Government Unveils New Laws to Speed Up EV Charger Installs

- Coming up on this week's news the government unveils new laws to speed up the installation of EV chargers, one wiring accessory manufacturer apologises to another for pretending that its products were made in the same factory, and the nation is alerted to a way to detect electrical circuit faults, simply smell the fish. Welcome to "Electrical News Weekly" in association with The Electric Heating Company. Whether you're listening in the van, onsite, or down at the wholesale counter, I'm Joe Robinson, and I've been through the best of the electrical industry news to save you the trouble. And as always, if you think you've spotted the two words that I've been challenged to slip into this week's show, comment with them below for the chance to win a prize. As UK electricians instal the 50,000th public electric vehicle charger this week, the government has unveiled its long awaited plan for drivers. The plan aims to turbocharge the installation of plugin points across the country. Among the measures is backing for safe methods of running cables across pavements. This is designed to help rollout charging infrastructure to drivers without off-street parking. The government says it will extend its grant to what it terms cross pavement products. It's also extending grants to EV charges in schools. Officials point out that educational buildings are everywhere in the UK and provide a perfect place for staff, visitors, and local residents to use at night, weekends, and during school holidays. Ministers are also exploring ways to cut the paperwork associated with the installation of charge points and to speed up the approval process. Finally, they say they'll look at the longstanding gripe about slow grid connections and investigate how to cut the delays in getting chargers hooked up to the network. I've put the link to the plan in the show notes. Installing EV chargers is one thing, but maintaining them is another. Experts are pointing out that there is a growing shortage of electricians to keep them in working order. Research shows that as many as one in five charging attempts by drivers failed in the first half of the year, often due to malfunctioning equipment. The scarcity of skills is particularly acute in London despite the higher proportion of electric cars in the city. The Electrical Contractor's Association says there is now a mountain to climb if the capital is to meet its targets, not just for EV, but for all low carbon installations. The green skills gap, as its termed, means Londoners can't get qualified trades people to fit heat pumps, smart buildings, and solar panels. Andrew Eldred, the ECA's electrical gladiator, or director of public affairs if you want his official job title, says electricians are essential for the transition to net zero, but London has one of the smallest number of electricians per head of population in the UK. He also points out that it also has one of the worst electrical apprentice recruitment rates. By contrast, enrollments onto college electrical courses in London are booming. College learners outnumber local apprentice starts by an astonishing 800%, but fewer than 1 in 10 of these learners manages to progress onto an apprenticeship after college. Eldred describes it as a terrible waste. The ECA is now calling on local authorities, education providers, and employers to work together to support far more learners into rewarding green electrical careers. For those with skills, a couple of new ways to prove your capabilities have been unveiled. The ECS has launched two new cards. One for technicians concentrating in building control and one for electricians specialising in cellular networks. There are six versions of the building control card including one for electrical installers. The second card is for cellular network field engineers. Electricians who work on wireless mobile equipment, including DC and AC electrical circuits and fibre cabling, are eligible to apply. In other news, homeowners and tenants are being advised of a less than pleasant way of detecting if they have electrical wiring problems at home. They're being warned to be on the alert for fishy smells. It began when 26-year-old Claudia Anderson took to social media to complain of a piscine pong in her bedroom. Her husband thought it could be a blocked drain, but this turned out to be a red herring. Initially, she was too embarrassed to discuss it, but when the odour persisted, she contacted her electrician brother-in-law. He rightly diagnosed a loose electrical connection, and sure enough, a detached wire was burning the plastic inside a back box. Anderson then took to TikTok to warn others. This hooked in the newspapers, and now the story's gone off-fish-shell. Even the charity Electrical Safety First has taken the bait. In a press release, it urged student renters to be alert for fishy smells in shared houses in university towns. After all, when it comes to ensuring that their properties are electrically safe, rogue landlords can turn slippery. If all this fishy publicity helps with keeping Britain's homes safe, then we at eFIXX are dolphinately behind it. Okay, I managed to get through all of those fish puns, but seriously, script writer Ray, a dolphin is a mammal, not a fish, and I think you know that. You little provocateur, you. Turning rapidly to product news, two rival manufacturers of wiring accessories have resolved a long running