SELECT offers training facility for use as a COVID vaccination centre

SELECT is throwing its weight behind the Government’s vaccination roll-out, with the offer of a ready-to-use facility which could accommodate hundreds of people. The campaigning body for the electrotechnical industry in Scotland has offered its training centre at its Bush Estate HQ near Penicuik, Midlothian, to NHS professionals behind one of the greatest public health efforts the country has ever seen. The training centre, with its own separate entrance and exit, would be ideally suited to movements of large numbers of people. It is a standalone area with three large, individual rooms, each of which can cater for up to 50 people at a time. The proposal is the latest initiative from SELECT, which has been at the forefront of help, advice and guidance to the construction sector over the course of the pandemic and which recently issued detailed advice on vaccinations to its member companies from an employment perspective. Alan Wilson, Managing Director of SELECT, says: “SELECT has played a leading role in the fight against this terrible virus for nearly a year now, particularly in its initiation of, and participation in, the Construction Industry Coronavirus Forum. “However, we are always keen to offer additional support so  we have been in touch with the Scottish Government’s COVID-19 Offers of Support access point to alert them to the potential of using our Penicuik training centre. “It is well placed for large population centres around Midlothian, and is fully compliant with health and safety standards, which of course are a primary consideration in all SELECT training programmes. The facility has a defibrillator on site as well as a kitchen, toilets and a rest room. There is also ample parking. “We hope the centre may be of use to the vaccination effort and we will stand by ready to work closely with the Health Board teams if it is required.” Feedback from members on SELECT’s vaccination guidance has been positive, as has the response to the organisation’s wider support to the trade over last spring’s shutdown and the subsequent restrictions necessary for safe working on site. The association is also holding a Digital Drop-In for members on Thursday February 11, which will focus on answering questions on vaccinations and any other COVID-related issues members may have. The format will be similar to webinars held last year which also elicited a positive response.

Recolight sets ambitious goal to be carbon neutral by 2030

Recolight has set a target to be net zero carbon by 2030. The target, agreed by the Recolight board in January, will cover all Recolight’s operations. Commenting on the news, Recolight CEO Nigel Harvey says “As a recycling compliance scheme, Recolight is already committed to limiting the environmental impact of the services we provide.  But now we want to go much further.  Although recycling activities are undoubtedly beneficial for the environment, they still come with a carbon cost. We want to change that.” A recycling service can produce significant benefits. For example when aluminium is recycled, that avoids the need to extract the metal from bauxite, a process that is very energy intensive.  However, a collection and recycling service also incurs material carbon costs, particularly when waste is transported from collection point to recycler. Harvey adds “Dealing with the transport carbon will be particularly challenging.  In our next tender for transport services and treatment services, due at the end of this year, 25% of the evaluation points will be awarded for robust plans and actions towards achieving net zero.” To provide an incentive and roadmap to help the industry work towards net zero carbon Recolight plans to make up to £50,000 available, on a competitive basis. This is intended to help companies establish low carbon collection, or recycling, of waste lamps. Harvey concludes “This is not going to be easy. But we are determined to make it happen. What is more, wherever possible, we will avoid carbon offsets and similar creative carbon accounting.  We need a root and branch change of the way we operate.  That will probably only be possible if others in the WEEE and recycling industries also play their parts.”

