The revised SFS 6002:2025 was ratified on February 7, 2025 – Changes and updated requirements of the revised standard

The revised SFS 6002:2025 electrical safety standard, published in February 2025, introduces significant changes to the occupational safety of electrical professionals. In this article, we present the key changes made to the standard and their impact on electrical safety training.

Background and needs for the revision of the SFS 6002 standard

The SFS 6002 standard is the key guideline for ensuring electrical safety in Finland. The last update was made in 2018 (SFS 6002:2015 + A1:2018), and since then, electrical technologies and practices have evolved significantly. The revision is driven by the need to update the standard to meet current requirements and technologies, such as the increasing prevalence of electric vehicles, battery energy storage systems, and photovoltaic systems.

Key changes to the SFS 6002 standard:

1. National annexes updated: Several national annexes have been updated in the revision. For example, Annex X, which concerns electrical safety training provided in basic electrical education, has been completely revised. Annexes Y: live working, Z: working inside and outside the vicinity zone, and U: requirements for electric vehicles have also been updated.
2. Entirely new annexes: Completely new annexes have been added to the revision, such as Annex T, which covers the hazards of direct current, and informative Annex S, which provides guidance on selecting protective clothing for work with arc flash hazards.
3. Reduction of national sections: National sections have been reduced and condensed. The new standard no longer applies to ordinary persons, so national sections concerning ordinary persons have been removed. The new version of the standard is modeled after the international EN 50110-1 standard, the latest version of which was published in the summer of 2023.
4. Clarified instructions: The text of the standard has been condensed and clarified. The aim has been to eliminate ambiguities present in the previous version. In addition, the structure and paragraph division have been clarified.

Impact of the standard changes on electrical professionals

The revised SFS 6002 standard requires electrical professionals to familiarize themselves with the new requirements and update their operating procedures. This is important for ensuring electrical safety and compliance with legislation. Koulutustukku offers electrical safety training that familiarizes electrical professionals with the content of the revised standard and helps apply the updated guidelines in practice.

Impact on electrical safety training

The revised SFS 6002 standard significantly impacts electrical safety training. A new requirement is that the content, duration, and interval of electrical safety maintenance training must take into account the individuals’ job tasks and their electrical safety competence. The standard recommends maintenance training, for example, annually. However, the interval between training sessions may be a maximum of 5 years – in such cases, the training must be more extensive in content and duration.

Furthermore, the revised standard recommends that electrical safety training be retaken if there are significant changes to electrical safety regulations or standards – such as right now, when the entire standard has been updated.

The standard also requires that training be documented by the employer; the requirement is that the employer maintains a training register where information on employees’ electrical safety training is recorded.

The revised standard also addresses the method of training delivery. Electrical safety training can be organized in several ways: through a company’s internal training system, provided by an external service provider, or as online training.

As a new point, the updated standard also addresses the professional competence of the person providing electrical safety training. The person providing electrical safety training must be an electrical professional, and the trainer is required to have sufficient knowledge of the electrical equipment being worked on, working practices, tools, the use of protective and safety equipment, and the basic principles of occupational safety risk management for the equipment in question.

Regarding the accuracy and quality of online training content, the standard mentions a requirement that producers of online training materials must ensure that the provided educational material meets the requirements of the legislation and standards in force at any given time.

The contents of Koulutustukku’s Electrical Safety Card training have been updated to correspond with the contents of the revised standard as well as the new requirements and guidelines.

Training in accordance with the new SFS 6002:2025

Special considerations

Although the new standard does not apply to ordinary persons using electrical installations and equipment, provided that the installations and equipment meet the requirements of the relevant standard and are built and installed for use by ordinary persons, a new national note has been added to the standard stating that all electrical work and operation work is subject to the requirement of Section 54 of the Electrical Safety Act, according to which the person performing electrical or operation work must be familiarized with or instructed in the task and its electrical safety requirements. This requirement also applies to ordinary person’s work as referred to in Section 56, Subsection 2 of the Electrical Safety Act. In Koulutustukku’s selection, you will also find Electrical Safety Card SFS 6002 training for instructed persons.

Summary

The SFS 6002:2025 electrical safety standard, published in February 2025, brings significant improvements and clarifications to electrical safety. It is important for electrical professionals to update their knowledge and operating procedures to meet the new requirements to ensure occupational safety and compliance with legislation.