News Industry Comment The key to electrical conduit specification
ADAPTAFLEX IS WARNING electrical industry pro- fessionals that flexible conduit and fittings should not be regarded as commodity items.
A key focus for our combined July/August issue is a look ahead to two exciting industry events taking place in September - both at the NEC in Birmingham. The first, Sensors & Instrumentation, a new, dedicated exhi- bition, conference and seminar pro- gramme, will take place on 25th-26th. The show combines the industry foun- dations cemented by previous shows Sensing Technology and Sensors and Systems, and will be co-located with Micro | Nano | Mems 2013 and The Machine Building Show 2013. A full preview can be found on page 31. Also in September (10th-11th), will be the next installment of the ever popular Energy Event (preview - page 36). Dedicated to energy management, effi- ciency and procurement, the event will host over 6,500 energy professionals who come to source new products and services from over 150 leading exhibitors. There will also be a compre- hensive seminar programme with a wide range of confirmed high profile speakers including Dieter Helm from the University of Oxford, professor Robert Winston and Ed Davey MP. Joe Bush, Editor
On face value there appears very little difference between the many different conduit brands available in the UK other than price. This, however, could not be further from the truth and they need to be judged on performance in the field and quality in manufac- ture rather than price. One way for a contractor, specifier or wholesaler to assess the quality of an electrical conduit is to make sure it carries a third party approval such as the BSI Kitemark which indicates its conformance to the inter- national conduit standards BS EN 61386 parts 1, 22 and 23. Within the current Wiring Regulations this standard covers the performance requirements for flexible, rigid and pliable conduit.
Adaptaflex advises that using an unapproved con-
duit system could lead to its premature failure in the field and serious consequences in terms of safety. This could include fracturing due to vibration, corrosion, water ingress and failure through incorrect fittings becoming detached - all of which could lead to having to replace the complete system. The cost of the down- time, replacement parts and labour are then likely to far outweigh the savings that cheaper, non-approved conduit systems appear to offer.
www.adaptaflex.com
All present and correct at Camp Bastion
TESTERS FROM RIGEL Medical are being used to check for electri- cal safety on hundreds of medical devices at the Ministry of Defence’s Camp Bastion military hospital in Afghanistan.
The equipment, which includes ECG machines, patient monitors, defibrillators, CT scanners, power chargers and electrically operated beds, are regularly tested as part of an in service maintenance pro- gramme for safety using the Rigel Medical 288 field service kit. Using the portable analysers, the team of military medical, dental and veterinary (MDSS) technicians are able to quickly undertake elec- trical safety tests on devices used at the hospital as well as those return-
ing from operating bases located throughout southern Afghanistan. The testers are also used to check the electrical safety of med- ical fridges at Camp Bastion that are used to store emergency blood and plasma supplies.
Staff sergeant Mark Rothwell, who provides project and in ser- vice support for the MDSS techni- cians, commented, “Clearly, it is important to have a robust analyser which can operate effectively in one of the most intense, hot and dusty environments in the world, ensuring that electrical equipment won’t fail and is safe for use by both patients and medical staff. “I’m also impressed by how lightweight the 288 is, making it easy for the technicians at Camp Bastion to carry around and deploy where and when required.” To read the full story visit
www.connectingindustry.com/ bastion.
www.rigelmedical.com
Power distribution from the smallest to the largest.
ENCLOSURES POWER DISTRIBUTION CLIMATE CONTROL
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