ECS (Electrotechnical Certification Scheme) Quiz 8


The assessment will be made up from 288 questions covering ten topics. The 40 questions in the ECS test is made up from the following topics:

General Health and Safety at Work 5   Manual Handling Operations 4
Reporting Accidents 3   Personal Protective Equipment at Work 4
Health and Hygiene 3   Fire and Emergency 4
Work at Height 5   Work Equipment 4
Special Site Hazards 3   Electrotechnical 5

Listed below are the areas of knowledge that will be assessed.

1. General Health & Safety - (Total 40 Questions) You should have a basic understanding of:

  • How the Health and Safety at Work Act 1974, Regulations and Approved Codes of Practice affect you
  • Employer’s responsibilities under the Health and Safety at Work Act
  • Your responsibilities to yourself and to others under the Health and Safety at Work Act
  • How health and safety law is enforced
  • The powers of Health and Safety Executive (HSE) inspectors
  • The key features of health and safety signs in the workplace
 

2. Manual Handling Operations - (Total 27 Questions) You should have a basic understanding of:

  • What manual handling operations mean in the context of an employee and what employers must do to protect employees from injury
  • The types of injury you could suffer from carrying out manual handling tasks
  • The parts of your body most likely to be affected by manual handling injuries
  • How to decide whether a manual handling activity is safe
  • What must be taken into account when making a manual handling risk assessment
  • The principles of good manual handling techniques

3. Reporting Accidents - (Total 32 Questions) You should have a basic understanding of:

  • The need to report injuries, accidents, certain diseases and dangerous occurrences to the Health and Safety Executive
  • Why you must report accidents to your employer
  • The need to record in the accident book all accidents that cause any injury whatsoever
  • What reportable injuries, dangerous occurrences and reportable diseases are
 

4. Personal Protective Equipment at Work - (Total 28 Questions) You should have a basic understanding of:

  • When PPE should be worn
  • Why your employer must provide you with PPE
  • Why you must use the PPE provided by the employer
  • Why you must take care of PPE supplied for your use
  • Why you must report lost or damaged PPE to your immediate superior
  • The possible effects of not wearing PPE
  • The limitations of PPE

5. Health and Hygiene - (Total 27 Questions) You should have a basic understanding of:

  • The dangers of exposure to substances, such as asbestos
  • The importance of good personal hygiene when working with hazardous substances
  • How to reduce the risks of diseases carried by vermin
  • The welfare facilities required to be provided on construction sites.
  • How to reduce the risks from hand-arm vibration and noise at work
 

6. Fire and Emergency - (Total 32 Questions) You should have a basic understanding of:

  • What to do in the event of an emergency at work
  • The types of fire extinguishers available and the types of fires they can each be used on
  • The importance of first aid following an accident

7. Work at Height - (Total 28 Questions) You should have a basic understanding of:

  • The importance of using the most suitable access equipment for the task
  • Only working from ladders or stepladders when the task is of low risk and short duration
  • Safety precautions to be taken when using scaffolds, mobile elevated work platforms, safety harnesses etc.
 

8. Work Equipment - (Total 24 Questions) You should have a basic understanding of:

  • Only using work equipment you have been trained and authorised to use
  • The importance of carrying out checks on equipment before use
  • Reporting any defects and not using defective equipment
  • The voltage limitations on electrical equipment used on site
  • The safe use of extension cables

9. Special Site Hazards - (Total 16 Questions) You should have a basic understanding of:

  • The safety precautions to be taken before working in a confined space
  • The precautions to be taken when carrying out excavation work to reduce the risks from contact with underground services, falling materials etc.
  • The precautions to be taken when working near overhead power lines
  • The dangers to pedestrians from vehicles on site
 

10. Electrotechnical - (Total 34 Questions) You should have an understanding of:

  • The effects of electric current on the body
  • The types of socket outlets used on construction sites
  • The need for persons working on electrical systems to be competent to do so
  • The use of residual current devices for supplementary protection against electric shock
  • Safe isolation procedures when working on electrical systems and equipment
  • Only working ‘live’ in exceptional circumstances
  • Safe working with optical fibres

All Work Equipment (24 Questions in total but only 4 random questions will be choosen for the test by the computer)

1. What do the letters SWL stand for?
a) Safe working level
b) Satisfactory weight limit
c) Satisfactory working limit
d) Safe working load

