COMMERCIAL                                                               BUSINESS REPRESENTATIVES         Terry Sheridan                   Ralph Trentadue                         Dave Wiggins                   Terry McGoldrick        708-243-2521                        847-636-9868                             630-918-2906                 815-378-7054

LINKS    Home    Staff     Unit  Meetings     Unity     Safety     Fossil     Clerical     Nuclear     Lemont     Organizing     Retirees Page     MBA Info        --External--     IBEW Intl     6th District     AFL-CIO     Ill. Dept. of Labor     OSHA     NLRB     Habitat for            Humanity     United Way     Union Plus            Discounts

Below are some pictures of 4KV Potheads. These devices have been restricted to dead operation.        Most of the 4KV Potheads are operated by hand, in contrast to other switches that are operated        with a hot stick. Most of the potheads are at least 50 years old. The devices were invented in        1905 by two former ComEd engineers named Gear & Williams (G&W Electric). Chicago North        and Chicago South seem to be the only regions that still have this equipment. A long standing       serious safety concern was resolved when these devices were restricted.                                           An OES hand operating          Picture of a corroded               Picture of a pothead             Picture of a stick operated              a pothead                        pothead plunger                   with a failed body                   pothead with failed body                                              Exploded Pothead              4KV Cable pole 3 risers                  Bare Tap & Exploded            Complete pothead failure                                                                                                      plunger                                       Three potheads              Four conductor pothead          Another corroded pothead