Electrical maintenance shutdowns
Overview
Every two to three years, the Facilities & Services electrical systems & utilities group plans and conducts preventative maintenance work on critical pieces of electrical equipment.
Electrical maintenance is mandatory under OHSA regulation, and it ensures that U of T’s electrical systems remain in good and safe operating conditions. Full building shutdowns are required to execute this work; this allows contractors to safely conduct the necessary testing, repairs and cleaning.
Failing to conduct preventative maintenance could result in premature equipment failure, prolonged outages, and expensive repair costs.
Notification process
Notifications of electrical maintenance shutdowns will be communicated via service alert. Subscribe to service alerts for your building(s) to ensure that you don’t miss any critical updates.
Electrical maintenance
During electrical maintenance shutdowns, all equipment is visually inspected, cleaned, lubricated and operated to ensure mechanical components are performing smoothly.
Electrical tests are conducted with instruments/equipment to assess performance and monitor degradation of equipment. Where values are not adequate, immediate action is taken to conduct repairs and/or replacements. Where values are approaching inadequacy, future projects are planned to replace or repair equipment (i.e., deferred maintenance projects).
What equipment gets tested?
- High-voltage switchgears/switchboards, cables and transformers
- Low-voltage switchgears/switchboards, panels, transformers, splitters
Testing standards
We follow the latest testing standards and regulations published and maintained by:
- American Nation Standards Institute (ANSI)
- The International Electrical Testing Association (NETA) — Maintenance Testing Specifications (MTS) standard
Frequently asked questions
Regular electrical maintenance is mandatory as per OHSA regulation to ensure safe and efficient operating conditions of the electrical equipment.
Electrical equipment refers to the equipment that is responsible for distributing power throughout the facility. This includes: electrical panels, transformers, splitters, switchgears, switchboards, and high-voltage cabling.
A substation is an electrical space that contains high-voltage electrical equipment that transmits electricity throughout a building.
It depends. If there are electrical equipment located within your space, yes. We will be having electricians cycling breakers on branch circuit panels that may be located within your space. Our hired contractor(s) shall be predominately within utility spaces (electrical rooms, closets, substations).
No. Personal belongings or equipment that falls under the faculty’s purview will not be touched.
Emergency power will not be offline for the full extents of this shutdown. Very briefly at the beginning and end of the maintenance, emergency power is expected to be interrupted twice. There is a 10-15 second period once we shut down normal power to the the facilities and re-energize normal power to the facilities. This is because there is a time delay for when the emergency power supply will switch from normal power to generator power, via the Automatic Transfer Switch (ATS). The generators take about 10-15 seconds to start up and stabilize.
Typically, yes; however, it is still recommended the U of T electrician verify the receptacle and ensure that it is powered from an emergency panel.
In the unlikely event the problem cannot be resolved over the weekend period we will have multiple contingency plans set. The absolute fallback plan is to individually supply each building with an appropriately sized generator(s) until the problem is resolved.
More information
Contact your property manager with any questions regarding electrical maintenance shutdowns. Find your property manager.