MCS Scheme Gets Biggest Shakeup In Its History

coming up on this week's news the microgeneration  certification scheme is set for the biggest   shakeup in its history an industry leader slams  electricians for using certificates as a weapon   to get paid and a 21-year-old tourist is taking  legal action after receiving an electric shock   from a flood light in a London Park welcome  to electrical news weekly in association with   solar trade sales your easy One-Stop shop for all  things solar make sure you click the link in the  

show notes to access their online store whether  you're listening in the van on site or down at the   wholesale counter I'm Joy 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 the good people   at Brady if you need a label they've got a printer  and so much more if you think you've spotted the   two words I've been challenged to slip into this 

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microgeneration certification scheme or MCS is set  for a major shakeup next month eFIXX understands   that the changes are in response to criticism that  membership is too bureaucratic for electricians   the MCS says it wants to cut paperwork and instead  focus on evidence of quality installations for   customers first off the requirement to be  a member of a consumer code will be dropped   another major change is that the frequency of  your assessments will now depend on what MCS  

is calling your risk of non-compliance that's  because as an MCS certified installer you must   also be a member of a certification body such as  napit these certification bodies conduct regular   assessments of your operations to ensure you  can competently install Technologies such as   solar panels and battery packs installers whose  MCS operations are relatively simple and who've   satisfied customers and few complaints will be  rewarded with less assessments installers with  

more complex operations such as those involving  lots of subcontractors and whose projects are   found to be poor will be assessed more often  MCS says it will also specify the content of   each rating rather than leave it to individual  inspectors there will be a new requirement for   a named technical supervisor for every job this  replaces the current requirement for a nominated   technical person the technical supervisor  will be the person who's qualified to sign  

off a completed job the MCS is also responding to  critics in the trade who say it's not clear what   processes and controls it requires of its members  the organiSation says it will unveil detailed   guidance in the new year so installers know  exactly how to comply it says that if you follow   its procedures you won't need to subscribe to a  software platform to ensure your MCS certification   while the new scheme launches in January you'll  need to carry on with your current requirements  

until your certification body gives you the  option to transfer this includes maintaining   membership of a consumer code for now MCS Chief  Ian Rippin says the new scheme is designed to   be more accessible fairer and less focused  on paperwork while the MCS says its service   is helping to drive up projects such as solar  installations the PV industry says it's facing  

a growing threat cable theft deter Tech a provider  of security for critical infrastructure structure   says there's been a surging cable thefts from  solar farms and battery storage facilities data   compiled from its crime intelligence unit reveals  that over 750 kilometres of cable were stolen from   solar farms in the UK between January and August  this year many of the sites were repeatedly   targeted by organised criminals soon after cables 

were replaced deter says the prevalence and scale   of cable theft from Solar Farms has never been  higher in the first 8 months of 2024 over 70 theft   incidents were reported at solar sites a fifth of  these involved cable thefts of at least 20 km in   length Europe faces a similar situation says the  firm with an estimated 5,000 major solar thefts   occurring annually including 400 in Germany alone  the culprit appears to be organised criminal gangs  

DeterTech recommends fast and effective detection  and escalation to protect installations and avoid   downtime in other news an industry leader  has slammed electricians who use electrical  

installation certificates as a weapon to get  paid Bob Cairney director of technical services   at Scottish electrical trade body select told  fix radio that certification was an area which   is generally misunderstood by both contractors and  their clients he said the organisation sometimes   receives customer complaints when certification  of projects is with held by its members in lie   of final payment Cairney says select tries to  Enlighten its members that this should not happen  

he says compliance with standards actually  involves the issuing of the certificates   as necessary verification he also discussed  what what he termed the uncomfortable truth   that anyone can be an electrician without proper  training and qualification he says everyone select   speaks to about this is shocked that electricians  aren't regulated anyone can set up in business as   an electrician or electrical contractor in the UK  they can carry out work in people's homes without  

having completed an electrical installation  apprenticeship or even having any relevant   qualifications KY says that you couldn't do this  if you want to shoe a horse as a farrier or act   as a nightclub bouncer or even be a street sweeper  these activities are all regulated and their title   is protected but not electricians select says it's  continuing its 10-year campaign to get protection   of title for the profession if they're successful  hopefully that will sort out some of the worst  

thunderheads in the trade the lack of status is  echoed in a survey out this week which reveals  

that out of all trades the one that wants to  immigrate the most is electricians researchers at   trade fix direct crunch the numbers to see who was  seeking jobs abroad Australia is the most popular   country for electricians with Canada and Ireland  coming in second and third respectively after   electricians the trades that want to Up Sticks  the most are plumbers and Carpenters who are no   doubt longing to apply their Craft on the Majestic 

native sycamores overseas the least likely to seek   work overseas are landscapers part of the reason  for the Gloom could be late payments in the UK   it's estimated that electrical contractors are  owed an average of £3,942 each at the end of this   year research from Ford Pro reveals they're paid  on average 35 days late the car Brand's commercial   division conducted the research after the issue  of delayed or missing payments was reported as the  

