Get Qualified: Portable Appliance Testing

Kevin Smith

• Publisher: Routledge
• Year: 2016
• Print ISBN: 9781138422056
• eBook ISBN: 9781317280262
• Edition: 1
• Topic: Technology & Engineering
• Subtopic: Civil Engineering
• Index: Technology & Engineering

• This book contains essential advice and guidance for those thinking of starting out in the Portable appliance testing industry.
• A detailed look at the subject of Portable Appliance Testing (PAT), this book is the ideal accompaniment for those studying the City & Guild and EAL PAT courses.
• Theory and assessment covered in one volume, with advice, revision exercises and sample tests to aid exam preparation.
• Contains all the information required to qualify and begin testing portable appliances.

The Get Qualified series provides clear and concise guidance for people looking to work within the electrical industry. This book clearly explains the options available to those wishing to enter the portable appliance testing industry and supports the reader through the subject in a step-by-step manner. Most importantly, it covers the theory behind portable appliance testing as well as looking in detail at each exam learning outcome. There are also sections on exam preparation, revision exercises and sample questions.

CHAPTER 1

Introduction

 

 

 

 

Portable appliance testing (PAT) or, to use the correct title, In-service Inspection and Testing of Electrical Equipment, has been with us since its adoption in the early 1990s, following the introduction of the Electricity at Work Regulations in 1989, which added some legal weight to the common sense requirement to maintain electrical equipment in a safe condition.

Twenty-five years later, PAT is still a huge industry in the UK, worth millions of pounds each year. Considering the size of the industry it is surprising to learn that most customers and a worrying number of those actually carrying out PAT have very little understanding of the subject. As often happens with health and safety practices, they get distorted over time so myths and conventions, which have little legal basis, become widespread, and untangling fact from fiction becomes impossible for anyone who does not have a detailed knowledge of the subject.

In this book I aim to simplify this subject and bring it back to its common sense roots. I will look at what is required to meet your legal obligations and explain the options you have to ‘Get Qualified’ and undertake PAT in your own right. Throughout the book I will make frequent reference to statutory documents, like the Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 and to other guidance documents, such as the IET Code of Practice. A list of these documents can be found in the Suggested Reading section at the back of this book; many are available as free downloads and I would strongly suggest you use them as an accompaniment while you read the rest of this book.

The ability to undertake PAT is not rocket science and is easily within the reach of most people. With the right training and experience you will very soon be saving and even making money by carrying out this activity yourself. You will also have the added peace of mind that this important safety task has been done correctly and in accordance with current industry best practice.

CHAPTER 2

What is PAT Testing?

Most people will tell you that PAT testing is something you must have done every year and involves someone using a PAT tester to check the appliance and then fit a label to say it’s safe for another 12 months.

The above is a common view but, as with most things, there is a bit more to it than meets the eye. Modern portable appliance testing is more of a system for managing the safety of electrical equipment while it is in service. One mistake that is often made is to focus too heavily on the ‘testing’ part of this system, which actually accounts for a very small percentage of the overall process and subsequently adds only a small amount to our knowledge of the equipment’s safety status.

RISK

The foundation for all PAT testing should be a risk assessment, carried out by the person legally responsible for that equipment. This could be the owner or director of a company; however, in most cases this will be delegated to another person in the organisation, for example the health and safety manager. Risk assessments can be carried out individually for each item or generically for groups of items deemed to be similar in regards to the risk they represent.

When conducting the risk assessment we must consider many factors, including those listed below:

▪ The environment in which the equipment must operate.

▪ The type of people who may use the equipment.

▪ The equipment construction.

▪ The equipment type.

▪ How often the equipment is to be used.

▪ The way the equipment is installed.

▪ Any previous test records or information.

When the factors above have been established, the goal of the risk assessment is to utilise these factors to calculate the level of ‘risk’.

FIGURE 2.1 How not to carry out a risk assessment

FIGURE 2.2 Risk is a balancing act

Risk is the combination of two judgements: likelihood and consequence.

Likelihood means, what is the chance that something will go wrong with this piece of equipment? Likelihood is affected by factors such as the type of equipment, where it’s used and how often. A piece of hand-held equipment used every day on a construction site has a much greater likelihood of going wrong than a set of postal scales sat on the side in an office.

Consequence means, what is likely to happen if it does go wrong?

Will the equipment simply stop functioning or could several people be killed?

In some systems actual numerical values are assigned to both likelihood and consequence; these are then multiplied together to get a ‘risk score’. Often a threshold is set to determine which levels of risk are acceptable and which are not. If the level of risk is deemed to be unacceptable, control measures must be put in place to reduce the likelihood and/or consequences. The risk is then re-evaluated and the process continues until enough control measures have been put in place to reduce the risk to acceptable levels.

The in-service inspection and testing of electrical equipment (PAT) is a control measure and is only required when the person legally responsible for that equipment deems it necessary to reduce the risk posed by that equipment to acceptable levels. The nature and frequency of the in-service inspection and testing should also be determined as part of the risk assessment process and be specified as control measures that are proportionate to the risk.

TYPES OF PAT

There are three types of in-service inspection and testing detailed in the IET Code of Practice: user checks, formal v...

Table of contents

• Cover
• Half Title
• Title Page
• Copyright Page
• Acknowledgements
• Table of Contents
• Chapter 1 Introduction
• Chapter 2 What is PAT Testing
• Chapter 3 Who can PAT Test?
• Chapter 4 What are my Training Options?
• Chapter 5 Learning Outcome 1
• Chapter 6 Learning Outcome 2
• Chapter 7 Learning Outcome 3
• Chapter 8 Learning Outcome 4
• Chapter 9 Learning Outcome 5
• Chapter 10 Learning Outcome 6
• Chapter 11 Learning Outcome 7
• Chapter 12 Good Exam Practice
• Chapter 13 Sample Exam Questions
• Suggested Further Reading
• Index