- Coming up on this week's news, electricians have begun giving their feedback on a fast track change to the wiring regs governing RCDs. A house builder is fined half a million pounds over a cable strike where a worker suffered burns to his face, and could the trade be allowed to park on double yellow lines? Welcome to Electrical News Weekly in association with Solar Trade Sales, your easy one-stop shop for all things solar, 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 if you think you 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. Those two words have even greater value this week as they could help you in your quest to win a seat on the plane to Dublin. Stay tuned for more. Electricians have been giving feedback this week on a draught change to the wiring regs. And our very own, Joe Hammond, has already created a short video explaining in under 60 seconds the problem and a solution from Proteus. The IET and the British Standards Institution unveiled the special amendment after the alarm was raised that RCDs are being incorrectly connected to power sources such as solar and battery systems. The proposed alteration to BS 7671 aims to clear up confusion over unidirectional and bidirectional RCDs. Specifically, it aims to rule out the connection of power sources such as batteries and solar installations to the load or out terminals of unidirectional devices. That's because when it trips, it permanently energises the integrated circuit and the solenoid which can then burn out. The most popular comment we got on last week's episode when we announced it was people suggesting that buying another new copy of the reg would bankrupt them quicker than a gambling addict touring Las Vegas casinos. So, for you folks, great news, the amendment will be issued as a free download that you can just slip into your existing copy. Happy days. The trade has until the 5th of June, 2024 to have its say on the changes. I've put the link for your feedback in the show notes. In other news, a social housing firm has been given a hefty fine of over half a million pounds after an employee inadvertently struck an underground cable suffering burns to his face. The MHS Homes employee had been repairing fence posts in the back garden of a tenant last year when the accident happened. A probe by the health and safety executive found that the firm hadn't provided any information to its employees on the location of underground services and did not provide suitable equipment to detect and safely excavate such services. Yet, they had previously identified the possibility of underground services in a risk assessment in 2017. Additionally, the court heard that the two employees were digging not only next to the electrical cable, but also a gas main. This heightened the risk of a fire or explosion with the potential to kill both employees and members of the public nearby. MHS Homes of Chatham Kent pleaded guilty to breaching the construction design and management regulations. The company was fined £528,000 and was paid an additional£4,000 in costs. BT has this week started converting its street cabinets to EV chargers. The company installed its first plugin point in a repurposed telecoms cabinet in East Lothian in Scotland. The containers are traditionally used for broadband and phone cabling, but many have become redundant due to changing technology. The charger is free to use during the trial period. BT says it has identified around 4,000 to 800 street cabinets across the UK that could be upgraded. The new charger in East Lothian adds to the record 6,000 public chargers that have been in the first three months of this year. Around 1,500 of these are rapid charges capable of charging a car in less than an hour. The figures released by the Department for Transport shows that there are now some 60,000 public charge points in the UK and the vast majority of those charges are installed outside where IP ratings are crucial, which brings us on to last week's question of the week. It was lifted from our free training package on IP and IK ratings that we made in association with Lewden Palazzoli and recently re-released to update to the second amendment. You'll be pleased to hear that it will be unaffected by the emergency third amendment update. The question was, what is the minimum required IP rating in BS 7671 for the horizontal top surface of barriers or enclosures? And the correct answer is, of course, IPXXD. 65% of people on YouTube got it right, but only just over half of people got it right on LinkedIn at 53%. Clearly, the CPD is very timely for the electrical industry. So, please do click the link to check that out and get some free learning. Now, if you are a driver of a van, whether electric, diesel, or petrol, there's some potentially good news this week. If a new campaign from Motoring Groups is successful, the trade could potentially be allowed to park on double yellow lines. LeaseVan is one of the organisations calling for van drivers to be legally able to park on the lines when on site or attending a maintenance job. The campaign comes after the news that a staggering 3.5 million parking fines were issued to tradespeople last year, costing them a massive £177 million. Currently, tradespeople are only allowed to stop on double yellow lines, if making a commercial delivery or a drop off. And even then, there are some times restrictions in place, which is around 20 minutes for light goods vehicles. And you must be constantly loading and unloading while parked up, and that doesn't include loading up at Greg's. Some councils offer special spaces for the trade, but these are often hard to manage, confusing and don't cover the right locations says LeaseVan. Now, the company want tradespeople to be able to legally park on double yellow lines and in restricted parking bays for as long as is necessary, while completing a job. Tim Alcock from LeaseVan says he wants the government and local authorities to rethink parking restrictions for those working on essential maintenance jobs for households and businesses. Removing parking restrictions for tradespeople where safe to do so would help the trade to do