dispute over copying this week. Niglon said sorry to Scolmore and paid substantial damages after making claims about its Median product in comparison to the latter's Mode range. Niglon allegedly told customers that its products were made in the same factory using the same moulds as those of Scolmore. Scolmore sued Niglon for the infringement of its registered trademarks and for passing off its own goods as those of Scolmore. Following the settlement of the row, which dates back to 2020, Niglon says it regrets its actions and undertakes not to make any comparisons of the quality, source, or origin of its products with Scolmore's range. MK has unveiled a range of Type A miniature RCBOs. The series completes the company's Sentry domestic circuit protection portfolio. The single module devices are just 17.8 millimetres by 85 millimetres in size. MK say they simplify and speed up installation by creating greater space between the device and terminal bar when wiring. No earth connection is required. The products are available as a 30 milliamp Type A RCD in 6 to 40 amp Type B and Type C curve MCB. The new range is aimed at domestic applications with a circuit breaking capacity of 6kA. A former electrician has developed the product he always wanted when he was on the tools. Mark Watson has invented the socket and wall cover plate, which does away with the need for replastering after installing a socket. It also makes it simple to mark out the square hole. You use it by first marking the socket at 450 ml from the floor. You do your first fix, then cut the length to meet the skirting board, peel the tape, and stick it to the wall. Finally, you screw the socket on to lock it into place. The units cost six pound each, and you can get them from Mark's website. The link is in the show notes. And finally, an American EV driver was the butt of many jokes this week after a video of him charging his sports car went viral. The owner of the electric Ford Mustang held the charge cable as if it was a petrol pump and remained like that for the full 20 minutes of the charge. One social media user joked,"Did he shake it off to get the last electrons out of the wire before returning the cord to the charger?" Don't forget to join us at the ElexShow at Sandown Park Racecourse in Surrey next week. The show takes place on Thursday the 2nd of November and Friday the 3rd of November. If you see any of the eFIXX team in our distinctive red polo shirts, come and say hello. And speaking of eFIXX news, last week's question of the week drew some interesting results. The question related to three-phase installations and asked which appendix relating to the change of cable colours was removed from the regulations in the second amendment to the 18th edition? Was it Appendix 4, 5, 6, 7? Astonishingly on LinkedIn, most people got it wrong with a massive 41% being misled into thinking it was Appendix 4. 31% got it right though with Appendix 7. If you have no idea what I'm talking about or what the mysterious disappearing regulation is all about, then please check out our free training package over on our CPD website on the subject of three-phase electricity that we made in association with Lewden Palazzoli. You'll find the link in the show notes. Now, just before we get to your favourite bit of the show where I reveal last week's challenge words and winners, we want to thank our premium partners. We couldn't make the news without you. First up, they're the people who've created the Swiss Army knife of solar inverters along with all-weather batteries, very much the Boy Scouts of the solar industry, it's Sunsynk. Up next for all your circuit protection needs. They're like having an Italian star striker in your Premiership team, it's Lewden Palazzoli. And for the ultimate experience in wireless sound and home cinema with their most powerful portable speaker yet, it's the home of the Roam, Sonos. The best thing to come out of Yorkshire since stainless steel, it's Doncaster Cables, the home of EV Ultra and other groundbreaking and quality cables. Celebrating their 100th anniversary of literally creating connections in the electrical industry this year, rising from the flames like some kind of mythological avian, its Phoenix Contact. And finally, celebrating their 60th anniversary this year with incredible range of equipment from EV charge points, through industrial sockets and switches, to kit for explosive areas, plus, they supplied gear for a Campari factory, so they'll always have a place in my heart, it's SCAME. Big thanks to you all. We really appreciate your ongoing support for the news. If you think you know the words I've smuggled into this week's show, pop your guess into the comments and we'll go out a goodie bag prize to the first to get the right answers. Last week's words were sarong and anchovy, and we're back to business as usual because loads and loads if you got it right. However, the first person to get both right was guitarpup4 who came screaming in with not just the first right answers, but the first comment, full stop, so a well-deserved win. Click the get involved link in the show notes to claim your prize. Thanks for listening to this episode of "Electrical News Weekly" in association with The Electric Heating Company. Make sure you subscribe to receive the next update. Thanks for listening, and until next time, have a great week. Stay safe out there. And remember, there's no such thing as a torque-calibrated arm.