frosty2

I'm a transport refrigeration engineer looking to improve my skills and possibly move in to fixed cold store/ air conditioning/or change and become an electrician, i have a good understanding of single/three phase,rcd breakers etc.
In this industry i find that its a bit of a Grey area when it comes to electrics, as portable cold stores, trucks and trailers are classed as "not fixed applications" and don't need to be certified to work on them (electrical side) as you only work from the 32 amp wall supply, and beyond that back to the consumer unit you need to be certified electrician. is this correct????
As I'm looking at different training courses at moment, would i be correct in thinking if i did my part p (EAL VRQ Level 2) and then my 17th edition i would be able to work on air- con/cold stores in domestic and commercial premises.
If i wanted to change career and become an electrician or trainee old one at least (I'm 35) would this give me a good stepping block??
Many Thanks any help would be much appreciated!!!

neilw

Hi,

You *might* be right about the fact that the work you're currently carrying out doesn't directly come under the remit of the wiring regulations but the closest thing I can find in the regs relates to caravans, which are deemed to be special locations and have their own specific requirements. It's possible that the work you're carrying out is covered by a different British Standard but as soon as you start connecting anything up to the main supply then it would seem sensible that you've got to be working to the relevant legislation (such as the Electricity at Work Act) to be carrying out the work safely. Remember that the wiring regulations are non-statutory - if you were ever prosecuted it would probably be under the Health and Safety at Work Act, and your defence would be that you were working to the guidance set out in the wiring regulations. Being qualified and competent is another obvious requirement.

For your training, I would suggest that getting your 17th edition and 2391 is a must, but I'm not sure how relevant the Part P certification is for your particular type of work - I'll leave specific advice on this to the more experienced forum members. You might want to look at getting an level 2 or level 3 NVQ to suit the work - a quick look at the City and Guilds site turned up a couple of possible courses:

City & Guilds | Refrigeration and air conditioning

You might also want to check out the JIB site to see what kind of 'grading' you might want to be working towards, and what qualifications you need.

Hope that helps, and good luck!

Neil

[w] http://www.howto-electricians.com/

Shakey

think you wil find that you have just come under the 17th edition!

therers a new special location 'mobile/transportable units' that pretty much covers what you have been doing, although it is primarily focussed on the supply and earthing arrangements, but i think it will still affect you

so: do your 17th C&G 2382. The EAL VRQ, whilst aimed at the domestic Part P market would also give you a good grounding in all the basics, and a good introduction to inspection and testing and certification, and at least you would have a formal electrical qual

i have taught it to a number of people who have immediately gone into commercial/industrial environments

the 2392 would aslo be good for you, and (eventually) the 2391, but the 17th and EAL would be a good starter

frosty2

Thanks for your information, its a great help. I've contacted Delta and I'm awaiting more information regarding courses and dates.

Thanks Again,

Frosty2