Coming up on this week's news is it ever okay to mix different brands of switch gear on a board the  IET steps into the debate electrical training firm Quickstep goes bust if you're affected  we tell you what you can do about it and the electrician simulation game that's become an  unlikely hit with teenagers welcome to Electrical News Weekly whether you're listening in the van  on site 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 this week's challenge word competition is  supported by our friends over at Brady printers they're exhibiting at the Elex show at Ally Pally  in London on the 27th and 28th of march which is this thursday and friday so it's your last chance  to book your tickets to see the great kit they've got on offer and 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 can you mix different brands of switch gear in consumer units and distribution  boards that's the question the authors of the wiring regulations have acted to address this  week the IET points out that BS7671 doesn't explicitly rule out different brands sitting  side by side in a board but the organisation stresses that you can only insert into assemblies  components that are approved by that manufacturer the main reason is heat the experts are worried  that inappropriate circuit breakers or SPDs can affect heat dissipation and potentially cause  overheating in adjacent devices you may also be invalidating the warranty all this seems to  suggest that you can for instance only use Hager gear in a Hager board but not quite an installer  can deviate from this but it means you're taking the scary step of assuming the same responsibility  as the original manufacturer you'll also need to seek approval from the board maker for any  modifications you make and that includes putting in kit from other brands you'll need this approval  in writing and you'll need to include it with the final certificates so in short you can do it but  you need the paperwork the workaround of course is to install differently branded switch gear such as  circuit breakers and surge protection devices in a separate assembly this the IET agrees is  the simplest and the safest option we're working on a q&a video on this subject for ENW sponsors  CPN Cudis so watch this space for that in the meantime i've put a link to the full document in  the show notes in other news independent training provider CTD Quickstep has gone into insolvency  the company helped electricians gain their gold cards with level three experienced worker awards  and NVQ diplomas some 3,000 installers have gained qualifications from the firm since it started in  2001 learners pay up to £1,800 for the courses and many now fear losing their money many of  the certificates for CTD Quickstep graduates were provided by awarding organisation EAL EAL tells us  that it last inspected the CTD quickstep centre in Cornwall in October 2024 it says it found  no concerns about the quality of its processes and procedures EAL is urging anyone affected to  contact CTD Quickstep in the first instance they should in time get a response from the insolvency  practitioners in the meantime they should download their electronic portfolio and learning records or  print out a hard copy EAL has also set up a form for affected individuals to submit their details  this will establish how many active EAL learners are impacted and allow it to contact you directly  if you're not registered with the eal you'll be signposted to other awarding organisations the  link to the form is in the show notes before we turn to this week's hot product launches  a reminder that last week's eFIXX TV live stream was a special on electrician inventors we gathered  no fewer than eight products from inspirational sparks and got six of the inventors in our studio  in person to look at how they came up with their clever solutions to everyday problems  it's a cracking watch and really insightful as to how products make the journey from inspiration to  production so i've popped the link in the show notes for you to have a watch now welcome to our  electrical news weekly feature where we focus on a specific product area this week we've gone  green for renewables it's a booming sector with lots of innovations a development we love here  at eFIXX is PV Stop this is a unique spray that you use in an emergency to black out solar panels  to stop them generating electricity it comes in a metal bottle like a fire extinguisher and say  the inventors it was developed for a simple reason you can't turn off a PV panel as long as there's  light they'll produce lethal amounts of dc power PV stop works like liquid tarpaulin says Jactone  the firm that created it when you spray it on a panel it will spread out over it rapidly and  black it out in effect it turns the panel off PV Stop is effective on all types of solar PV systems  and all types of inverters the people at PV Stop now want your view on this unique product head  over to our question of the week to give your input i've put a link to it in the show notes  another development to help in a blaze is a firefighter switch designed specifically for  solar installs that's because when you switch off the power to the house you don't turn off  the PV array german firm Weidmuller says its PV Next switch gives automatic disconnection for the  strings when the power to the house is turned off by firefighters the switch is connected to  the property's main ac power if this voltage drops to zero the box switches off within a  second if the ac power supply is merely disrupted due to a power cut however the box automatically  switches back on once a voltage of 230 volts is restored the PV next switch works with arrays  with a maximum power point of 12 now have you ever tried to thread four separate 6 millm  cable cores through 25 mm conduit up the side of the house to put up solar panels not the easiest  job in the world in fact it's like trying to use a corkscrew as a straight edge but now there's a  solution to the conduit problem not the corkscrew thing Doncaster Cables has unveiled a dedicated  multi-core dc cable the PV ultra comes in two and four core in four six and 10 mil as well as an  SWA version in six mill the result a neater faster and safer job complimenting the cable and produced  in response to installer demand are