AUTUmN/WiNTER 2010 ISSUE 20 (PDF) - Energy Safe Victoria

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26www.energysafe.vic.gov.auNew Electricity Safety (Registrationand Licensing) Regulations 2010 –a summary of changesThe Electricity Safety (Registration andLicensing) Regulations 2010 came inToforce in late April. They replace the 1999regulations which had been part of theinstallation regulations .Here is a summary of changes and majorprovisions within the regulations:REC—electrical switchgear workers> > New: licensed electrical switchgear workersmay register as an REC but may only beresponsible for the effective supervisionof electrical switchgear work. However,a switchgear REC may also nominate an“A grade” technical supervisor to superviseall other electrical installation work. A licensedelectrical switchgear worker may register as acontractor and supervise electrical switchgearwork if they comply with the following:> > the person is a licensed electricalswitchgear worker (see below);> > has completed the new LicensedSwitchgear Worker’s Assessment LSWA(or has experience deemed equivalent);> > complies with the usual business supervisorrequirements;> > complies with the insurance requirements;and,> > pays the application fee.Prescribed insurance> > No change – $5,000,000 minimum insuranceis required.Technical Supervisors> > all electrical installation work (other thanelectrical switchgear work) must be effectivelysupervised by an A grade electrician who hascompleted the LEA or equivalent; and> > all electrical switchgear work must beeffectively supervised by a licensed electricalswitchgear worker who has completed theLSWA or equivalent or an A grade electricianwho has completed the LEA or equivalent.Licenses abolished which cannot beissued or renewed> > LEI class F (Electric Security Fences)> > LEI class R (Remote area power supplies)> > LEI class S (Standby generation orcogeneration electricity supply systems)No new licenses for the following classescan be issued (but they may be renewedbefore expiry)> > LEI class L> > ES licence> > Occupier’s LicenceNew electrical switchgear worker’s licence> > A person may apply for a licence to carry outelectrical switchgear work (i.e. the assembly,alteration, repair and maintenance ofswitchgear and controlgear assemblies) if theycomply with the following:> > Has completed a 4 year contract of trainingas an Electrical Fitter including at least 12months experience in carrying out electricalswitchgear fitting work;> > holds a certificate III in Switchgear andControlgear;> > has completed the new LicensedSwitchgear Worker’s Assessment; and,> > pays the required fee.> > Note: this licence is not required for workerswho manufacture switchboards off-site.> > A licence may be granted if the person’squalification, proficiency and experiencein electrical switchgear fitting work isof an equivalent standard to the aboverequirements.Restricted worker’s licence (REL) (formallyDisconnect/Reconnect licence)> > There will be two classes of REL, Class 1and Class 2. The difference is that Class1 will allow the licensee to conduct faultfinding which is the testing of the operationof electrical equipment to determine if thatelectrical equipment is safe and workingsafely. This is not a blanket licence to faultfind, they may only conduct fault findingon equipment related to the primary workfunction that they are licensed for.> > There is a revised list of primary workfunctions, or occupational areas which are:> > Airconditioning and Refrigeration> > Instrumentation> > Electronics> > Water Heaters> > Electrical Appliances> > Pre-assembled Neon Signs> > Composite equipment> > Control Devices> > Gas Appliances> > Motors> > Hazardous Area Equipment> > On commencement all current D class licenceholders are to be automatically transferred toa REL Class 2 licence.> > The fees for this licence are now the same asthe fees for LEI licences and RECs.Medical Areas (Patient Areas)> > Extra low voltage work in these areas mustnow be carried out by licensed workers.Interstate “A Grade” electricians takento be licensed in Victoria> > A person who is not ordinarily residentin Victoria and who holds the equivalent toCurrent Fee Unit Value 11.95Victoria’s “A grade” licence is not required toobtain a Victorian licence provided that theynotify Energy Safe Victoria in accordancewith the regulations. There is no fee for thenotification, and the notification must be in amanner approved by ESV and must include:> > The person’s name, residential address,postal address and telephone number;> > The details of the interstate licence thatthey hold; and> > A statement that the person consentsto ESV making enquiries and exchanginginformation with any Australian RegulatoryAuthority in relation to any authority that theperson holds.> > A person who has notified ESV must, within10 business days, notify ESV of any changeof their name, address or the status of thelicence that they hold. If the person becomesordinarily resident in Victoria they mustthen apply for a Victorian licence via mutualrecognition.> > Upon notification the person will be issuedwith a user ID and password and advised thatthey must comply with all Victorian laws andregulations including certificate of electricalsafety requirements. They must carry theirinterstate licence with them while workingin Victoria.Apprentices> > Apprentices must carry out all work under theeffective supervision of a licensed electrician,and, in the case of electrical switchgear fittingwork, a licensed electrician or a licensedelectrical switchgear worker.Five year registrations for registeredelectrical contractors (RECs) and five yearlicences for licensed electrical inspectors(LEIs)In another move unrelated to the introductionof the new licensing regulations, there will bea staged transition to five year registrations forRECs and five year licences for LEIs. These areadministrative changes; implemented as partof the Victorian Government’s “Reducing theRegulatory Burden” initiative.FeesThe applicable fees on commencement of theseregulations are set out in the following table; allfees are for a five year registration or licence.Item Fee Units Fees from 1 July 2010REC application 43.3 $517.40REC renewal 20.8 $248.50Licence Application 27.8 $332.20Licence Application – REL 43.3 $517.40Licence Application – LEI 43.3 $517.40Licence Renewal – other 13.9 $166.00Licence Renewal – REL 20.8 $248.50Licence Renewal – LEI 20.8 $248.50Replacement card 2.8 $33.40
