JTL launches video channel for personal and professional development

JTL has launched a new online channel called Tune Up to help those in the sector improve their personal and professional development; taking them beyond the technical skills that JTL has helped develop in its 30 plus years of operation. Tune Up is a channel of videos that have been carefully selected by JTL sector experts according to quality, authority of the source and relevance; with supporting information from JTL to help get the most from the videos. Whilst designed mainly for newly qualified learners, Tune Up looks to support those at any stage in their career within the plumbing and electrical sector with videos such as digital skills, C.V writing and interview techniques, and how to build a powerful LinkedIn profile, as well as teaching important life skills around managing physical, financial and mental health. Liam Sammon, Director of Learning and Innovation at JTL, says: “As a training provider with charitable status, we care about more than just the technical development of our apprentices; past and present. We are deeply invested in their personal and professional development, and that is why we created the Tune Up series, available as a free resource tailored to suit our sector and its specific needs. “Working with some of the industry’s most trustworthy sources, the Tune Up channel allows workers in the sector to learn new skills in their own time, giving them access to information that will support them in dealing with demands beyond just day-to-day technical tasks.” Tune Up is part of JTL’s Toolbox service, a collection of digital resources aimed at supporting the sector and its diverse and changing needs.

Indra and Replenishh join forces to offer installers access to EV chargers

Indra Renewable Technologies has joined forces with an industry leading EV charging distributor, Replenishh. Previously, Indra’s smart chargers could only be purchased directly, but this new partnership means installers can now purchase Indra’s Smart PRO EV chargers in single units via the Replenishh online e-commerce platform. The Indra Smart PRO has been developed with installers in mind, with easy-to-fit design and the highest hardware reliability rating on the market. With its patented PESTs technology and highly skilled customer support team, installer businesses of all sizes can now access Indra’s award-winning home charging technology. Its smart connectivity options also enable installation of the Smart PRO in five times more site situations than other chargers on the market, making it easier for installers to fit and forget. Not only are they easy to install, Indra’s smart chargers also enable EV drivers to take advantage of the lowest-cost energy from their home supplier to charge their car when they need it, helping EV drivers and assisting the Grid in managing energy load. The partnership marks an exciting time for the British smart technology company at a time of huge growth in electric vehicle purchases. Indra believes that home charging is the key to creating a sustainable electric charging infrastructure, which it estimates could accommodate around 80% of all personal EV charging needs. Commenting on the launch, Mike Schooling, founder and chief technology officer at Indra, says: “We’re delighted to offer smaller installer businesses an easy, straightforward way to purchase our smart electric vehicle chargers. What makes it even better is partnering with a company that has the same sustainable transportation vision as us. Together, Indra and Replenishh can support installers in laying the foundations for greener roads by creating an important link between the home, car and grid.” As part of this partnership, Indra has also released a suite of helpful content for installers, including a new CPD and training videos in collaboration with eFIXX. Installers can find this content on the Replenishh website, where there is a host of additional useful guidance from the electrical distributor, including FAQs and myth-busting facts. Jim Rugg, Head of Replenishh, comments: “Replenishh are committed to working with innovative supply partners who have the same vision as us to drive the electric vehicle charging infrastructure forward with fantastic market leading products, and we are proud and excited to be the first exclusive distributor in the UK to offer the Indra Smart PRO solution.”

