2.6.1 Protective Earth

The protective earth is fundamentally provided to protect people from electrical shock. However, it also protects equipment and machines from damage caused by electrical faults. The protective earth operates by providing a circuit for fault currents to flow to earth so causing the protective fuse to break or contact-breaker to trip, so removing the electrical power supply from the equipment. The removal of electrical power by the fuse or contact-breaker ensures that there is no further danger of electrical shock or equipment damage.

The protective earth is labelled by the following symbol.

The protective earth is a part of the electrical system of the plant. Therefore this document does not describe the protective earth. In every case you have to observe the regulations for the protective earth!