When this template fits
This RAMS is for electrical contractors carrying out first and second fix installation work on a construction project — typically when the principal contractor has asked for your method statement before you start on site. It suits the qualified electrician and their team installing containment, cabling, accessories and the final consumer unit on a new build, fit-out or refurbishment. If your client's H&S manager wants evidence that you work dead and prove the installation safe before energising, this is the document they are looking for.
What this RAMS includes
- ✓ 9 task-specific hazards scored on a 5×5 matrix (initial → residual)
- ✓ Specific control measures for each hazard, in hierarchy-of-control order
- ✓ A 9-step method statement (sequence of works)
- ✓ PPE, plant/equipment, permits and competence requirements
- ✓ Emergency arrangements and operative briefing / sign-off section
Scope of works
First/second fix wiring on construction projects.
Sequence of works
- 1PLAN AND SURVEY: Review drawings, confirm cable routes, and carry out a cable avoidance tool (CAT/genny) scan of all surfaces to be penetrated. Mark up services and obtain any required permits (hot works, live working).
- 2ISOLATE AND PROVE DEAD: Identify and isolate all circuits or supplies in the work area. Apply lock-off devices. Use a GS38-compliant voltage indicator to prove dead at the point of work before touching any conductors.
- 3ACCESS EQUIPMENT SETUP: Erect and inspect all access equipment (podium steps, platform, tower scaffold) before use. Ensure level base, guardrails fitted and working platforms fully boarded. Brief all operatives on safe use.
- 4FIRST FIX CABLE INSTALLATION: Install containment (conduit, trunking, cable tray) and pull first-fix cables (ring mains, radials, lighting). Coil and secure cable ends safely. Clear all offcuts and debris progressively.
- 5PENETRATIONS AND FIRE-STOPPING: Drill or chase routes using on-tool dust extraction with correct PPE. Route cables through penetrations and immediately apply intumescent fire-stopping to all penetrations through fire-rated elements.
- 6SECOND FIX TERMINATIONS: Connect cables to consumer units, distribution boards, outlets and light fittings. Use insulated tools. Confirm isolation is maintained throughout. Do not re-energise without authorisation.
- 7INSPECTION AND TESTING: Carry out continuity, insulation resistance and polarity tests before energisation. Record results. Confirm all fire-stopping is complete and documentation is in order.
- 8CONTROLLED ENERGISATION: Remove lock-offs in controlled sequence, notify all affected parties, and energise circuits under the supervision of the responsible authorised person only.
- 9HOUSEKEEPING AND HANDOVER: Remove all cable offcuts, tools, access equipment and waste. Restore any disturbed fire barriers. Update as-installed drawings and pass to site manager or principal contractor.
Hazards, risk rating & controls
Risk = likelihood × severity (1–25). Initial is before controls; residual is with controls applied.
Electric shock from live conductors or isolation failure
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Isolate all electrical circuits that could be encountered, apply lock-off/tag-out devices and prove dead using an approved voltage indicator before commencing work. Work on live conductors only where absolutely unavoidable and under a formal permit.
- › Where live working cannot be avoided (e.g. testing/commissioning), issue a formal permit to work. Live working must be justified, authorised and carried out only by competent electricians using insulated tools and appropriate PPE.
- › Use VDE-rated insulated hand tools (1000 V rating) for all electrical installation work.
Electric shock from buried or concealed services
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Use a calibrated cable avoidance tool (CAT) and genny to locate buried cables and services before any drilling, chasing or cutting. Mark detected services on surfaces before work begins.
- › Route cables only within defined safe zones (vertical and horizontal from switches/outlets) in accordance with industry guidance. Mark routes on record drawings.
- › Wear electrically insulated gloves rated for the voltage present when drilling near known or suspected live services.
Fall from height during installation or work at height
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Use appropriate access equipment for the task (e.g. podium steps, low-level platform, MEWP). Do not use leaning ladders as a working platform except for short-duration, light-duty work. Equipment must be inspected before use.
- › Design and plan installations to minimise working at height (e.g. install consumer units and boards at accessible low-level heights where specification allows).
- › Inspect all access equipment before each use. Ensure platforms are fully boarded, guardrails and toe-boards fitted on towers, and ladders are free from defects. Remove and tag defective equipment out of service.
- › Wear hard hat and safety boots with slip-resistant soles when working at height or beneath others working at height.
Manual handling — heavy or bulky items
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Use sack trucks, pump trolleys, chain blocks, engine hoists or hydraulic jacks appropriate to the load and space. Ensure rated capacity is not exceeded.
- › Assess loads before lifting. Use two-person lifts for items over 25 kg or awkward shapes. Provide manual handling training. Plan lifts to avoid twisting.
- › Where possible, cut cable to manageable lengths at point of delivery rather than pulling entire drums manually through the building.
Slips, trips and falls at same level
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Wear safety footwear with anti-slip soles rated to SRC standard to reduce slip risk on wet or contaminated floors.
- › Keep work areas clear at all times. Coil and store cable offcuts immediately. Route extension leads and power tool cables off walkways or cover with cable protectors. Clear swarf from drilling immediately after each task.
Silica and construction dust inhalation
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Attach an H-class vacuum dust extractor directly to SDS drills and chasing tools. Do not operate without extraction in place.