JIB releases its 2020 annual review

It is easy for an Annual Review to focus on the many problems 2020 brought to the electrical contracting industry. The Joint Industry Board (JIB) releases its 2020 Annual Review by recapping its key announcements and achievements from last year. The speed and spread of Coronavirus made 2020 one of the most difficult years in living memory. The JIB responded quickly, handling over 2,000 telephone calls and opening a Coronavirus Hub on the JIB website, which received almost 9,000 visitors. It also sent out newsletters to keep members up to date with developments and hosted a series of webinars which attracted more than 1,000 attendees. The JIB website has continued to be a vital source of information for JIB members, with more than 89,000 downloads of the JIB Handbook and over 4,500 visitors to the Coronavirus Job Retention Scheme webpage. Since 1968, when its disputes resolutions facility was set up, JIB has played a crucial role resolving industrial disputes. In 2020 JIB resolved over 100 disputes by way of pre-claim conciliation. The year saw several key appointments. Sylvia Cashman and Sir Brendan Barber joined the JIB National Board as Public Interest Members. Phil Wilbraham was appointed as the new Chair of the Electrotechnical Certification Scheme (ECS) Steering Committee. The Annual Review highlights some impressive level of support from the ECS as well. In 2020 more than 250 companies signed up to ECS Check, a new online system from the ECS that allows clients, contractors and others to verify the ECS card status of electrotechnical workers, and there are now 175,000 ECS cards registered in the UK. On average, 1,400 ECS applications were received on a weekly basis, with the majority being turned around within two weeks. Jay Parmar, Chief Executive of the JIB, says: “Despite 2020 being a hugely challenging year, the JIB endeavoured to adopt a ‘business as usual’ approach wherever possible, meaning we were able to achieve some significant industry breakthroughs at the same time as doing our best to help our members and their workforce through a very difficult time. “The JIB has also strengthened its plans to ensure it attracts the talent and promotes the skills to deliver the UK’s ambitious green economic recovery, supported through the JIB’s Business Plan, which aims to build on the longer-term strategic priorities of raising employment standards, achieving significant business growth and creating a safer built environment.”

More 'eyes' on the network to stop power cuts before they happen

Futuristic technology designed to prevent power cuts is being trialled by UK Power Networks. The electricity distributor is testing Distribution Fault Anticipation (DFA) technology in the South East and East of England as a way to spot network faults, before they interrupt people’s supplies. The DFA-Plus device monitors voltage and current on electricity circuits and matches any abnormal waveforms with a library of most likely causes. The system works at high sampling rates to detect even tiny disturbances on the network that are not usually visible using traditional network protection devices. During testing, the technology revealed disturbances on two separate cable terminations, up to eight weeks before they interrupted power supplies. It also showed that when third party workers accidentally damaged the outer sheath of a high voltage cable (though not sufficient to cause the circuit to trip) the DFA detected disturbances on the cable and it faulted weeks later. The trial is a collaboration between UK Power Networks, Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks, Lord Consulting in New Zealand, Nortech Management Limited and Energy Innovation Centre, funded by Ofgem’s Network Innovation Allowance. UK Power Networks has installed 10 devices, each about the size of a small games console, at primary substations. Each one continuously monitors an 11,000 or 33,000-volt electricity circuit up to several kilometres long, serving thousands of homes and businesses. The sites include Aldreth in Cambridgeshire, Bungay in Suffolk, Canterbury, Chartham, New Romney, Broad Oak and Strood in Kent. Engineers will install one more at Caddington in Bedfordshire, and plan to order five more. Chino Atako, senior asset engineer at UK Power Networks, says: “The advantage of using these units is that we now have more eyes on the network to see things we wouldn’t normally be able to see - which could enable a quicker, cheaper, more proactive approach to fault location and repairs. “Traditionally, repairs are carried out after a fault which has led to customers losing supplies, but such events are preceded by pre-fault events we cannot usually see. If we could identify these we can further increase the reliability and efficiency of our network and cut the cost of repairs.” There are also post-fault advantages to the approach. For example, if a cable trips out due to contact with a tree branch, engineers would usually need to patrol the whole route before they can complete repairs, but in the trial they are using fault passage indicators to pinpoint the fault location to within a few hundred metres. This technology has the potential to reduce costs because engineers only need to patrol a few hundred metres of power lines, rather than several kilometres and they can carry out pre-emptive fault repairs on components before they lead to a more significant failure. Project partners Scottish and Southern Electricity Networks (SSEN) will install 15 individual units on its southern network, which serves 3.1 million customers across areas including Berkshire, Hampshire, Oxfordshire, Wiltshire and West London. The trial runs until February 2022 when the team aim to validate the approach that faults can be pre-empted by monitoring high voltage feeders in real time at very high sample rates.

Nexans wins major frame contract as RTE makes 'The greener choice'

Gilles Etheimer, Purchasing Director of RTE, states: "RTE's mission is to adapt the power grid to the energy transition by guaranteeing the security of power supply to the French people at a lower economic, environmental and visual cost.  As we have already had the opportunity to reiterate through "The Greener Choice", an open letter sent by RTE, ELIA, REN, TENNET, RED ELECTRICA, NG and TERNA to their suppliers in November 2020, we expect the winners of our contracts to have a strong ambition regarding environmental and societal issues. Nexans receives a significant share of the volumes and we are counting on them as a long-term partner to continue to make a difference both in terms of quality and the environment for a more sustainable world.” Christopher Guérin, CEO of Nexans, says: “As France’s Transmission System Operator, RTE is at the center of the transition towards a more sustainable and carbon-free world. By reinforcing our long term partnership with RTE, we strengthen Nexans’ ambition to be a leader in electrification and the global energy transition. The partnership extends well beyond this frame agreement as we are working on individual projects such as supplying the 225 kV power export cables for the Saint-Brieuc offshore wind farm in the English Channel. Together, RTE and Nexans are electrifying the future.”