Gas escapeblamed for amedical internreceiving criticalburnsAfter an investigation, ESV has concludedthat a leaking natural gas service linewas a likely cause of an explosion in aunit at Wangaratta in early Februaryresulting in critical burns being receivedby a 23-year-old medical intern.The leak from an 18 mm polyethylene servicepipe below the road close to the unit probablymade its way inside the unit, the investigationhas revealed. The unit was extensively damagedin the explosion.Three or four minutes later, he stoodapproximately one metre from the front doorand ignited a stove lighter “to test if therereally was gas”. He told ESV that a large blueflame then extended throughout the unit butdissipated.A gasfitter called to the scene told ESV he couldnot find any gas leaks inside the unit. He alsotested the fitting line to the unit and found it tobe gas tightResidents in other units at the address saidthey did not experience gas smells before theexplosion on 8 February.No other gas leaks had been reported in thearea for some two months before the blast.The leak was on the opposite side of the road,approximately 30 metres from the point of theexplosion. No detail has been obtained on whythe service line failed.While recovering from his injuries, the victimtold ESV that he entered the unit just before theincident to have a break from his medical rounds.He intended to go to the kitchen to boil a kettle.Firstly he went to the bedroom to get a cigarettelighter. On his way back to the kitchen he ignitedthe lighter and the explosion occurred.As reported in the last issue of energysafe,the intern received critical burns to his body inthe blast. The victim was placed in an inducedcoma at The Alfred hospital and made a goodrecovery.The intern was employed at the WangarattaHospital. The unit and others in the blockare managed by the Wangaratta Hospitalfor its staff.During the investigations, the victim said in astatement to ESV that he had noticed a subtlemusty smell since he moved into the unit inmid-January. About a week later one of thegas burners on top of the cooker “flared up”damaging the ceiling and a light fitting.Good advice from anexpert: always listento your customerBy ESV Gas Safety Officer,Roger LambieBesides knowledge, experience andthe correct tools, the best asseta gas appliance serviceman hasin resolving a problem with a gasinstallation or appliance is thecustomer who reported the fault.In my experience of 33 years on the gas sideof plumbing I have always found the customeris correct in 99.9% of the situations.Listening, then asking the correct questions ofwhat the customer is experiencing will lead toan earlier diagnosis of what the fault may be.Two experiences come to mind. The firstinvolved an elderly couple who had purchaseda central heating installation from the then gasauthority and found they detected a slight smellof gas during the operation of the appliance.The gas smell was so minute that it was nearimpossible for everyone who attended theirhome to notice.Only after a very sensitive methane detector wasemployed was it proven that the appliance hadan inherent design fault.If there had been a large volume of gasescaping in the road outside the unit before 8February, it would normally be expected that theresidents in the adjoining properties or passingpedestrian traffic would have been alerted to thegas smell and reported it.The gas distribution network owner conductedexcavation works but did not find any visiblemeans by which the natural gas escaping fromthe service line could have made its way throughthe ground and into the unit.Shortly after the explosion, a natural gas readingof 100% was recorded by testing apparatusplaced in a test drill ground hole approximatelyfour metres from the unit. The reading was takenabout seven hours after the explosion.The network owner reported that a leak wasidentified on the 18 mm high pressure gasservice line supplying other units in the street.The elderly couple’s complaint proved to becorrect and they were not imagining the fault.Accordingly the manufacturer had to retool thedesign of the heater.The second experience also included a faultwith another central heating installation from adifferent manufacturer.Following a request to attend this installationwith an appliance serviceman, the customerwho had a fistful of service sheets frommany previous calls explained that the heaterintermittently failed to operate and that the pilotlight would go out.Initially the most common causes were checked– gas operating pressure/volume, water in theservice or fitting line as detected by using aManometer. Or was the air filter, if installed,blocked?Or were any other issues at fault – duct sizing,a cracked heat exchanger, faulty overheat, airgaps in framework of appliance which possiblyblew out the pilot when the fan cut in.Basically, not one fault could be found.No other appliances were involved in thisgas installation – therefore we had no otherappliance to reference to and see if it had thesame problemSo back to basics. Did we have all the energiesrequired to operate the heater i.e. gas,electricity? The only answer was yes.Interior and exterior shots of the damaged unitThe age of this installation included the use ofGalvanized Wrought Iron Pipe (GWIP) for thefitting line. Unlike today where other materialsare now more in vogue.All told the fitting line was around 20 metres longso with the service fitter we started to dismantlethe line and there we found the problem.Holding the dismantled pipe at an angle outrolled a snail shell, a long ago vacated snail shellthat was moving and rolling around inside thepipe with the slight fluctuations in gas pressureblocking or partially blocking the gas supplyfor over three years since the installation wasinstalled.So it does not matter who the customer is,always listen to what they have to say it is rarethe customer is not “always right”.(No Snail was injured making this picture!)27Autumn/Winter 2010 ISSUE 20
Page 6 and 7: 6www.energysafe.vic.gov.auESV alert
Page 8 and 9: Victorian Bushfires RoyalCommission
Page 10 and 11: Beware carbon monoxide -the silent
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Page 21 and 22: Positive responses for ESV fromstak
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AUTUmN/WiNTER 2010 ISSUE 20 (PDF) - Energy Safe Victoria

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