Trade Skills 4U Electrical Training Blog

From the 1st September 2009, the Health and Safety Executive began to make guidance materials from the HSG; HSR; and L series available as freely downloadable PDF documents. Many of these documents have relevance to electrical contractors and domestic installers. 

In all HSE intend to make around 230 publications available, with some 50 or so of its most popular titles already freely available in 'printer friendly' format. The remaining 180 or so publications will be converted to this format by 31 March 2010.

If you are contemplating joining one of the Competent Persons Schemes you will need a copy of HSR 25 (Memorandum of guidance on the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989). If you purchase a hard copy it would set you back £11.50 but the download is free! So no excuse not to have a copy to hand for you inspection.

This move by HSE to make such publications freely available is welcomed by all at TS4U. Some things in life are free!

Further details may be obtained from www.hse.gov.uk/news/2009/hse-books.htm

An offer not to be missed..

Carl Bennett, Director of Trade Skills 4U

At Trade Skills 4U we are committed to your success, and rightly proud of our team, our training courses and our pass rates.

This is why we can offer something that none of our competitors would consider - a cast-iron guarantee that if you don't pass your course, we'll return your course fees! 

We can do this because we know how good we are at what we do - and so you can be sure that choosing Trade Skills 4U as your electrical training provider is the right choice!

This offer is valid on our 17th Edition Update and 17th Edition Full Course.

See here for full details

Building work, replacements and repairs to your home.

Read this before starting any work Many jobs in the home need to be notified to and approved by your Local Authority Building Control unless carried out by an installer who is registered with a Competent Person Scheme. Some examples are shown below (those marked * may not need to be notified in certain circumstances).

What will happen if I do not comply with the Building Regulations?

If you do not comply the work will not be legal. You could be prosecuted and could face a fine of up to £5000. 

The work may not be safe or could cause health problems. It may also not meet energy efficiency standards. 

If work is found to be faulty your Local Authority could insist you put it right at your own expense. 

If the work has not been notified or carried out by a registered installer from a Competent Person Scheme you will have no record that the work complies with Building Regulations. This will be important when you come to sell your home as you will be asked to provide certificates of compliance with the Building Regulations as part of the Home Information Pack (HIP). 

Why should I use an installer who is registered with a Competent Person Scheme? 

An installer registered with a Competent Person Scheme is qualified to carry out specific types of work in accordance with Building Regulations and will deal with Building Control issues for you. You will usually have access to insurance backed warranties and a robust complaints procedure to use in the unlikely event work is found to be non compliant. 

An installer registered with a Competent Person Scheme will notify the Local Authority on your behalf and will issue you with a certificate on completion which can be used as proof of compliance for the HIP. It will also show up on a solicitor’s Local Authority search when you sell your home. 

If you do not use an installer registered with a Competent Person Scheme then you will have to submit a building notice or full plans application and pay a fee to have Building Control come and inspect the work you have carried out. 

How can I find an installer registered with a Competent Person Scheme in my area or check that my chosen installer is with a scheme? 

Visit www.competentperson.co.uk and enter your postcode or the name of the installer in the relevant search box. Alternatively, contact the Competent Person Scheme operators directly; their details are at the bottom of this page. 

New installation or replacement of a heating system or any boiler, regardless of fuel type 

New installation or replacement of an oil tank

Installation of a new bathroom or kitchen if existing electrics or plumbing are altered or if new electrics or plumbing are installed 

Installation of fixed air conditioning systems

Installation of additional radiators to an existing heating system*

New electrical installations in bathrooms, kitchens and outdoors*

Replacement window and door units

Please see above and below for examples of work that you do or do not need to notify to the Local Authority before starting. Please note that this list is not complete and there will be other work not listed here that you will need to notify. For some types of work marked * you may not need to notify in certain circumstances. If you are in any doubt you should contact your Local Authority Building Control team for advice.  You DO need to tell your Local Authority Building Control about the following work unless you use an installer who is registered with a Competent Person Scheme. 