their job in a safe manner and to a high standard. All the best with that guys. In promotion news this week there's still time to enter our big trip to Dublin competition in association with ROBUS. Gary and Rick are off to the Irish capital for a taste of its famous hospitality. They'll visit ROBUS' Lighting Visitor Centre, the Guinness Brewery, and maybe a pub or three. The company will also give them a sneak peek at some great lighting kits in the works. The good news is that you can join them, if you move fast. There are 10 places up for grabs, so it should be quite a party. To enter, you watch some special videos on lighting, answer the multiple-choice questions, and it may just be the case that the challenge words I've slipped into this week's show will help you with a couple of those questions. But entries close soon and the chance to win will flicker past your eyes before you know it. So don't delay, click the link in the show notes to enter. And speaking of time running out, don't forget this Friday, the 17th of May, Gary and myself will be at Barnsley FC to support Soccer Trade. An epic football match between sparkies and plumbers to see who will be the ultimate champions. Watch stars of the electrical industry like Finney Electrical, the fastest electrician in the UK. We'll see if that applies on the pitch as well as off. CJR Electrical, Adam Dunlop, SOTA Electrical, and some plumbers compete on the football pitch. Will Gary as manager of the electrical team lose his rag and kick a water bottle across the dugout? Maybe. Will I as commentator forget the names of all the players? Oh, most definitely, whatever happens, it'll be great fun and it's coupled to a great trade show, a live band in the evening,£5,000 worth of prizes to be won on the day and a chance for a beer and a catch up with what's going on in the electrical industry. All for a mere six quid. And best of all, it's all in support of the mental health charity Mind. Click the link in the show notes and secure your ticket as they are going fast. Now, in product news, a streetlight made of wood has been unveiled by Thorlux. The luminaires housing is made from layers of European oak, which the firm says is resistant to warping or twisting. The Oaken as it's called, can also withstand exposure to extreme weather conditions and will achieve a life in excess of 20 years. The company is aiming the light at sustainability-minded councils. Screwfix has begun stocking a huge range of sockets, switches, isolators, and dimmers manufactured by the Birmingham based firm LAP. The range includes antique brass, brushed steel, black nickel, and matte black colorways. And remember, you can see lots more innovations at the Installer Show in June. Big brands at the event include myenergi, CTEK, Knipex, Makita, MCS, and Milwaukee. New for 2024 is the Get Connected Theatre. This is dedicated to the electrification of heat and the integration of smart tech in buildings. There'll be expert speakers from Heat Pump Ready, NAPIT, and the MCS among others. The eFIXX team will be there too. So, if you see anyone in one of these cool red polo shirts, come and say hello. It takes place at the National Exhibition Centre in Birmingham on the 25th, 26th and 27th of June. And just our usual reminder that we're in the market for your stories, your projects, and your recommendations as we'd like to share them with the wider eFIXX community. In the month of May, we're focused on outdoor power and lighting, vans and storage, and prosumer installations. That last one, all the more relevant with the changes to BS 7671 we mentioned at the top of the show. Send us pictures of your instals or let us know if you've come across any new kit that's making your job easier. 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 Sun Synk. Up next, for all your circuit protection needs, they're like having an Italian star striker in your Premiership team, it's Lewden and Palazzoli. And if you want to get smart, but don't know where to start, relax. Whether you need whole home entertainment, commercial-grade infrastructure, or anything in between, Snap One offers countless solutions for connected homes and businesses. Are you looking for easy to instal modular lighting solutions and emergency lighting products designed by specialists in the industry? They're ready and waiting to light up your life, it's Kosnic. And with over 35 years of manufacturing and supplying components to the electrical industry, from connectors to terminal blocks through glands and enclosures, you could say they're making all the right connections, it's Hylec KPL. The best thing to come out of Yorkshire since stainless steel, the home of EV Ultra and other groundbreaking and quality products, it's Doncaster Cables. And if you want a lesson on how to reinvent a commodity product into a stylish, but discreet feature, then look no further than D-Line Trunking. If you want to get your cables organised and tidied away in any situation, they've got a solution. With an 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 that I've smuggled into this week's show, pop your guess into the comments, we'll take all of those correct guesses and select one at random to be the winner of an eFIXX goodie bag prize. Answers submitted after about lunchtime on the Thursday after release will not be entered into the draw. And remember, the words from this week's show will help you out with successfully entering the Dublin prize draw. Now, let's reveal the winners of last week's challenge word competition. The words were centipede and hundred fold, both very appropriate words for last week's 100th episode. But as far as I can see, only one person got it right across all our platforms. Turns out using the word plethora was a bit of a red herring. Anyway, that one person was Jasonf-km5mq, which I'm guessing is not your birth name. And I've got a feeling that you might have won before Jason, but either way, well done to you. Make sure you 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 Solar Trade Sales, your easy one-stop shop for all things solar. 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.