Coming up on this week's news, an enterprising electrician unveils a rival to the trade's unpopular watchdog. A venerable name in electrical contracting calls in the administrators. And after the gloom, is there a boom? We explore some big opportunities for installers. 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. We're being lit by Flex 7 with their lightning fast pre-wired modular lighting connection system that keeps your installation times razor sharp. 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 this exclusive cap branded with Friends of the Show QuickWire and Chump Tools. And while you're there, click the links in the show notes to check out what our sponsors offer. An enterprising electrician who's fed up with the CPS providers has come up with his own organisation. Royal Leamington Spa based contractor and industry influencer David Savoury has unveiled the independent non accredited electrical contractor scheme. He says the INAEC has been produced to show solidarity for those who are dissatisfied with traditional bodies or are leaving them. Savoury's 10-year-old company David Savoury Electrical Services was originally a member of NAPIT the NICEIC the microgeneration certification scheme and the electrical contractors association. He said being accepted as a member of these bodies helped make him feel like he'd made it. But over the years he became disillusioned. He came to believe that smaller firms and one-man bands were being treated badly. That's why he's now left all of them to set one of his own up. The INAEC is a non-commercial nonprofit entity. It has just one purpose. That's to provide a common logo for the increasingly disgruntled UK electrical contractors who don't wish to be aligned with any privately run and profit-making competent person scheme. for this organisation. There's no charge, no fees, no monitoring, and no membership database. You can simply download the logo from the website. Savoury says it's to show what he terms proud independence for those who have had enough of the likes of the NICEIC and NAPIT dipping into their pockets. He points out that electricians in the UK are not licensed. They don't need to be a member of any overseeing scheme. It's possible to be both independent and legitimate so long as you can provide proof of your qualifications and insurance. While landlords looking for EICR reports typically want a member of a scheme, Savoury says any customer ought to accept certification paperwork if the contractor can show evidence of qualifications. This would include certification for City and Guild 2391 or 2394/95 or an EAL equivalent at level three as well as innate indemnity insurance. He advises those looking to employ an electrical contractor for domestic work to accept no accreditation or claim at face value. Instead, they should do their own research, check recommendations, and use a credit card for extra protection. What's your view? Would you use this logo? Are the current competent person schemes hitting the target and missing the point? Post your opinion in the comments below. And just a small trigger warning, if you choose to watch the video in which David Savoury announced this, just be aware that the language is ripe. I couldn't quite make it to the end of the video, so just bear that in mind. And if you're tired of not feeling in control, at least your lighting will be with the brand new range of green eye motion sensors from Legrand's CP Electronics Arm. Designed with ease of install, commissioning and use in mind along with 75% recycled packaging that'll cook carbon, reduce costs, and help you specify efficient future ready buildings. It's not just green eye, it'll help to make a green you. We hosted Legrand on a recent episode of eFIXX TV with guest James Wallace to take us through the benefits and avoid the pitfalls of lighting control. Definitely worth a watch that one. In other news, a venerable electrical contracting firm in the Northwest has shut up shop with the loss of 105 staff. Nanich based Gilks, which was established 60 years ago, blamed the closure on financial pressures and wider sector challenges. It's understood the company's sales plunged from 15 million in 2024 to 11 million last year. Administrator Martyn Rickles said Gilks operated in a sector with increasing cost pressures and challenging market conditions. The local MP Connor Naismith says he is pressing the administrators for assurances on redundancy payments and outstanding wages Gilks was bought by the Ethikos Group in 2020. But before you go to the bottom of the garden any earthworms, keep in mind that all is not gloom in the trade despite the depressing headlines. In fact, there are some very bright spots. For instance, the demand for heat pumps is beyond expectations. Last year, sales soared by 27%. There were no fewer than 125,000 units installed in the UK in 2025. And now the government's warm homes plan is set to add rocket fuel to the fire. The massive grants package is designed to increase annual installs of heat pumps to 450,000 by 2030. Napit says installers looking for new opportunities should get air source heat pump training to take advantage of the boom. At the other end of the project scale, lots of electrical work is about to kick off at the massive Sizewell C nuclear power plant in Suffolk. The project team has already awarded 2.5 billion pounds in contracts to nearly 300 suppliers. Now, tender notices have identified electrical works worth between 5 million and 10 million pounds. These include 132 KV systems, substations, cable pulling, and testing. The electrical contractors association is a member of the consortium behind the 40 billion pound construction. It's inviting interested firms to sign up for work on a special platform. I've put a link in the show notes. The ECA also says there'll be prestigious long-term opportunities at the Houses of Parliament in London. The historic building needs a significant refurbishment and a huge rewire. If the politicians agree to leave, the official estimate of the cost of the works is 15.6 billion pounds. If they insist on staying, it'll be an incredible 39 billion. Maybe they should send in some fake ghostbusters to scare them out or something. If you're not up for any of these big prestigious jobs, there's still a clever way to earn some cash. What about a side hustle selling your cable off cuts? Yes, it's a thing. Friend of the channel, Greencable gives you a green wheelie bin. There's no contract or service charge. You simply put in your offcuts of Twin and Earth and other non-ferris metal. They collect it, they give you money, and that's it. Thanks to all of you signed up to use the innovative service, Greencable is now expanding into new territories at a rapid pace. As well as serving central England, they are now expanding into Harrogate, York, Hull, Grimsby, Scunthorpe, and surrounding areas. If you've signed up already, they'll be in touch in the coming days to advise the next steps to receiving your wheelie bin. And if you're not signed up already, this is your opportunity to do good for the planet and earn extra cash. There are no service charges or contracts to worry about, just hassle-free collections, eliminating the headache and hassle of visiting a