their existing authorization
certificate or ECAP card but only for a ‘grace’ period of three months. After this time, their new employer (if approved
by ABB as part of CQP process) must issue a new certificate or card and provide ABB with a copy of the person’s ECAP
CV in advance of them going to site.

Any changes to the personnel that you wish to send to work for ABB shall be notified as soon as possible to your ABB
project or facility manager. This small action will ensure that there are no delays accessing the site or facility at the start
of the day or shift and also helps ABB to understand who is present on the site at any given time. It is also important
that your staff report to reception or the local Facility Manager each day/shift to record their presence on or off site,
especially in facilities that have hazardous or dangerous activities taking place. Your continued diligence in this respect
is therefore greatly appreciated.

Suspension and Rescinding of ECAP Authorizations

Any person who does not comply with ABB’s minimum acceptable standards or is found to be working in an unsafe
manner may be suspended from work pending the outcome of an investigation. In severe cases, this may result in your
employee being asked to leave site and having his ECAP authorization either suspended or withdrawn. Similarly, any
person found to have defaced their ECAP certificate or card, or who has forged, or is using another person’s
authorization, will have their authorization document removed and will be refused access to the site or facility. Any
disciplinary action arising from such incidents will be the responsibility of the person’s employer.

Please note: If three or more incidents related to the employee(s) of any one contracting company occurs in any twelve
month period, then the company itself will be reviewed by ABB and may result in no further contracts being awarded
and that company being removed from ABB’s list of Approved Contractors*.

*Subject to terms and conditions of contract at the time of the offences.

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