CENTIEL strengthens sales engineering team with new appointment

CENTIEL UK has welcomed Tim Ng as sales engineer for hardware to the company’s expanding team. Louis McGarry sales and marketing director, CENTIEL UK confirms: “Tim has a huge amount of experience specifying, installing, and commissioning a wide range of UPS systems.  This knowledge will benefit both our existing and new clients, enabling Tim to provide trusted advice as an Engineer in the optimal design and delivery of critical power applications for a variety of facilities. “Tim has specified and delivered critical power equipment for offshore installations for oil, gas, and nuclear industries. He has also worked with National Defence contracts for Ministry of Defence (MOD) and Defence Infrastructure Organisations (DIO) in locations around the world.  These types of installations adhere to strict compliance, tight system tolerances, and high levels of security. Tim’s familiarity with these projects will offer added value for those clients in the oil, gas and nuclear industries but also any organisation looking to protect critical loads with the highest levels of safety in mind.” Tim Ng, sales engineer, CENTIEL explains: “Working for other vendors you see lots of different kit and as an engineer. However, sometimes you are too late into the project to influence the optimal design of a power protection solution.  I’m now excited to join CENTIEL because the products are on another level in terms of the quality of design and components.  Moving over to the sales side, means I can now ensure that clients have the highest quality UPS solution to match their needs, supported by the technical advice from an engineer.” Tim Ng joins CENTIEL from Dale Power Solutions where he spent several years in the servicing department completing turnkey projects, he also led a team of service engineers.  He also worked at Paul Anton Ltd as a UPS field service engineer, responsible for UPS service, maintenance, and repair and has an HND in Electronic Engineering. CENTIEL is a Swiss-based technology company designing, manufacturing, and delivering industry-leading power protection solutions for critical facilities.  Its three-phase true modular UPS, CumulusPower known for its 99.9999999% (nine, nines) availability has now been installed in datacenters and comms rooms in over 60 countries across five continents.  More than 50 MW of critical power loads are now protected with CumulusPower in locations across the world including:  the UK, Singapore, Australia, Germany, Spain, the Czech Republic, and the Channel Islands.

Hanwha Techwin launches new infrared (IR) technology panoramic camera

The NDAA compliant PNM-9031RV infrared panoramic camera, launched by Hanwha Techwin Europe, provides operators with a seamless continuous view of a wide area with no overlap or gaps. With the PNM-9031RV, operators can use fewer cameras to monitor events with the 15MP 4x lens panoramic camera in a 3:1 aspect ratio (6720 x 2240). This makes it a highly cost-effective option for organisations seeking high-quality, infrared video surveillance. WiseIR integrated infrared illuminators, alongside independent zones with auto and manual adjustment, ensure monitoring is not interrupted in low-light conditions. IR can illuminate up to 20 meters’ distance away for all four lenses of the camera. It offers a 192-degree horizontal field of view and 65-degree vertical field of view, along with a wide dynamic range of 120dB. The panoramic camera can handover events to other cameras where needed. This high image quality is complemented by automatic image stitching that provides an uninterrupted single image view of what’s happening over a wide area. Operators can set areas of interest to focus on through virtual channels that can trigger alerts using Intelligent Video Analytics (IVA). Video analytics incorporated in the PNM-9031RV panoramic camera includes motion detection, defocus detection, virtual line, enter/exit detection, audio detection, heat-mapping, and appear/disappear. This enables operators to understand more about the usage and risks of an area, for example, by seeing regions of high and low activity in the monitored area. It is quick and easy to install the PNM-9031RV camera thanks to its hanging hinge, metal cord harness, and push mount clips. The camera comes with a USB connector for easy setup via a computer, or via Wi-Fi using an optional USB dongle and the Wisenet Installation App. Uri Guterman, Head of Product & Marketing for Hanwha Techwin Europe, says “We are very excited to add this IR panoramic camera to our portfolio as it offers breakthrough technology very cost-effectively”. Additional key features The camera also comes with the following additional features: WiseStream II - an advanced video compression technology based on motion analytics to maintain video quality while lowering data demands. Meets FIPS 140-2 level 2 and is TPM 2.0 (Trusted Platform Module) to further protect data streaming from the camera. A hard-coated dome bubble, rubber seals, and metal body provide protection against weather, vandalism, and tampering. It is protected from total dust ingress (IP66 and NEMA 4X) An IK10 rating — the highest rating for physical damage protection against most forms of human-based vandalism.

