Preparing for IOU Contractor Safety Prequalification
Build a source-linked readiness record around the hiring utility, work scope, and current requirements. Registration alone does not establish readiness for a job.
Utility safety starts before the equipment reaches the crew.
Research and practical resources for the people buying protective equipment, preparing for utility contracts, and learning how distribution work is controlled.
Buy and manage safety equipment
Turn an approved equipment specification into a purchase record: required evidence, inspection and testing responsibilities, storage, replacement stock, and lifecycle cost.
Open the procurement worksheetFree to use and export. Equipment selection and approval stay with your utility's engineering and safety teams.
Understand utility requirements
Prepare for the documents and conversations behind contractor readiness. Start with the hiring utility's current requirements, then identify the evidence and owners for your scope of work.
Read the IOU contractor readiness guideBuilt for investor-owned utilities and their contractors, with procurement practices that also serve co-ops and municipal utilities.
Learn the fundamentals
Nine free lessons cover qualification, approach limits, arc hazards, rubber goods, utility clearances, grounding, staffing, rescue readiness, and job briefings.
Explore field safetyThese lessons build awareness. Completing them does not qualify or authorize anyone to perform electrical work or replace employer training.
Safety research
Remote Operation in Switchgear Procurement: Questions for Engineering and Safety
A remote-operation feature needs an application review. Capture operating location, control authority, failure behavior, maintenance, and acceptance evidence in the specification.
Buying Rubber Goods: Evidence, Testing, and Replacement Planning
A purchase record for utility rubber goods needs more than a class and size. Assign the evidence, testing, storage, and replacement responsibilities before ordering.
Why a Low Injury Rate Does Not Tell the Whole Safety Story
EEI separates serious-injury prevention from lower-severity incident trends. Utility buyers and program owners need to understand what a safety metric actually measures.
Follow safety and procurement developments
The Feeder is our free weekly procurement newsletter. Safety coverage follows verified equipment, workforce, and utility-requirement developments.
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