You DO NOT need to tell your Local Authority Building Control about the following work but you can still use an installer who is registered with a Competent Person Scheme. 

Most repairs, replacements and maintenance work (except replacements of combustion appliances, oil tanks, electrical consumer units or glazing units which do need to be notified) 

Additional power points or lighting points or any other alterations to existing circuits (except in bathrooms, kitchens or outdoors*) 

Like for like replacements of baths, toilets, basins or sinks

Below is a list of the types of work covered by Competent Person Schemes. 

Installation or replacement of oil-fired boilers, tanks and associated hot water and heating systems 

APHC, BESCA, NAPIT, NICEIC, OFTEC

Installation or replacement of solid fuel burners and associated hot water and heating systems 

APHC, BESCA, HETAS, NAPIT, NICEIC

Installation or replacement of hot water and heating systems

APHC, BESCA, CORGI, Gas Safe Register, NAPIT, NICEIC

Installation of fixed air conditioning systems

CORGI, NAPIT, NICEIC

Electrical work (Fully Part P compliant)

BSI, EC Certification/Elecsa, NICEIC, NAPIT

Electrical work in association with other work (kitchen installations, boiler installations) 

APHC, CORGI, EC Certification/Elecsa, NAPIT, NICEIC, OFTEC

Replacement windows and doors

BSI, CERTASS, FENSA

Installation of bathrooms, toilets, washing facilities

APHC, CORGI, NAPIT, NICEIC

These schemes have been listed alphabetically. This does not reflect the size of the scheme or whether the scheme specializes in dealing with a particular type of work. Some schemes may not have members in your local area who deal with the type of work that you are interested in. 

APHC www.competentpersonsscheme.co.uk 0121 711 5030 

BESCA www.besca.org.uk 0800 652 5533 

BSI www.kitemark.com 08450 765610 

CORGI www.trustcorgi.com 0800 915 0485 

CERTASS www.certass.co.uk 08450 948025 

EC Certification/Elecsa www.eccertification.co.uk www.elecsa.co.uk 08458 738786 08456 349043 

FENSA www.fensa.org.uk 020 7645 3700 

GAS SAFE REGISTER www.gassaferegister.co.uk 0800 408 5500 

HETAS www.hetas.co.uk 08456 345626 

NAPIT www.napit.org.uk 0870 444 1392 

NICEIC www.niceic.com 0870 013 0382 

OFTEC www.oftec.org.uk 08456 585080 

Brighton and Hove is delivering on green promises with the installation of its first electric car charging points. The city is the first place outside London to install them on public streets. Ten will be put in over the coming weeks and the first was installed in Bartholomews, in The Lanes, on Friday.  

Manufactured by Elektromotive, based at the Sussex Innovation Centre in Brighton, they are at the business end of clean energy. But, with only three electric cars zipping around Brighton and Hove, questions have been raised about the battery-powered vehicles. 

Elektromotive managing director Calvey Taylor-Haw, a passionate supporter of the electric car, said the chargers would pave the way for an electric revolution. He said: “It’s proven that if you put the infrastructure in it will encourage ownership. 

“There aren’t cars available to buy at the moment but that will start changing next year. 

“All the major car manufacturers will be introducing their electric car models to the market next year.  

“In five years’ time, the roads will look much the same as they do today. But roads will be much quieter and there will be far less air pollution.  

“The Department for Transport is saying there will be in the region of two million electric vehicles throughout the UK by 2020. Now Brighton has taken the first initiative, it won’t be long before other towns start to look at this. 

“A lot of cities are starting to install the infrastructure.”   

Mr Taylor-Haw defended Brighton and Hove City Council’s decision to install ten charging points across the city, despite there being a tiny number of electric cars on its roads. He said: “It’s a chicken and egg situation. We need the infrastructure in place before the cars come into the market.”   At the moment, electric cars can travel about 100 miles on a full battery, which is fine for nipping across city centres but not so effective for long-distance journeys.  However, according to Mr Taylor-Haw, developments in battery technology will improve the distances substantially.  He said: “The 100-mile range is short term. With the advance of the batteries it won’t be long before the cars are doing a 200- mile range.  “If someone wants a long-range car, they would opt for a plug-in hybrid car.”  