Bosch Professional UK launches new Instagram channel

Bosch Professional has announced the launch of its UK Instagram channel. The new channel builds on the success of its award-winning UK Facebook channel, that now has over 45,000 followers. The new Instagram channel will offer tradespeople the opportunity to get all the latest news and information on the latest power tools, measuring tools and accessories from its popular range of tools. Alongside news, it will feature regular tool reviews and opinions from a wide range of well-known tradespeople including electricians, plumbers and heating engineers, carpenters, tilers, general construction etc. They will show the tools in use and give their genuine honest thoughts on the tools, for all UK tradespeople to see. The channel will also showcase videos and information on its latest innovative technologies such as BITURBO Technology. Highlighting its revolutionary performance thanks to the high-performance brushless motor which exploits the full potential of ProCORE18V batteries, so that tradespeople can conquer even the most challenging tasks. The social channel will launch in February with a big competition offering tradespeople the chance to win a number of tools from the BITURBO range including: GWX 18V-15 SC X-LOCK Angle Grinder GKS 18V-68 GC Circular Saw GBH 18V-45 C Rotary Hammer GCM 18V-216 Cordless Mitre Saw The channel will also offer UK tradespeople the chance to apply to become a tool tester. You may have heard of #builtwithBosch, where tradespeople apply to become product testers. Every few months Bosch runs a new round where tools are sent out free of charge for testers to put through their paces on site, and then share their thoughts on social media. The best part, they get to keep the tools for free after. Now, with the launch of their UK Instagram page, Bosch are taking this to a whole new level. Rather than limiting tester numbers to just a few per round, Bosch wants to expand and give hundreds more people the chance to get involved. The full details of which tools and accessories that lucky applicants will be getting their hands on in 2021 hasn’t been revealed yet, but they will be from the new BITURBO Brushless range, their most powerful cordless 18V tools yet.

J S Wright appoints new Mechanical Project Manager

Leading mechanical and electrical building services specialist J S Wright has appointed a new Mechanical Project Manager to its project management team. Based at the Birmingham headquarters of the 131-year-old company, Gerry McNally has no less than 40 years of experience across the retail, commercial, education, leisure, healthcare, hotel and public sectors of the industry. Gerry was previously project manager for the Birmingham branch of another M&E services provider where his credits included managing the installation of the mechanical services for the recent refurbishment of the Grade II-listed Studley Castle Hotel in Warwickshire. He is currently working on an £8million project to fit out 276 new apartments within the second phase of the £220million London Square mixed-use development in Bermondsey, including the installation of its heating, ventilation, sanitaryware, fire protection and drainage systems. Phil Leech, Managing Director of J S Wright, says: “Gerry’s vast experience will prove invaluable as we continue to grow steadily as the preferred supplier of mechanical and electrical services to businesses we choose to work with.” Established in Birmingham in 1890, J S Wright designs, manufactures, installs and maintains mechanical and electrical services for the hotel, residential, social housing, student accommodation, leisure and commercial sectors. The company was voted one of the UK's Top Ten Specialist Contractors to Work For in the 2016 Construction Enquirer Awards, was a finalist in three categories in the 2018 H&V News Awards and was named Construction Services Employer of the Year in the 2020 BAME Apprenticeship Awards.

