ESD in the Workplace

Events of Electro-static discharge (ESD) happen more frequently than most of us realize. Many events go unnoticed. That is fine in a store or office; but should be reason for alarm for those dealing with manufacturing and repair technology.

Even simple objects like washing machines, microwaves or the latest coffeemaker involve electronic circuitry. Over 90% of static discharge occurs through the human body. In order for us to feel the effect off static electricity, the discharge must reach at least 3,500 volts.

In the workplace, something as simple as a technician's movement at his workstation can cause enough discharge to ruin state of the art technology.

Costly damage to some elctronics can occur with as little as 15 volts of static. Damage from static can mean product failure and unscheduled downtime.

ESD requirements vary depending the threshold that has been determined internally by your company or by operations methods determined by your client. Determining the threshold of your ESD sensitivity is an important first step to preparing your workplace to be static safe.

Factors in the workplace should include the relative humidity, ionization, type of clothing, earth ground source and work bench design.

Static Control Components lists four easy points to remember when considering your workplace:

1. If a material is conductive, then ground it.
2. If a material is insulative, remove it from the production area or make it conductive and ground it.
3. If it cannot be made conductive or removed, then shield it.
4. Control the charge on people, because people are the most common source of charge and ESD.

All static control products function in one of three ways:

1. Reduce charge accumulation. ("generation")
2. Provide path for the static charge to move away from the electronics. ("grounding")
3. Shield the electronics from static fields or charges.

A good primer on this subject is the SCC Technical Bulletin, Basics of Static Electricity