dedicated heat shrink boots which make it super easy to terminate  you simply slip them over the pv ultra and shrink them down for a secure seal another useful launch  from doncaster this week is a special cable for tesla's power wall 3 battery pack it's designed  and tested to tesla guidelines and approved by the car maker and it contains everything you need to  wire up the unit it includes the power conductors a 12 volt power supply with pvc insulation and a  pair of data cables for connecting to the communication port they're all wrapped up  in super tough sheathing made with a specially developed carbon tech compound Eaton is hosting a  free networking evening on April the 2nd in London to coincide with solar and storage live the energy  transition networking evening will feature a CPD session on mastering commercial EV charging and  load balancing plus an exclusive look at Eaton's latest chargers industry leaders energy pros and  anyone passionate about sustainability are invited to enjoy drinks and canapes while mingling with  experts shaping the energy transition it's at the 11th hour Marshwall kicking off at 6:15 p.m  spaces are limited so make sure to register now full details are in the show notes now here's  something we love scientists in Germany have developed invisible solar panels yes really well  by invisible we mean they're designed to perfectly match the roofs of the buildings for instance  they've come up with units which look exactly like the clay tiles seen on roofs in continental Europe  the researchers say the coloured units deliver 95% of the power of standard black and they work  brilliantly on heritage buildings where solar PV panels in black would look very off-putting their  secret the boffins took inspiration from nature they reproduce the 3d photonic structure of the  wings of the Morpho butterfly of course they did i knew that and speaking of solar panels if  you're based around the Baseldon area and you need solar kit we can recommend the guys at HDM solar  they set up shop just last month and are now stocking big name brands including solax Sunsynk  rolec and growatt they also have experts if you need any technical advice on a project  there's also other branches in hull Sheffield and bournemouth tell them eFIXX sent you our last  product launch this week comes from the Chinese car maker BYD it's unveiled what it says is its  first integrated storage system for homes the battery box HVE comes with either a singlephase  hybrid inverter or a three-phase device there are two versions with capacities of 4.3 kWh and 6.5  kWh that's our electrical news weekly roundup of products that we think deserve some attention next  week we're sounding the alarm for fire safety and security off the back of our product focus feature  our question of the week was also on renewables and came from our free training package on solar  PV installs made in association with Sunsynk we asked you what would not be a consideration when  installing an inverter in a roof space the choices were adequate lighting unimpeded access a 13 amp  socket and fire detection on Linkedin some 69% of you voted for the socket and on youtube it  was 49% the good news the majority are right a 13 amp outlet is not an important consideration so  give yourselves a well-deserved pat on the back and because we refuse to act as gatekeepers to  the industry remember all of our training packages are completely free and count as an hour towards  your annual CPD requirement and finally a video game about being an electrical installer has  become an unlikely hit with gen z electrician simulator which launched in 2022 has become one  of take it studios most successful streams and this week the company launched a version for VR  headsets so after a hard week on the tools you can get home put on your headset and relax by  going back on the tools the game revolves around 30 exciting story-based missions these include  repairing an electrical socket the next level is fixing a kitchen appliance and the ultimate task  is a complete rewire of a house if you try the game let us know how you get on in the comments  i must admit although my tone has sounded a bit skeptical i am a bit of a nerd who knew right and  so i have bought this game and i'll let you know what it's like for real now 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 over the next few weeks we'll be featuring renewables  and fire safety and security so send us pictures of your installs or let us know if you've come  across any new kit that's making your job easier or any products that you think deserve a shout  out and 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 and speaking  of solar with manufacturing powered by a massive 250 megawatt solar pv array they're literally the  greenest test instrument maker in Europe both physically and ethically is KPS are you a bit  of a control freak motor controls that is if so with huge stocks and excellent service check out  Crompton Controls as they said to me in a recent conversation if we don't have it then we can build  it with their new award-winning Lumo consumer unit and offering complete product support from their  highly trained team it's CPN Cudis don't forget to use the code eFIXX30 to claim your 30% discount on  top quality light fittings from Philips and ecolink download the LumXpert app today and  make your life easier and less expensive it's the light of our lives Signify and 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 click the links in the show notes to find out more  about these great brands if you think you know the words i've smuggled into this week's show  pop your guess into the comments will take all the 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 now let's reveal the winners of last  week's challenge word competition supported by our good friends at Brady printers don't forget  to book your tickets to join them at the show at alexander palace on the 27th and 28th of march  that's this coming thursday and friday so don't miss your chance to go and see them last week's  words were toothpick and jazz hands and the first name to come out of her electronic hat was ashley  jenkins 3981 so well done to you ashley 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 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