The cars are much cheaper to run than those with petrol and diesel engines. According to Mr Taylor-Haw, a 10,000-mile journey in a traditional 900cc car would cost about £1,200. The electric equivalent would cost £200 to travel the same distance.  But he concedes the cars would initially be more expensive because there would be a “slight premium”  on the cars. 

Critics have argued the electric cars aren’t as green as proponents claim, because electricity generation still relies heavily on burning fossil fuels.  But Mr Taylor-Haw defends their environmental credentials. He explained: “When the power source is from a mix of renewable energy and a fossil-fuelled power station it is substantially greener than an equivalent-sized petrol or diesel car and that’s allowing for the carbon dioxide emitted during manufacture and transportation of the car to the customer.”  

The city’s reputation for its environmentally aware residents makes it an ideal place to run an electric car scheme.  Brighton and Hove has more Green Party councillors than any other city in the country and embraces schemes including car-free day and eco homes. Mr Taylor-Haw added: “The city has a reputation for being innovative. It’s good news for Brighton and Hove to start the ball rolling on this.”

Brighton & Hove aims to become UK's most electric car-friendly city

Street chargers installed to motivate drivers to switch to electric, A G-Wiz electric car charging in London from a Juice produced by Elektromotive which is now installing similar on-street charging points in Brighton. 

Not content with trying become self-sufficient in food, possibly electing the first Green party MP and weaning itself off oil as a Transition Town, Brighton & Hove is launching a bid to become one of the UK's most friendly cities for electric cars.

This week the city sees a major investment in electric car charging infrastructure, with the installation of four street-side charging stations and a further 16 completed by the end of 2010. The charging stations, which are vital to create a viable charging network for electric cars that mostly have a range of less than 100 miles, will reportedly be the first street-side points outside London. 

The capital currently has more than 100 on-street charging stations, and in April mayor Boris Johnson said he wanted London to become the electric car capital of Europe with 25,000 stations and 100,000 electric vehicles. Other cities such as Bristol and Gateshead have existing public charging points but only in car parks. 

Brighton-based charging company Elektromotive has already completed installation of the first four Brighton & Hove pilot sites. The first 10 stations will be paid for by £130,000 from clean transport initiative Civitas, which is part-funded by the EU.  

Calvey Taylor-Haw, managing director of Elektromotive, said: "By encouraging drivers to switch to electric, Brighton will benefit hugely. There will be less air pollution and local residents will appreciate the quiet of electric vehicles. The installation of the bays will take place over a short period of time, providing electric vehicle users with rapid access to charging facilities."  

The bays work with a standard mains plug and wireless key fobs that open the charging stations, which recharge cars within four to eight hours. Electric car owners will pay an annual fee to Brighton & Hove council for a registration scheme to access the network, pricing for which is unconfirmed but is expected to be in the region of £75-100 to join and £30-50 annually.  

The scheme has come in for some criticism on The Argus local newspaper website, with users commenting on the fact that there are only three electric cars in the city. A fact confirmed by Taylor-Haw. Electric car owners, who already enjoy a 50% discount on parking permits for the city, will be able to use the bays from November when the council registration scheme opens.  

Yesterday the secretary of state for energy and climate change, Ed Miliband, announced a £10m fund for local carbon-cutting initiatives such as charging stations, and earlier this summer the government said it would offer electric car buyers grants up to £5,000 to encourage take-up of the new technology.

The Government has this month begun a “voluntary phase out” of 100 watt light bulbs in major stores, claiming it could slash carbon emissions by around five million tonnes a year.  

Britain has also signed up to a separate EU proposal which will see all traditional bulbs banned by 2016.  

It is only fitting that we at Trade Skills 4U write this eulogy and share with you the life and times of the humble incandescent lamp.

The conception……

I’m not one to cast aspersions on the moral integrity of its mother, but many men were involved in the conception of the humble incandescent lamp.  