2. Who should operate plant and equipment on site?
a) Only people over 18 years of age
b) Trained and authorised employees only
c) An employee holding a full driving licence
d) Any experienced employee

3. What hazard is created when the head of a cold chisel ’mushrooms’?
a) Reduced striking area
b) Softens the impact
c) Flying steel splinters
d) Damage to the hammer head

4. Any damaged equipment must be:
a) reported to your supervisor
b) thrown away immediately
c) labelled as “damaged” before use
d) locked up so no one can use it

5. The electric drill you are about to use has a faulty on/off switch. What action should you take?
a) Try and fix the fault
b) Find another machine and carry on working
c) Stop work and inform your supervisor
d) Tape the switch on to keep it running and carry on working

6. The power hand tool you are about to use has burn marks visible on the cable. What should you do?
a) Tape over the affected area and continue
b) Tell your supervisor about the defect and do not use the tool
c) Obtain another machine and carry on, but don’t tell anyone
d) Carry on and get the job done

7. Your supervisor asks you to use a powered hand-tool which has a rotating blade. You notice that the guard is missing from the blade. What do you do?
a) Use the tool anyway, you haven’t had an accident with it before
b) Inform your supervisor that the tool is unsafe and that the guard must be replaced before it is used
c) Try to make an improvised guard yourself
d) Contact the manufacturer of the tool

8. Hand and power tools must be:
a) The best that you can buy
b) Made available when needed
c) In the company’s colours
d) Suitable for the task and regularly inspected

9. When should visual checks of portable hand-held equipment be made by the user?
a) When a replacement is needed
b) Monthly
c) Weekly
d) Each time it is used

10. What precaution should you take before adjusting an electrical tool?
a) Check the lead is not twisted or knotted
b) Wear safety footwear with steel toecaps
c) Disconnect from the power source
d) Wear the correct personal protective equipment

11. An electric drill is to be used. Before use, who should carry out a check on the tool?
a) Storeman
b) Electrician
c) Foreman
d) User

12. What action should you take if an electric drill cuts out while you are using it?
a) Shake it about a bit
b) Put it back into the tool box
c) Switch the power off and on
d) Remove it from use and tell your supervisor

13. If an electric drill gives off blue smoke from the motor, you should:
a) pour water over it
b) use a CO2 extinguisher
c) switch it off and report it
d) stop work for 30 minutes

14. How often should user (visual) checks be carried out on portable electrical equipment?
a) Every time you use it
b) Every day
c) Once a week
d) At least once a year

15. What is considered to be the maximum nominal voltage for portable hand-held tools on construction sites?
a) 110 volts
b) 150 volts
c) 230 volts
d) 400 volts

16. What is the maximum nominal voltage for portable hand-held tools on site?
a) 12 volts
b) 24 volts
c) 110 volts
d) 230 volts

17. What is considered to be the MAXIMUM nominal voltage for portable hand-held tools on construction sites?
a) 55 volts centre point earthed
b) 110 volts centre point earthed
c) 400 volts centre point earthed
d) 230 volts centre point earthed

18. What is the recommended MAXIMUM voltage for portable handlamps when working in confined or damp locations?
a) 50 volts
b) 110 volts
c) 230 volts
d) 400 volts

19. What is the recommended MAXIMUM voltage for general use of portable handlamps and portable hand held tools on a construction site?
a) 25 volts
b) 50 volts
c) 110 volts
d) 230 volts

20. What is most commonly used to reduce 230 volts to 110 volts on site?
a) Residual current device
b) Transformer
c) Circuit breaker
d) Step-down generator

21. When using an extension cable reel, which of the following statements is correct?
a) Leave as much as possible coiled up on the reel
b) Uncoil it fully every time
c) Do not exceed the reeled or unreeled rating as appropriate
d) Only uncoil what you need

22. If an extension cable is to be run across a site road, what action should you take?
a) Throw wooden boards over it
b) Place a rubber protection ramp over it and put up a sign stating ’Ramp Ahead’
c) Don’t do anything to protect the cable
d) Lay the cable over wooden boards

23. To operate a powered hand tool you must be:
a) 16 years old or over
b) 18 years old or over
c) 21 years old or over
d) Trained and competent

24. If you are about to use a power tool and discover the guard is missing, you should:
a) Make up a temporary guard yourself
b) Use the tool but try to work quickly
c) Not use the tool until a proper guard has been fitted
d) Use the tool but work carefully and slowly


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