scrapyard. For those of you working on larger jobs, they'll collect from site and issue legally compliant documentation to prove responsible disposal of waste materials while paying highly competitive rates. The link, as ever, is in the show notes. Lewden has unveiled a promo for its popular Sienna Chargers. If you order one for just £399, you'll get an EV consumer unit absolutely free. The 7.4 kW single phase Siena has pen fault protection and features optional 4G connectivity and seamless control via the Mont app. The latter allows your customer to schedule and optimise their charging sessions. They can choose low electricity prices, low CO2, or a high level of renewable power. Additionally, they can see the current battery level, whether the cable is plugged in or if it's being charged. Connecting the charger to the cloud is easy, too, thanks to Mont's compliance with the industry standard open charge point protocol or OCP. The chargers also support solar PV integration. For installers, there's a Lewden Connect app to get the charger up and running. You can set it up using Wi-Fi, Ethernet, Bluetooth, or 4G. The free consumer unit offer is valid only via specific partners. I've put a link to the offer details in the show notes. In product news, Linian is currently marketing the Earth Rod Pro, a unique way of making Earth rod jobs easy and quick. There are two components, a reusable driver and a tip bit. You attach the driver to one end of a standard 5/8 inch copper Earth rod, and you attach the bit directly to the other end. You can then use an SDS drill to basically drill the rod into the ground, no matter what the conditions. Because the bit has a carbide tip, it will chew through any rocking debris and then remain in the ground. And remember, always make sure the ground is free from any buried electrical services prior to installing an earth rod. Use a ground penetrating radar and dig a trial pit if necessary. Those of you who make it to the end of the news will know our regular sign off. Remember, there's no such thing as a torque calibrated arm. We're big fans of torque control tools here at EIX. So, we're super pleased to give you a heads up on the Ingersoll Rand QX range of cordless tools. Inside each QX tool is a clever bit of kit which engineers call a closed loop transducer control. This is the brains of the machine. It monitors every fastening cycle and adjusts it in real time to deliver the exact torque. Rather than relying on feel, the tool actively controls the fastening process to ensure consistent results every time. Under torquing of electrical connections can lead to overheating, resistance buildup or premature failure. Equally, over torquing can damage threads, distort components, and compromise performance. The QX range is designed to remove that uncertainty and ensure fasteners are tightened precisely to specification. Ingersoll says this is particularly relevant in switch gear assemblies, inverter installations, and power distribution equipment. Correct torque on busbar connections, breaker terminations, and cable lugs is also vital to prevent hotspots and maintain safe, efficient current flow. With the QX, you can even program in multiple fastening profiles. This allows you to move between different torque requirements without constantly changing equipment. We liked it so much we've made a couple of videos with it, so check those out. Now, how about this for a bright idea? It's the Paul Russell's lamp of the week. And today, we're giving a shout out to that workhorse of the ceiling, the GU10. Back in the day, halogen versions were rated at 50 watts. This one gives out the same output as halogen at 400 lumens, but it consumes just under 5 W. This one has an ultra cool colour temperature of 6,500 Kelvin, but you can get it in a range of options. It's got a rated lifetime of 15,000 hours, which you would never have got with a halogen lamp. Now to our learner of the week slot, which is brought to you by Viper Clip for rapid, secure, and fireproof installations of cabling. And our learner this week is Eoghan Coyle. Not that one. Eoghan is currently a level two student at Walsall College. He's been posting pics on social media of his impressive work, including a mix of PVC wiring, plastic conduit, and metal containment. Great work, Eoghan. We look forward to seeing more as you develop your skills. And congratulations on being the eFIXX learner of the week in association with Viperclip. And now to the lighter side of the electrical news. Yes, it's time for a tea break with quick wire in its range of incredibly rapid electrical connectors. A sharp eyed eFIXX viewer in Australia called Matia has sent us a picture of a tradesman cruising down the highway in Adelaide. The white van is from a plumbing and gas fitting business and it's proudly enblazed with a very distinguished name. J Robinson. Matia, who works at Empowering Electrical in the City, reckons the site is disappointing news for viewers of ENW. Well, Matia, all I can say is how very dare you. To accuse me of doing a flit down under is one thing. I'd actually be up for that. But to suggest I've moved to the dark side as a mere spanner monkey. That, my antipedian friend, is an accusation too far. I'm still here. I'll still be presenting the news. And most of all, I don't touch drains. Glad we got that sorted. Thanks for getting in touch, Matia. And keep up the good work. That's the lighter side of the news in our tea break with Quickwire and their range of incredibly rapid electrical connectors. Click the link in the description to check them out for yourself. 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 like having an Italian star striker in your premiership team. It's Lewden Palazzoli and the best thing to come out of Yorkshire since stainless steel, the home of EV Ultra and other groundbreaking and quality products, is Doncaster Cables. Click the links in the show notes to find out more about these great brands. 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 the correct guesses and select one at random to be the winner of an eFIXX goodie bag prize. Answers submitted after midnight on the Wednesday after release will not be entered into the draw. Now, let's reveal the winners of last week's challenge word competition. Last week's words were tiramisu and hyena and a lot of you got it right including Mark just Mark who's clearly back on top form and both of last week's winners with Jason and Dave Friselle getting it right and Dave offered a handsome apology for winning again. He's proposed that he stops entering the competition but I simply won't hear of it. You can't help having ears like a bat Dave. However, the person to come out of our electronic hat was the only person to submit his guess on LinkedIn, Gary Reed, who I think might have won once before. He's certainly a regular contender. But either way, well done to you, Gary. You crushed it. Make sure you click the get involved link in the show notes to claim your prize. This week, we've been lit by Flex 7 with their lightning fast pre-wired modular lighting connection system that keeps your installation times razor sharp. Don't forget to click the links in the show notes to find out more. 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.