1809. Englishman, Humphrey Davy created the first electric arc lamp using two strips of charcoal and high powered battery.  

1820. Warren De la Rue made the first known attempt at producing an incandescent light bulb. He enclosed a platinum coil in an evacuated tube and passed an electric current through it.  

1840. Englishman, William Robert Grove succeeded in lighting an auditorium with incandescent lamps. The lamps were constructed of platinum coils encased in an inverted glass sealed by water. The platinum coils proved two expensive and the idea was impractical for commercial use.  

1841. Frederik de Moleyns, received the first patent for an incandescent lamp. The design involved mounting a powdered charcoal filament between two platinum wires in a glass bulb under vacuum.  

1845. American, W.E. Staite patented a second incandescent electric lamp in England. Thomas Wright obtained the first patent for the arc lamp.  

1846. John Daper patented a platinum filament incandescent lamp. This allowed the filament to operate at higher temperatures and thus produce more light. The high cost and scarcity of platinum made this design impractical for commercial use.  

1850. English scientist, Edward G. Shepherd made an incandescent lamp using a charcoal filament. Joseph Wilson swan, started work on carbon filaments using paper. Carbon filaments provided a low cost and practical filament material for the time.  

1854. A German watchmaker, Heinrich Gobel, who had emigrated to New York, used carbonized bamboo as a filament and secured this inside a glass container as his incandescent lamp.  

1856. C de Chagny, a French engineer, patented an incandescent lamp for use in mines that contained a platinum filament. 

The incandescent lamp has an evil twin……

1860. John T. Way demonstrated that passing electricity through mercury vapour contained in a glass tube could produce light. This was the forerunner of the fluorescent light.

At long last the birth of a bright star…..

1879. The incandescent lamp is born but there is some doubt as to who the father is. Both Thomas A. Edison of the United States and Joseph Wilson Swan of England claim paternity.    

Edison had the greater claim as his carbon fibre, derived from cotton, filament lamp lasted for 13.5 hours. Later this is improved to 40 hours.

The baby grows……  

1880. Edison produces a carbon fibre filament that enables his new lamps to last for 1200 hours.    

A paternity suit……  

1893. Heinrich Gobel, successfully brought a paternity suit against Thomas A. Edison and was named as the father of the incandescent lamp.    

Early life…….  

1898. German Scientist, Karl Auer produces osmium filaments which  had increased lifetimes.  

1902. Light bulbs with osmium filaments are produced commercially. This  success is short lived due to the high cost of the lamps.  

1903. Siemens and Halske of Charlottenburg produced tantalum filament  bulbs.  

1904. Willis R. Whitnew developed a metal coated carbon filament.       

Coming of age………  

1906. General Electric Company patented a method of making tungsten filaments for incandescent lamps. The filament as we know it came to be.  

1907.  The first commercial tungsten filament for incandescent lamps became available in the United States.  

1910. American, William D. Coolidge developed an improved method to produce tungsten filaments.  

1925. Incandescent lamps with frosted glass interiors, to filter out undesirable wavelengths and produce a ‘soft’ light, were produced. The future was looking bright for the incandescent lamp.   

The height of its career……  

1960. Halogen filled incandescent lamps were produced, giving a brighter light.          

Trouble is brewing……  

1976.  The Compact Fluorescent Lamp (CFL) was invented by Edward E Hammer. This black sheep of the family is hidden away from polite society by General Electric.   

1995. Despite the efforts of GE to hide him away and protect us all from the evil one, CFL is seen in public and gains support from other manufactures as well as conservationists. The end is neigh my friend.  

So It is with a sad heart that we have to announce that on September 1st, 2009 after a long life of selfless service to the public, the 100W incandescent lamp passed away. It was not through some heroic act on its part but rather through the stroke of a pen and at the hands of politicians and Eurocrats that this most noble of items finally met its end.   

