Earthing & Lightning Protection System Install SWMS

Installing an earthing and lightning protection system is the work of fixing air terminals, down conductors, bonding and earth electrodes to a structure so that a lightning strike is captured and conducted safely to ground. It is high risk construction work under the NSW WHS Regulation 2025 because it involves a risk of a person falling more than 2 m — air terminals and down conductors are installed on roofs, towers and parapets — together with work on or near energised electrical services where the system is bonded to the building earth and services, and excavation where earth electrodes are trenched (s291), so a SWMS is mandatory under s299. The work is largely at height and exposed: rooftop and tower work above 2 m is the dominant fall hazard, made worse by the fact that lightning protection is often installed precisely where storm exposure is high, so an approaching storm is itself a hazard that must stop the work. Bonding to live services brings an electrical risk, exothermic welding (a thermite reaction) introduces a high-temperature ignition and burn hazard, and trenching for the earthing ring brings excavation and underground-services risks. The system is installed to AS/NZS 1768. The SWMS sequences the roof, bonding and excavation work, sets storm-exposure stop criteria, and controls the exothermic welding process, with SafeWork NSW as the regulator.

Hazards identified

7 hazards covered, sorted by priority.

Control measures

Hierarchy-of-controls order: elimination → substitution → isolation → engineering → administrative → PPE.

1. 1Elimination — Pre-assemble conductor runs and terminal bases at ground level and lift them up as units, eliminating extended hand-work at height
2. 2Substitution — Substitute mechanical crimp or clamp connections for exothermic welding wherever the system design permits, removing the molten-metal and ignition hazard
3. 3Engineering — Roof edge protection, anchor points and fall-arrest for all work above 2 m on roofs, parapets and towers
4. 4Engineering — Isolation and proving-dead of services before bonding, with insulated tools and barriers at live points
5. 5Engineering — Underground-services location (dial-before-you-dig, potholing) and battered or shored electrode trenches
6. 6Administrative — Storm-exposure stop criteria — monitor lightning-detection and cease rooftop work on a defined approach trigger
7. 7Administrative — Exothermic welding procedure with a fire watch, clearance of combustibles and a hot-work permit
8. 8Administrative — Permit and lockout for any bonding to energised services, by a licensed electrical worker
9. 9PPE — Fall-arrest harness and certified anchorage; heat-resistant gloves, face shield and apron for exothermic welding
10. 10PPE — High-visibility clothing, helmet and safety footwear, with insulated gloves for live bonding work

Applicable Codes of Practice

High-Risk Construction Work triggered

Worked example

At 6:45 am a crew from Stormguard Electrical begins installing air terminals along the parapet of a six-storey building. The supervisor checks the morning forecast and sets the day's storm-stop trigger on a lightning-detection app: any strike within 20 km and the roof clears. Edge protection and anchor lines are rigged before anyone approaches the parapet, and conductor runs are crimped into sub-assemblies on the ground and hauled up to limit time at the edge. At the down-conductor base, two connections are specified as exothermic welds; the crew sets a hot-work permit, clears combustibles, posts a fire watch, and the welder works in a face shield and heat-resistant gloves. Late morning the detection app flags a cell closing to 18 km; the crew stops, descends, and waits it out rather than finishing the run. Trenching for the earth ring is done after a dial-before-you-dig and potholing locate a comms duct, and the shallow trench is battered before electrodes are set. Bonding to the main earth is left to the licensed electrician under isolation at the end of the day.

Related legislation

• WHS Act 2011 (model)
• WHS Regulation 2025
• AS/NZS 1768:2021 Lightning protection
• Managing the Risk of Falls at Workplaces Code of Practice

Frequently asked questions