Hammond’s new stainless enclosures for hygienic applications

Hammond Electronics’ new HYJ Series IP69/IP69K 304 stainless steel enclosures are designed for use in manufacturing areas where maintaining hygiene standards and avoiding contamination build-up are critical considerations. They withstand regular high temperature, high pressure washdown and there are no dirt traps where contaminants could gather. The family is initially available in five sizes from 202 x 124 x 102 to 416 x 338 x 203mm. The symmetric rectangular design means that the units can be vertically or horizontally surface mounted. All sides slope to ensure that water quickly drains off after spray cleaning, and a super-smooth finish stops water pooling. There are no slotted screw heads, quarter turn latches or welded mounting brackets which can be difficult to clean areas; the front cover is secured to the body with crevice-free hex head bolts fitted with an external silicone washer. The distinctive blue coloured "hygiene" silicone gasket is fitted beyond the cover edges and it is easily removable for cleaning or replacement. To eliminate difficult to clean areas behind the enclosure, stand-offs, available in four different lengths, ensure that the HYJ is fixed well proud of the wall so that all faces can be washed down. Simultaneously launched are the complementary HYPB pushbutton family for machine and process control. They are available with 22.5 or 30.5mm holes arranged in a single row of one, two, three or four holes, two rows with four holes arranged in two rows of two or two rows with six holes arranged in two rows of three.

Schneider Electric launches new Tender Specification Tool in Ireland

Schneider Electric has launched its new Tender Specification tool in Ireland. This comes as part of the company’s broader efforts to help Irish specifiers, architects, engineers, and designers overcome modern challenges through enhanced digital capabilities. The online tool helps professionals work smarter, reduce risk of delays and cost overruns, and deliver projects more efficiently. It offers complete information on available products and solutions, systems and software aligned with current standards and regulations, provided through a seamless user experience. The new Irish tool is comprised of 3 chapters: Electrical: offers the capability to create Medium Voltage and Low Voltage Switchgear, and final distribution specifications with the latest product innovations and standards Mechanical & Control (BMS): includes the ability to generate functional designs for building management systems, smart buildings, building integration, room control and digital services readiness Sustainability: enables users to meet sustainable design standards, including Part L, BREAM, LEEDS, circular economy and Green Premium regulations A helping hand for Irish engineers Available through the mySchneider Partner Portal, the platform enables consultants to quickly create tender blueprints and create specifications from scratch or pre-existing templates. It features simple functionality, letting specifiers take product information from a vast library of industry solutions and quickly drop it into their tender templates. Product, standards and solution documentation is constantly updated, giving users one easy place for the most up-to-date information on all current design needs. For complex designs or less-experienced consultants, the tool also offers customisable templates for common customer architectures and frameworks for large and complex buildings. Users can save ‘in-progress’ specifications and easily share them with colleagues in-platform. Once a specification is complete, it can be downloaded straight from the tool and in a plain text format, making it easy for consultants to tweak for their tender templates. The devil is in the detail When a company issues a design scope, inviting consultants to propose the building’s electrical and mechanical infrastructure, submissions must be detailed or risk being inaccurate and therefore removed. This new tool empowers consultant engineers to meet the level of detail required in a highly competitive landscape. “A well-written specification can be the difference between a successful project and one marred by delays, cost overruns, and conflicts,” says Mark Keogh, VP Buildings & Industry at Schneider Electric Ireland. “Because Schneider Electric data is available within the platform, it’s easy to find and completely specify products and systems, eliminating the problem of incomplete specifications. Setting our customers up for success is at the heart of all our innovations, and this new tool is another way we’re giving Schneider Electric users a competitive edge.”

New senior executive to drive Seaward's US growth

Seaward Electronic has appointed a new vice president and chief operating officer to lead the expansion and growth of its US operations. Sean Daley takes up the role after building a successful career working with businesses across the US including a recent role as an international regional sales manager for an emergency power system manufacturer and supplier. A business management and marketing graduate from Lindenwood University in St. Louis, he brings considerable industry experience and expertise in lighting, surge protection and electrical products to the role. He has worked on both the manufacturing and distribution side of business as well as taking on commercial development, technical and sales management tasks and responsibilities in an extensive and varied career. In joining Seaward Group USA, Sean will be leading a team from the company’s Tampa Bay, Florida head office at a time when there are major opportunities to develop current and new markets across the country on the back of sector leading products, new launches and technical innovation. He says: “Seaward’s history, reputation and leadership were major attractions to me and I’m excited to be working alongside people who share my vision for quality, customer service and innovation. “This is an exciting time for the business and the opportunities to develop it further are huge - our future is bright and Seaward’s reputation for technical innovation will be a continuing part of our success. Together with creating products customers want, we will secure our position as a trusted industry adviser by becoming the gold standard for technical support and customer service.” Seaward is part of Metrawatt’s GMC Instrumentation Group, a collaboration of separate specialist test equipment manufacturing businesses based in Germany, Switzerland and the USA. Chris Callan, CEO at Seaward, says: “We would like to welcome Sean to Seaward and very much looking forward to working with him. We believe that strengthening the US management team with this new appointment provides the basis for continued growth for Seaward and benefit of our international customer base.” Employing around 170 people, the Seaward Group is a market leading manufacturer of electronic test and measurement instruments used in a wide variety of electrical, medical, industrial and energy sector applications. Seaward Group USA supplies a wide range of electrical safety instruments to ensure the safety of any product or appliance from the design, compliance and manufacturing stages through to servicing repair and calibration. This includes advanced technology laboratory and production line testers capable of carrying out hi-pot, ground bond and a variety of other tests, as well as EMC test equipment. Based in Florida, the company has an extensive national US sales, service and calibration capability.

