TriShot Cable Gland triumphs at ECN Awards 2024

WISKA UK has solidified its position as a leader in cable management innovation, winning the Cable Management Product of the Year 2024 for its revolutionary TriShot Cable Gland at the prestigious ECN Awards. Held on 5 December at the Heart of England Conference & Events Centre in Coventry, the event celebrated the best products, projects, and companies in the electrical contracting industry. The TriShot Cable Gland continues to push the boundaries of what’s possible in cable management. It combines superior performance, sustainability, and ease of installation, making it a favourite among industry professionals. With its patented three-shot injection-moulded design, the TriShot reduces material waste, energy use, and assembly time, delivering unmatched efficiency and environmental benefits. Speaking about the award, Elliott Rothon, Marketing Manager at WISKA UK, says, "Winning Cable Management Product of the Year for TriShot is a tremendous honour and a testament to our team’s dedication to innovation. This award recognises our commitment to delivering solutions that not only meet but exceed industry standards for performance and sustainability." The TriShot offers robust IP68 protection against dust and water, a wide clamping range (6–14 mm), and an integrated seal that simplifies the installation process. By eliminating the need for inserts, the TriShot saves time and ensures consistent reliability even in demanding environments. Additionally, the product demonstrates WISKA’s commitment to environmental responsibility with a 55% reduction in Product Carbon Footprint compared to traditional cable glands, reinforcing the company’s role as a trailblazer in sustainable innovation. The ECN Awards are a cornerstone of the electrical contracting industry calendar, celebrating excellence across products, projects, and people. This year’s event provided a fitting stage to honour the ground-breaking achievements of companies like WISKA UK. Elliott adds, "We are incredibly proud to have been recognised for our efforts at such a prestigious event. This win caps off an outstanding year for WISKA UK and motivates us to continue driving innovation in the electrical industry." For more from WISKA, click here.

Acrospire launches aGlow road safety light

British exterior lighting manufacturer, Acrospire, has announced the launch of a new state-of-the-art, twin-amber hazard warning light designed specifically to enhance safety around school environments. Research from road safety charity, Brake, highlights that as many as 64% of schools do not have 20mph speed limits on all roads nearby, leaving many parents too afraid to walk their children to school because of busy, fast-moving traffic. Twin-amber hazard warning lights are a vital part of the solution, Acrospire believes. In response to these concerns, Acrospire has introduced the aGlow Road Safety Light – a twin-amber IoT hazard warning light designed to meet TSRGD standards and enhance safety around schools. With its durable, vandal-resistant design and smart-control options, aGlow provides a reliable visual signal to alert drivers and protect vulnerable road users. Reducing speed around schools is critical, as a crash at 30mph has twice the kinetic energy of one at 20mph. aGlow’s bright amber lights serve as a clear reminder for drivers to slow down and stay alert, helping to prevent accidents before they happen. The aGlow Road Safety Light is engineered with a vandal-resistant design and features a slim profile housing two 48-LED clusters. The device’s construction includes a 5mm black ABS body and a 4mm UV-stabilised lens, ensuring long-lasting durability and resistance to environmental damage. Equipped with a highly accurate Real-Time Clock (RTC) and advanced calendar and CRON scheduling, the aGlow Road Safety Light offers precise control over lighting schedules. Its low power consumption, <5W, ensures energy efficiency whether powered by solar panels or mains electricity. aGlow also incorporates secure two-factor user authentication and authorisation, making it one of the safest options for public safety lighting. It supports various control methods, including a key-operated activation via Bluetooth app and the SimpleSwitch Wand option, providing users with flexible and secure control options. A standout feature of the aGlow Road Safety Light is its IoT connectivity, enabling real-time fault monitoring, event logging, and smart control through MQTT, REST, and SMS integration. The device supports multiple communication protocols, including NFC, Bluetooth, 4/5G LTE, and NB-IoT, ensuring seamless connectivity for monitoring and management. It also features GPS/GLONASS/QZSS/Galileo/L1 location services and is equipped with a high-performance antenna that supports various IoT standards. Designed for ease of installation, the aGlow light can be pole-mounted (with poles sold separately) and offers convenient access through a hinged front panel with anti-vandal fixings. The aGlow Road Safety Light is certified under Elexon Unmetered CMS and meets rigorous standards for safety and performance, including IK10 and IP65 ratings, ensuring it withstands harsh outdoor conditions. For more from Acrospire, click here.