Powell Electronics signs European deal with EMC leader

Powell Electronics has signed a Pan-European franchise distribution agreement with P & P Technology, one of Europe's leading manufacturers of radio frequency and electromagnetic interference (RF & EMI) shielding solutions. Whether providing recommendations at the concept stage of a design, providing support on a retrofit application or establishing a more cost-effective solution on a legacy project, P & P Technology have a solution to fit. As well as providing high quality products, P & P Technology also offer short lead-times and competitive pricing. Powell is stocking a broad portfolio of P & P Technology’s EMC products at their state-of-the-art warehouse facilities outside Dublin, Ireland. Included in the range are EMC gaskets and o-rings to fit all standard connector profiles, ‘honeycomb’ EMI shielded vents and a wide range of conductive elastomers, including conductive particles in silicone and oriented wires in silicone, both designed to provide high EMI screening performance and excellent environmental protection. Commented Powell Electronics’ European MD, Gary Evans says: “P & P Technology offers one of the widest ranges of EMI shielding solutions on the market, this complemented with their extensive technical knowledge, extremely competitive prices and fast turnaround times make P & P a good fit to the Powell range of franchises.” Added Lewis Richmond, Sales Manager for P & P Technology comments: “Most of our products are custom-fabricated so it is important that we have a distribution partner that is able to establish the customer’s unique requirements and provide technical design-in support. With the opening of its new European HQ and warehouse, Powell is the perfect partner for P & P.”  

BSIA launches ethical Automated Facial Recognition framework

The British Security Industry Association’s (BSIA) video surveillance section has launched an ethical and legal use guide for Automated Facial Recognition (AFR). The guide is the first of its kind, following recommendations on responsible use of Artificial Intelligence (AI) by the Organisation for Economic Co-operation and Development (OECD), and encompasses useful terms and abbreviations, ethical uses, and more. The guide has a specific focus on distinctive application types verification (is it you?) and identification (who is it?). Both industry experts and the general public should be able to understand the framework as it is aimed at all levels, whilst matching key messaging with that of the UK Government’s Surveillance Camera Commissioner. Dave Wilkinson, Director of Technical Services at the BSIA who is leading the BSIA’s AFR working group says: “This collaborative piece of work among industry experts has produced a guide with advice and recommendations on ethical and legal AFR usage, which will appeal to anyone in or out of the physical security industry. Its aim is to ensure it does not cause harm or discriminate against any persons in either a public or private setting. “The use of AI is an exponentially growing part of daily life and we must ensure that all stakeholders are aware of the ethical and legal considerations of using these solutions. If not, this beneficial technology could be misused, leading to loss of trust and increased scepticism of the technology. We want to make sure the general public know that this ethical and legal guidance is out there for companies to follow. Compliance with the law is paramount using this technology, and this guide will provide companies with the basis to demonstrate their commitment to complying with the ethical realities, consequences and impacts of using an AI/AFR solution.” The guide showcases a precise picture of how AFR works and is designed to remind users of what to consider before adding a facial recognition solution to their security system. Automated Facial Recognition: A Guide to ethical and legal use is available to download on the BSIA website and the working group looks to further develop this guidance document into a Code of Practice or British Standard.

Certsure announces the retirement of the ELECSA brand

Certsure has announced plans to retire the ELECSA brand from all of its schemes. Starting 26th April 2021, the organisation will begin to transfer ELECSA customers over to the NICEIC brand. The transition of all ELECSA customers will be completed by November 2022. Today marks an important moment in Certsure’s history as the company announces the retirement of the ELECSA brand.  The step, which will see ELECSA customers transferring to the NICEIC brand over a period of 18 months, is a pivotal move for the organisation as they seek to strengthen their position as the leading certification body for the building services industry. Kevan Parker, Managing Director of Certsure says: “Today is the start of a process of working with our ELECSA customers to move them seamlessly to the NICEIC brand. “Historically we have operated the two brands both wedded to our core values of delivering technical excellence and raising standards.  However, our assessment processes and the assessors who deliver them are the same. So too is the customer service and technical helpline teams that work behind the scenes. “In addition, we know that verifiers and consumers have 13 times greater awareness of the NICEIC brand compared to all other electrical certification bodies and thus we want to focus our resources and attention on just one brand.” He goes on to say; “Customers who are registered with ELECSA will be contacted six weeks prior to their renewal date. In this discussion they will be invited to transfer and will be walked through the support available. We will work with our customers to understand how it will affect them. Our aim is to make the transfer as seamless as possible.  If ELECSA customers want to move across sooner, we will help with that process. “We know that customers from both ELECSA and NICEIC may have queries about today’s announcement, so we have set up a frequently asked questions page on our website to support them. Our team are also on hand to answer queries directly. “As we begin this process, we look forward to continuing to work together with customers– and continuing to ensure the technical integrity of the profession.”