inspection and testing in commercial.

[shaun88s]

hey, im after some advice with Inspection and Testing in a commercial premises. I work for a large facilities maintenance company on a static site and we pay a absolute fortune for a couple of sparks to come in and run a 15m length of SWA from a board to a commando socket and then do the relevant tests. IR R1R2 and so on. now if I have 2330 and more than comfortable carrying out the install and the tests then is there anything to say that I cant? if not where could I find this? any help is much appreciated.

 

[Badged01]

On just the inspection/testing question, the non-statutory 'bible' on inspection/testing so to speak is GN3 which supports the wiring regs (BS7671). This sets out the requirements for inspection and testing generally and the only stipulation I understand either make is that to be 'competent' to inspect/test you must as a minimum:

1) Have sufficient knowledge/experience of the installation to be tested ( be it the length of SWA or something more significant)
2) Have knowledge/experience of BS7671 requirements
3) Have knowledge/experience of the EAWR requirements
4) Fully understand the testing process/procedures to be used
5) Fully understand the use of the test instrumentation to be used
6) Have sufficient knowledge to interpret the inspection/test results gained and recommend/advise any required action

If you believe having a "2330" qualification (plus any other experience you may have) satisfys all of the above then I guess you can deem yourself "competent" to inspect/test the SWA. Be aware though that should anything go 'wrong' as a result of your inspection/testing the HSE and/or a court of law will have the final say on whether you are deemed 'competent' or not!

There are specific courses which will add further credibility to your competency to undertake inspection/testing (e.g. the old 2391, the 17th regs etc ....) which if you havent already got would be advisable to have before you start inspecting/testing.

Im sure you would, but before you do anything its worth speaking to the facilities maintenance manager or equivalent. The company may have its own view on what is deemed "competent" (above what Ive said) and there could even be insurance implications as to using specific 'qualified' contractors etc .....

Ultimately electricians arent paid an "absolute fortune" for something thats simple to do! (Well, no-one ever does that for me!!)

 

[SirKit Breaker]

hey, im after some advice with Inspection and Testing in a commercial premises. I work for a large facilities maintenance company on a static site and we pay a absolute fortune for a couple of sparks to come in and run a 15m length of SWA from a board to a commando socket and then do the relevant tests. IR R1R2 and so on. now if I have 2330 and more than comfortable carrying out the install and the tests then is there anything to say that I cant? if not where could I find this? any help is much appreciated.

Badged01 has made some very good comments, so i won't elaborate or add to them.

A straight answer to your question is this.

The work you are considering doing is in a commercial/industrial premises, therefore it falls under the Electricity at Work regs 1989. Nowhere in those regs does it mention you need to be qualified (hold qualifications), it merely states that you must be competent. So if you feel that you are competent enough to do the work in its entirety, then there is nothing to stop you doing it.

The only time problems will arise is if something goes wrong, then you are in a situation where you may need to prove competence, and proving it without qualifications may prove difficult.

So in a nutshell, there is nothing stopping you doing the work, if you are capable.

Cheers…………Howard

 

[tonyj1b]

Badget01 your answer to the question was spot on

 

[MDJ]

and we pay a absolute fortune for a couple of sparks to come in .

Quite right too, they may well be great blokes who are worth their weight in gold

 

[Engineer54]

All i can say is, ...if a fully qualified time served electrician with 2330/2360 with or without 2391 or whatever, isn't competent to run in 15m of SWA from DB to Commando socket and test it, ....something is Very Wrong!!!