ICEL Emergency Lighting Conference returns for 2025

The Industry Committee for Emergency Lighting (ICEL) has announced the return of the ICEL Emergency Lighting Conference, following its successful events in 2023 and 2024. Next year's event will take place on Thursday 11 September 2025, and will once again bring together key stakeholders from across the emergency lighting industry. Curated by ICEL, this conference is for emergency lighting professionals and is designed to deliver valuable insights and expertise. Attendees will have access to expert speakers addressing critical topics, including responsibilities, legislative updates, and future strategies. Presentations throughout the day will provide actionable knowledge and the tools required to stay ahead of the latest advancements in emergency lighting. With dedicated networking sessions, the conference is a platform to engage with industry professionals, manufacturers, and other influential stakeholders. Visitors are able to forge partnerships, exchange ideas, and explore business opportunities to drive success in their endeavours. Admission to the ICEL Emergency Lighting Conference 2025 is free of charge, thanks to the generous sponsorship of emergency lighting manufacturers. However, due to high demand and venue capacity, registration does not guarantee attendance, and thus a selection process will ensure a balanced mix of industry representation. Confirmations will be sent in August 2025 to those who register their interest (to do so, complete this form). - The ICEL Emergency Lighting Conference 2025 will take place at the Cavendish Conference Hall in London on 11 September 2025, and it will once again help to shape the future of emergency lighting. For more from ICEL, click here.

ECN Awards 2024 highlights and photos!

The ECN Awards 2024, held on 5 December in Coventry, brought together the electrical industry’s brightest talents for a remarkable evening of celebration and recognition. This year, several new additions made the event even more memorable - alongside the presentation of 23 prestigious Awards honouring the industry's top achievements - including a raffle to raise funds for the Electrical Industries Charity, the Special Recognition Award and surprise guest act, East 17! ECN is thrilled to announce that thanks to the generosity of attendees, the raffle raised an amazing £2,500 for the charity, which will go directly to supporting those from the industry who are in need. Thank you to everyone who purchased a raffle ticket and to the companies who donated prizes for the raffle. Another new addition to the Awards this year was the introduction of the Special Recognition Award. The industry was asked to nominate an individual who has made extraordinary and unparalleled contributions to the industry, and Apprentice 121’s Mark Allison received a phenomenal number of nominations, so it was a very easy decision to make and a great honour for ECN to present the Award to Mark. The final extra touch this year was the appearance of surprise guest act East 17, who well and truly warmed everyone up for the after party, which had guests dancing the night away. The success of the ECN Awards 2024 wouldn’t have been possible without the support of the sponsors, judges and attendees. ECN extends a huge thank you to all who contributed to this unforgettable evening. Check out the event photos here and relive the night’s highlights.

Luminaires made from 100% recycled plastic

Lighting specialist, TRILUX, is now offering the Oleveon Fit and Aragon Fit moisture-proof luminaires in a new sustainable version. The diffuser and housing of both models are made from 100% recycled plastic, marking another step towards a circular economy. The environmentally-friendly products were developed in Spain by TRILUX subsidiary, Zalux. More specifically, Zalux has developed sustainable versions of the tried-and-tested Oleveon Fit and Aragon Fit moisture-proof luminaires. On request, the models are now available in recycled versions, featuring diffusers and housing made completely from recycled plastic. "Through extensive material and quality testing, we were able to ensure that using recycled materials does not compromise efficiency, light quality or robustness," explains Manuel Pina, Sustainability Director at Zalux, who led the development in Spain. Two types of recycled plastic are used for the sustainable luminaires. To meet the high demands placed on the optical system, the diffuser is made of post-industrial polycarbonate, sourced from production waste in the automotive and consumer electronics industries, such as headlights or monitor covers. Meanwhile, the housing is crafted from post-consumer polycarbonate, which is made from recycled, shredded green PE bottles. This material gives the housing a subtle, translucent green tint, highlighting the sustainability of the luminaires and clearly distinguishing them from the classic portfolio. To make ordering straightforward, these variants are easily identified with the 'RCY' label. The recycled raw materials are supplied in pellet form, which can be fed directly into the production process without further adjustments. This enables production capacities to be adapted quickly and easily. Market demand already shows great potential for these sustainable luminaires, and Manuel notes that concrete customer inquiries have encouraged TRILIX to fast-track the development. It took just 14 months to go from concept to market launch, and as with all TRILUX products, customers can order the RCY variants via TRILUX ONE and the TRILUX online product catalogue. For more from TRILUX, click here.