It shall remain in memoriam in thousands of cupboards, in thousands of homes. May you forever rest in peace my old friend, no longer will you brighten our dark days with your warm, friendly glow, beaming out from amidst life’s gloom. No longer will we be able to flick a switch and instantly have a light bright enough to lighten the darkest room. No longer will I be able to turn you down to a more romantic level or up to a level that illuminates every dark corner and recess.  Goodbye my old friend the end has finally come.   

Or has it?..............

Though the Microgeneration industry is appears on hold at the moment, certainly from the Spring of 2010 it will be very much back on the agenda. 

Stimulated by cost savings of energy, a willingness of consumers to do their bit for the planet and available funding from the government to the householder, electrical contractors that position themselves early to take advantage of this growing industry will most definitely benefit in the long run.

What is Mircrogeneration?    

The official definition of microgeneration is in The Energy Act 2004, Section 82. Essentially microgeneration is the generation of energy of up to 45 kW (heat) or up to 50kW (electricity). The term “microgeneration” is not restricted to energy generated only from renewable sources. It also covers low and zero carbon technologies. The technologies involve the generation of electricity or heat and in some cases both, which is referred to as cogeneration.

Electricity generation technologies

Solar Photovoltaic (PV)

Wind Turbines

Micro Hydro

Cogeneration technologies

Combined Heat and Power (CHP)

Fuel Cells

Heat generation technologies

Solar Heating

Heat Pumps (Ground, Air or Water Source)

Biomass Heating

Why is Microgeneration important?

Buildings account for 47% of carbon emissions in the UK, so microgeneration has the potential to contribute to UK’s challenging EU 2020 renewables and greenhouse gas targets by generating some energy from secure and reliable smallscale installations. The government has committed itself to targets it must achieve.

So where’s the opportunity? I hear you say. Surely this is a fad, is it worth getting involved?

Yes it is, Tradeskills4U is well positioned in the electrical training industry and able to talk with many stakeholders, your customers, existing  contractors, training bodies, local government representatives, large industrial electrical companies . All see that electricity and especially the mircogeneration industry is the future in no way a passing phase. It enables the average person to get involved, in some form over the coming years millions of households will have some form of mirco generation or renewable energy source. A move towards Nuclear power means that the electrical industry will be at the forefront of energy provision for certainly our lifetime, and therefore a consistent and renewing market. Electric cars with roadside charge electrical points,  PV panels, Wind turbines, and all the subsequent electrical installation work involved for the correctly trained and qualified contractor.   I call that an opportunity!  Needless to say Tradeskills4U will be involved providing course are qualifications, coming online in January 2010.

Part P for Bright Sparks

ELECSA the Part P scheme provider now has almost 6000 approved electrical contractors making it the second largest Part P provider in the UK. 

Wholly owned by the ECA (electrical contractors association) they boast a friendly and simple approach to Part P. 

Certainly as far as Tradeskills4U is concerned ELECSA is the go to Part P scheme provider for new entrants to the Electrical industry. 

Our feedback from hundreds of  newly qualified Part P registered electrical contractors who have gained their Domestic Installers qualifications with Tradeskills4U is that ELECSA is very approachable and open to new entrants to the Electrical industry and unlike some other Part P Scheme providers don’t make them go through further unnecessary and costly courses to gain their Part P status.

Whilst Tradeskills4U don’t favour any particular Part P scheme provider, certainly ELECSA have a good reputation amongst the jobbing electrical contractors who use the Part P certification scheme on a daily basis. 

When considering which part p scheme provider to register with see the helpful pointers below. 

Do they have ? Ask other electrical contractors ! 

Approachable and supportive assessors.

Quality technical advice and support and is it free?

Customer warranties available at no cost to you the contractor.

Strightfoward jod notification system.

Flexible payment options

Part P scheme providers are:

www.elecsa.org.uk

EC Certification Ltd 0845 634 9043

www.niceic.org.uk

NICEIC Group Ltd 08700130 382

www.bsiqroup.com

British Standards Instition 01442 278 577

www.napit.org.uk

Napit Registration Ltd 0870 444 1392 or 01623 811 483