Housing Safety and Wellbeing taskforce launched by Aico

Aico are pleased to announce the official launch of the Housing Safety & Wellbeing Taskforce, which due to COVID-19 precautions, took place online on the 13th January 2022. We were delighted to be joined by Sir Peter Bottomley MP, who introduced the initiative and paid tribute to the late Sir David Amess MP, who had lent us valued support during our original planning phase. The Housing Safety & Wellbeing Taskforce will bring together partners from the public, private, and charitable sector across all nations of the UK to discuss the key issues involved in creating safer homes and making recommendations for action. The Taskforce framework will enable all involved to work together collaboratively, and the organisation will be strictly non commercial and non-partisan, committed to promoting a holistic approach to housing safety and resident wellbeing. There will be six strands to the work of the Taskforce, each with their own ‘Ambassador’ to lead the discussions and co-ordinate activity: Health & Wellbeing, Net Zero & Decarbonisation, Resident Engagement, Housing Quality, Fire & Carbon Monoxide Safety, and Fuel Poverty. These ambassadors were announced at our launch event and are drawn from the housing, fire service, and academic sectors. They will be actively encouraging participation from any interested parties. Since the advent of devolution over twenty years ago, domestic fire safety regulation has varied drastically across the four nations of the UK, with Scotland’s legislation now set to become the most stringent with the introduction of new standards this year. There is considerable divergence across the UK in terms of requirements for sprinkler systems, carbon monoxide detectors, and other safety measures for domestic properties. At our launch event, the Housing Safety & Wellbeing Taskforce has unveiled a study from CEBR (Centre for Economics & Business Research) which is a seminal piece of research, combining a statistical analysis of fire incidence across the UK, a summary of the relevant legislation, and a holistic examination of the human and economic impact of fire, based on official data and a specially commissioned YouGov survey. The study delves into recent dwelling fires and demonstrates that the rate of reduction in fire incidents, running in tandem with new regulations, has slowed in recent years. With estimated annual costs of residential fires now exceeding £1billion, the research then goes on to examine in detail the potential impact and cost savings associated with tighter restrictions. Tina Mistry, Relationships Manager at Aico, and Taskforce Co-ordinator, comments: “Given the trends highlighted by CEBR’s excellent research, the Taskforce will hit the ground running to discuss the implications of the data and potential actions as a result. I am hugely excited by the cross-sector, cross-party support we’ve received for the Housing Safety & Wellbeing Taskforce, and hope to forge a new consensus to address the vital priority of making everyone feel safer in their own homes.” Paul Dockerill, Director of Energy & Programme Manager at whg, adds: “It’s a huge honour to be appointed as the Ambassador for the Resident Engagement Task. Now more than ever we need to work with our customers and create a culture where residents are able to raise any concerns and feel empowered to contribute to the future of their homes and communities. The Housing Safety & Wellbeing Taskforce is a really exciting initiative that will help us do just that, bringing social housing landlords and their customers together, so that we are able to deliver the resident engagement strategies of the social white paper.”