Recolight welcomes Defra online marketplace announcement

The Government today announced that online marketplaces are to be brought into scope of the WEEE regulations. This means that online marketplaces will be responsible for the WEEE costs of any non-compliant product sold through the platform. Welcoming the news, Nigel Harvey, CEO of Recolight, comments, “It is great to see this change announced. For far too long, many online marketplaces have been able to avoid WEEE costs. That in turn has meant that legitimate UK businesses pay more than their fair share. This change is a vital step to make sure that compliant UK businesses are not put at a competitive disadvantage by non-compliant imports. "Recolight has campaigned to close the online marketplace WEEE loophole for many years. We’ve undertaken research that has shown the huge proportion of non-compliant products sold via such platforms. For example, one analysis showed that 76% of LED lightbulbs sold by a leading online marketplace were not WEEE compliant. For the 220 producer members of the Recolight WEEE scheme, this change cannot come too soon.” The Government has not announced a definitive timetable for the legislation. However, given that the WEEE system operates in calendar years, it would be logical for regulations to be made during 2025, coming into full force in 2026. Any transitional arrangements allowed for in the regulations should prioritise ensuring that full financial liability is brought in as early as possible. For more from Recolight, click here.

InstallerSHOW announces strategic partnership with ECN

InstallerSHOW (24-26 June 2025, NEC Birmingham) has revealed details of an expanded partnership with Electrical Contracting News (ECN) for the 2025 event cycle. Building on the success of their partnership for the 2024 show, the two market-leading brands will be working in tandem to deliver even greater value to the electrical community as InstallerSHOW’s offering for the sector continues to increase. Delivering across ECN’s digital and print channels, the partnership will ensure that contractors and wholesalers are kept up to speed with the latest developments in a year when InstallerSHOW will welcome a record number of exhibitors and visitors from the electrical space. David Kitchener, CEO at ECN, comments, “InstallerSHOW shares our values of providing relevant, topical, and informative content to the electrical contracting industry. We’re delighted to extend our partnership for 2025 as the event continues to deliver for the sector.” Michael Costain, Managing Director of InstallerSHOW organiser Lyrical Communications, part of Nineteen Group, adds, “At a time when InstallerSHOW is cementing its place as a mainstay on the electrical events calendar, this enhanced strategic partnership reinforces our aim of ensuring all parts of the supply chain are able to work together for the good of the industry.” For more from the InstallerSHOW, click here.  

Unicrimp has you covered

Unicrimp has you covered with the number one cable clip choice for professionals. Unicrimp's cable clips come in two reliable ranges: the Q-Crimp range, offering tough and durable plastic clips, and the Q-Fire range, featuring 18th Edition-compliant, fire-rated metal clips for added safety and peace of mind. Find out more here.