major issue facing Soul Traders heading into 2025  one in five UK trades people are even relying on   payday loans to pay their household bills the same  amount are worried about supporting their family   heading into the end of the year trades people are  Oda staggering £3.5 billion pounds in Collective   overdue payments for instance Arlo Masters a  lighting technician from North London tells us   that he's waiting on payments of around 3,500 from 

various customers some of it dates back 6 months   he says it leaves him in a difficult position as  he also has to pay other trades that he's brought   into a job Masters says a few hundred quid doesn't  seem like much to many clients but to sole Traders   it can make a huge difference observers say not  all subcontractors are in a position to take legal   action from a financial and relationship point  of view meanwhile one person who is taking legal  

action this week is a 21-year-old tourist who  received a serious electric shock in a London Park   the electric shock at St James' park next  to Buckingham Palace put Latvian national   Anastasija Grigorjeva in intensive care  and she says left her with memory problems. 

Grigorjeva was visiting her sister in London in  July, when her leg fell through the grate of a   ground-level spotlight and touched a live  electrical cable she stopped breathing and   became unresponsive prompting police officers  to use a defibrillator the young sightseer was   then taken to St Thomas's hospital where she  was kept in intensive care for 4 days when she   woke up her sister said says she had changed  experiencing outbursts of anger and behaving  

more impulsively she believes grigo yva received  a brain injury from the experience the family is   now suing the body responsible for the location  Its solicitor Magdalena Knez, of Osbornes Law,   says the Royal Parks has a responsibility to make 

sure its sites are safe for users. a Royal Park   spokesperson said he was not able to comment on  individual legal cases but wanted to reassure   the public that St James' Park provides a safe  environment for all big thanks to Baltic Electric   for sending that story into us if you too  come across a story that you think Merit is   being featured in the news then submit it at  the press release Link in the show notes now  

while we're on the subject of lighting our most  recent question of the week was taken from the   free training package we made in association  with Lewden Palazzoli in which we exploded a   few myths surrounding the electrical industry one  of the videos in that module was on the subject of   Maximum demand and asked the question what is the  updated recommended power value per lamp holder   for a lighting circuit according to the electrical  design guide the correct answer is 30 W which I  

think is still a bit too high and as it happens  48% of respondents on YouTube got it right which   was better than LinkedIn which came in at just  30% correct so wherever you're watching check out   that free training package by clicking the link  in the show notes in product news Legrand has  

unveiled a new cable tray range which is designed  to be easily adapted to demanding locations CAO   Bend is a steel wire system that's configurable  by hand to allow for changes in cable Direction   this minimises the need for cutting or for buying  extra accessories it's available in three Heights   and widths between 100 mm and 600 mm hikmicro has  unveiled a mini thermal camera for mobile phones  

The Firm says it's great at spotting potential  problems such as loose connections overheating   cables and damaged fuses the mini e connects  to Android or iPhones and tablets and includes   a flexible 60 cm extension cable for hard to-  reach areas it allows you to detect even subtle   temperature differ differences across a wide range  up to 400°C our favourite launch this week though  

is what its maker Simmons signs is calling a  light tile it's a light emitting sign that's   just 7 mm thin which is designed for mounting  onroad surfaces the LED tile can display words   such as stop and 20 M hour or Graphics such as  arrows it's triggered by thermal cameras traffic   lights and speed radar expect to start seeing  on British roads in 2025 and our usual reminder   that we'd like to hear about your stories your  projects and your recommendations as we'd like  

to share them with the wider eFIXX Community  send us pictures of your installs 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 it's 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  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 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 now 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 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 as sponsored by  Brady remember if you need a label they've got a   printer and so much more click the link in the  description to view their incredible range last  

week's words were manhandle and constellation and  the first name to come out of our electronic hat   was chicken wizzy wizzy chicken wizzy I can't  imagine that's your government name but very   well done to you chicken I guess 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 remember to click the link in  

the show notes to check out their online shop  and as this is the last episode of 2024 I just  

wanted to say thanks for your input thanks for  your comments thanks for your support over the   year we've garnered over 1.3 million views on  YouTube alone plus our other platforms as well   which is kind of mind-blowing when you reflect on  it but you make that happen and the show would be   nothing without you dear viewers and listeners  thanks also to the brands that have sponsored   and supported us this year you keep the lights on  here at enw and we really appreciate that thanks  

as well to Joe 2.0 for all the back room stuff  and thumbnails Gordon for always finding juicy   stories Gary for the Relentless promotion and of  course to our esteemed script writer Ray Maloney   this really is a team effort so to all I hope  you get some much needed time off over the next   couple of weeks we don't know what 2025 will  bring but we'll be here every Monday keeping   you posted on what's new exciting and occasionally  mystifying about the electrical industry so make  

sure you're subscribed to receive the next update  thanks for listening and until next year have   a great break stay safe out there and remember  there's no such thing as a torque calibrated arm