Lighthouse SOS - it might be Blue Monday but help is always available

This year sees Blue Monday fall on 17th January and it’s meant to be the most depressing day of the year. Analysts have put this down to a multitude of factors, including everything from the distance from Christmas, debt levels, failed New Year’s resolutions and the wintery weather. But the Lighthouse Construction Industry Charity wants to share a message of hope with everyone and show that even in the face of extreme adversity there is always help and support available. Today, they tell the story of Iain Miller, who runs his own company, Evolve Plumbing and Heating in Dunfermline, who’s house was destroyed in a fire in December 2020. He vowed to rebuild it from the ‘bare bones’ and thanks to help from the charity and their supporters, his family were back in their home to enjoy Christmas last month. Iain has been in the trade for 25 years and started out as an apprentice. In December 2020 he had been out sledging with his daughters Holly and Casey. Iain continues the story in his own words. “When we got home, I lit the coal fire to get everyone warmed up. When the fire had died down, we went out to the hot tub in the back garden. We’d been there for about an hour when Casey decided to get out and go inside. As she got out, I noticed the hot tub lights were flickering. Casey opened the back doors and a massive plume of black smoke came out. I ran into the house, but it was pure black with smoke, the electrics had tripped so the house was in darkness. The only thing you could see was fire. I sent the kids to the top of the garden and had to go in and save the dog. As soon as I saw the fire, I knew I couldn’t fight it – it was far too big. I got everyone out, we were all in our swim gear, snow on the ground, and then the windows blew. We went to our neighbours and watched the house go up in flames. It was awful but at least we all got out safely. I contacted my insurance company and then had more devastating news. My home insurance had just lapsed. I was on my own. A structural engineer checked the house and deemed it safe to rebuild, but it would need stripping back to the bare bones. We were lucky the windows blew out because that meant that the heat had gone out and up. I decided to swap the layout of the house round. I didn’t want Holly and Casey coming in and saying, “That’s where the fire was”, I wanted it to look different. I promised them I would rebuild and that we’d be back in by Christmas 2021.” That promise was kept with a huge amount of help from the Lighthouse Construction Industry Charity and their supporters. The biggest challenge was the roof. Iain had been let down three times by roofers who said they’d come but then didn’t. Lighthouse Charity partner, Carey Group, arranged for scaffolding to be erected which was fundamental to getting the roofing completed and something that Iain simply wouldn't have been able to afford. Gallagher Group, another staunch supporter of the charity, supplied all the plasterboard for the rebuild. The charity funded the cost of a new kitchen. Iain adds, “I was visited by Mark Everett, a Lighthouse volunteer and former charity Trustee who supported me through the initial stages and later by Andy Stevens, a Lighthouse Charity Ambassador and tradesman himself who really understood the magnitude of the work that had been done. I want to say a massive thank you to the Lighthouse Club, my kids are my world, everything I do is for them, I just wouldn’t have been able to have kept my promise to Holly and Casey without their help.”

New appointments for ESP as business growth continues

As demand for its products across all categories continues to rise, ESP has made two new appointments within the sales team to strengthen its support for existing customers and continue to develop new business opportunities. Gary Sealey is the new area sales manager for the South West region, while Adam Chalkley has made the move from Scolmore Group company, Unicrimp, to take up the position of area sales manager for the North West region. Adam brings with him 10 years’ experience in the electrical industry, starting out in a sales role with a leading wholesaler and moving up the career ladder with roles with a number of key lighting and electrical accessories manufacturers.  Having moved from Unicrimp to ESP he is looking forward to utilising this valuable experience to promote and expand the growing ESP portfolio of products which currently includes CCTV, Access Control, Fire Protection, Emergency Lighting, Essentials, Sangamo and the recently launched Fort Smart Security range. Gary takes up his new position following more than seven years in the role of regional sales manager in the electrical sector.  His previous experience includes a lighting wholesaler, as well as a supplier of electrical power distribution solutions for industrial, commercial, and domestic settings. Adam and Gary join ESP at an exciting time for the company with a number of significant new product launches having recently taken place.  These include the revamp of the Sangamo heating and timer controls range, the relaunch of the Rekor 2MP CCTV range and most recently the launch of the brand new Fort Smart Security range. They will be instrumental in developing and implementing strategic sales plans to bring these new products to an expanded customer base and solidifying ESP’s presence in the region.  They will be responsible for building on established relationships with customers and contractors, as well as forging new business partnerships.