Martindale expands range of safe isolation kits

Martindale Electric has expanded its range of safe isolation products to include kits tailored specifically to the type of work being undertaken. This ensures workers have the right tools for cleaning, servicing or repairing electrical equipment while maintaining the highest safety standards. Safe isolation procedures, including the use of lock-off kits, are essential to protect workers and prevent electrical circuits from being inadvertently re-energised. With an overwhelming number of individual lock-off devices on the market, choosing the right solution can be challenging. Martindale has simplified this decision by offering comprehensive kits designed for specific applications, ensuring electricians and engineers can implement safe isolation efficiently and effectively. For domestic electrical installations, the LOKKITDOM kit includes essential items for safe isolation procedures, such as the Martindale LOK2 and LOK15 isolation locks, which are ideal for domestic distribution boards. All components are housed in a robust carry case. For installers working on a wider range of miniature circuit breakers (MCBs), the LOKKIT2PLUS kit includes four different MCB locks, providing compatibility with most standard systems. Gas service engineers can rely on Martindale’s LOKKITGAS1, which features four essential locking-off devices for fused spurs and MCBs. For engineers requiring compliance with Gas Safe Technical Bulletin TB118, Martindale offers the TB118KITA kit, which includes not only lock-off devices, but also a voltage indicator and proving unit. The more comprehensive TB118KITB builds on this by adding an earth loop impedance tester, creating a complete solution for gas service engineers. For commercial and industrial maintenance, the LOKKIT1 provides a 13-piece lock-out kit designed to meet the needs of professionals working in larger facilities. For even greater versatility, the LOKKITPRO has the most comprehensive range of Martindale locking-off devices, including options for cartridge fuse isolation, 13A plug locks, and cable locks. This makes it the ideal choice for contractors and maintenance teams operating in complex industrial and commercial environments. Locking off circuits is a vital part of the safety process, but verifying the circuit is truly de-energised before starting any work is also critical. To address this, Martindale Electric offers kits that include everything needed for a complete safe isolation procedure, such as voltage indicators and proving units. These all-in-one kits simplify compliance with the Electricity at Work Regulations, making it easier for professionals to stay safe and ensure legal compliance. By offering specialised lock-off kits for domestic, gas, commercial and industrial applications, Martindale Electric is setting a new standard in safe isolation solutions, providing electricians and engineers with the tools they need to work safely and efficiently. For more from Martindale Electric, click here.

Carhartt introduces denim workwear range

Resistant to wear and tear, breathable, comfortable and flexible enough for all day wear, Carhartt’s denim range is designed to handle the toughest trade tasks while prioritising safety. Carhartt’s Loose Straight Double Front Denim Dungarees are ideal for tradespeople out on site. They offer unrestricted movement when wearing them as the loose fit, straight legs give extra room through the seat and thigh. They sit comfortably below the waist and have multiple tool and utility pockets, along with a left-leg hammer loop and reinforced back compartments to keep essentials within easy reach. With a double-front panel featuring cleanout openings for kneepads, these dungarees are ideal for prolonged, knee-intensive tasks. For colder days, the Relaxed Fit Denim Sherpa-Lined Jacket keep contractors warm with no restrictions, Carhartt says. Lined with sherpa fleece, the jacket offers extra insulation for cool-weather jobs, while its relaxed fit and pleated back design allow for ease of movement when setting up equipment or handling tools. With two chest pockets, an interior pocket and a full-length front zipper covered by a placket, this jacket combines functionality with protection from the elements. Carhartt also has a range of denim coveralls, ideal for tradespeople who face demanding tasks on-site. The Loose Fit Denim Bib Overall, made from midweight, washed denim, has a comfortable, broken-in feel. Its practical design includes a multi-compartment bib pocket with secure zipper closure, spacious lower front pockets and a ruler pocket for added convenience. The high-back adjustable braces ensure a tailored fit, while the loose straight-leg cut makes it easy to climb, crawl, bend and stretch on the job. Specifically designed for tradeswomen, the Women’s Relaxed Fit Denim Bib Overall incorporates Rugged Flex stretch denim for ease of movement. With a multi-compartment bib pocket that includes a secure zipper closure large enough for a phone, and additional slip-in tool pockets, Carhartt believes these overalls are as practical as they are comfortable. The double-front design also accommodates kneepads, making it well-suited for long days spent working close to the ground. Carhartt’s latest denim range is built for tradespeople who demand reliability and functionality from their workwear. From durable dungarees to weather-ready jackets, this collection reinforces Carhartt’s commitment to producing gear that works as hard as the professionals who wear it. For more from Carhartt, click here.