- › Where on-tool extraction is not practicable, dampen the surface before drilling to suppress dust.
- › Wear a tight-fitting FFP3 disposable or half-mask respirator with P3 filter when drilling or chasing, and during cleaning up of dust.
Abrasion and laceration from cable armouring and tools
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Use the correct tool for the job (cable cutters, ratchet armoured cable cutters) rather than angle grinders where possible, to reduce projectile risk.
- › Ensure all angle grinders and cutting tools have correct guards fitted and secured before use. Inspect guards before each use.
- › Wear Level C (EN 388) cut-resistant gloves when cutting or handling armoured cable, and safety glasses or goggles rated EN 166 when cutting with power tools.
Fire spread from hot works
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Specify and use cold-shrink termination sleeves instead of heat-shrink requiring blow torches wherever practicable.
- › Where heat-generating tools cannot be avoided, obtain a hot works permit. Clear area of combustibles, have fire extinguisher immediately to hand, and carry out fire watch for minimum 60 minutes post-work.
- › Seal all cable penetrations through fire-rated walls, floors and ceilings with an approved intumescent fire-stopping system immediately after cable installation.
Noise-induced hearing loss from power tools and plant
Who’s at risk: Operatives, Other trades on site
- › Use sharp, correctly sized drill bits and blades to reduce drilling time and noise. Sequence noisy tasks to limit daily exposure duration.
- › Designate hearing protection zones around sustained noisy operations. Display signage and exclude non-essential personnel.
- › Wear EN 352-rated ear defenders or ear plugs (SNR appropriate to noise level) during sustained drilling, chasing or grinding operations.
PPE
- ✓ Safety footwear (EN ISO 20345)
- ✓ Hi-vis clothing
- ✓ Safety gloves (task-appropriate)
- ✓ Hard hat (EN 397) where overhead risk or site rules require
- ✓ Insulated gloves where live work is unavoidable
- ✓ Safety harness and lanyard where fall arrest is the selected control
- ✓ RPE (FFP3 or as risk-assessed) with face-fit
- ✓ Hearing protection (to the assessed SNR)
Competence
- ✓ Competent electrician; documented safe-isolation competence
- ✓ Site induction completed; CSCS or equivalent where the site requires it
Schemes (CSCS, PASMA, IPAF…) evidence competence; they are not statutory requirements in themselves.
Plant & equipment
- › Lock-off kit with padlocks, hasps and caution tags
- › Approved voltage indicator and proving unit to GS38
- › Insulation resistance and continuity tester
- › Cordless drill and SDS for fixings and chasing
- › Cable rods, pulling lubricant and draw tape
Permits & legislation
What principal contractors usually check
- ✓ That isolation is per-operative lock-off with proving dead at the point of work, not a single shared padlock at the board
- ✓ That energisation is a separate authorised event and is explicitly out of scope of the dead-working method
- ✓ That the BS 7671 inspection and test sign-off is allocated to a named, qualified person
- ✓ The document is site-specific — real address, access arrangements and dates, not a generic template
- ✓ Hazards match the actual task and the controls are specific (not “take care” and “use PPE”)
- ✓ Named supervisor and competent person, with operative sign-off space
- ✓ Emergency and rescue arrangements that work for this site
The report builder runs these as pre-submission checks before you download — or run an existing document through the free RAMS pre-submission checker.
Frequently asked questions
Do I need a separate permit to energise the new installation?
Yes — energisation should be a controlled, authorised event kept distinct from the dead-working method covered here. The installation is initially verified by the dead-test sequence in BS 7671 (continuity, insulation resistance and polarity) before any supply is applied. Only once those results are satisfactory does a competent person remove the lock-off under a documented authorisation and carry out live testing such as earth fault loop impedance and RCD operation. Treating energisation separately stops anyone assuming the installation is dead once first fix is finished.
Why does this RAMS not cover live fault-finding?
Live fault-finding is a different activity with a different risk profile and is deliberately excluded so the method here can be a straightforward dead-working procedure. Working on or near live conductors is only justifiable under the three-condition test in regulation 14 of the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, which installation work does not satisfy. If you also carry out live diagnostics, that work needs its own RAMS and a live-working permit. Keeping the documents separate keeps the installation method honest about how the work is actually done.
What regulations apply to electrical installation?
Electricity at Work Regulations 1989, Work at Height Regulations 2005, Manual Handling Operations Regulations 1992 are the main ones, alongside Management of Health and Safety at Work Regulations 1999, reg 3 — risk assessment, Control of Substances Hazardous to Health Regulations 2002 (COSHH), PUWER 1998 — Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations, Regulatory Reform (Fire Safety) Order 2005, Control of Noise at Work Regulations 2005. The Health and Safety at Work etc. Act 1974 and CDM 2015 apply to all construction work.
Does a method statement need to be site-specific?
Yes — this is the most common reason documents get sent back. Principal contractors reject generic copy-paste RAMS. Your document should name the site, access arrangements, dates, supervisor and any site-specific hazards. The RamsDocs builder fills these in for you and flags what's missing before you download.
Is this template free?
Yes — everything on RamsDocs is free during early access, including building a site-specific version of this RAMS and downloading the PDF. No card required.