Browse Forums DIY, Home Maintenance & Repair 1 Mar 04, 2009 10:07 pm hi,m
Have been reading in some other posts and the Electrical Safety Act 2002 that Electrical Engineers are able to carry out household electrical works? IS this true or have I misread the info? Also if this is the case, ie that electrical work can be carried out by an engineer, how does one get a cert of compliance. Thanks Re: Electrical Engineer allowed to do Electrical work? 2Mar 04, 2009 10:09 pm Welcome.... sorry no idea about your question. How is the weather in San Diego?
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Now firstly is this Australian law your are talking about? As an engineer myself I have previously looked into this area. As it turns out you still need to do some form of additional qualifications, in many cases I am sure you will be able to get exemptions etc. however you will probably still need to have practical experience. Also Engineering is a little different to installing electrical wireing etc. Electrictions still need to be aware of current laws and regulations, and certain processes, inorder to have a licence, and this is why you generally pay a premium for licenced contractors. From my experience engineering has been more about higher understanding of the technical background on how things work and how new technology go together. Electrictions do still need to know this but are usually putting things into practice that have already been developed and proven and ensuring that things are installed to the appriopriate high standards. Re: Electrical Engineer allowed to do Electrical work? 4Mar 05, 2009 7:43 am The basic answer is No! No... and No.... Only a licensed electrician may carry out electrical installations...
Unless your job is designing residential installations, and you are being paid to design the installation, then you cannot do the electrical work... Even if you were to be paid to do the design, you cannot get a certificate of compliance, a licensed electrician must signoff on the works first... From sometime ago... a response from the ESA on this matter... Section 55(1) of the Electrical Safety Act 2002 (ESR) requires a person performing or supervising electrical work to be the holder of an electrical work licence authorising the person to perform the work. Section 55(3) of the ESA lists exemptions from this requirement, including for the purpose of “(b) performance or supervision of electrical work in practising the person’s profession as an electrical engineer”. According to the ESA, an electrical engineer may perform or supervise electrical work without the need for an electrical work licence. However, this may only be done in “practising the person’s profession as an electrical engineer”. As the basic functions of the profession of an electrical engineer are defined by the sequencing of engineering work: research, consulting, design and development, testing, manufacturing, construction, service and maintenance, and management. To the extent there might be performance or supervision of electrical work (i.e. “hands on work”) involved in any of those functions, then that may be undertaken by the electrical engineer in their capacity of practising their profession, and without need for an electrical worker licence. Performing or supervising electrical work beyond this limited scope would therefore be outside the provisions of the exemption of Section 55(3)(b), and such work would require the holding of an appropriate electrical work licence. Electrical Engineer... Don't hold that against me... And keen owner builder... Mainly the building part!! Re: Electrical Engineer allowed to do Electrical work? 7Mar 05, 2009 12:56 pm Same as civil engineers...although I can design stuff out of steel, timber, concrete etc...none of my stuff is certified as OK unless signed off by a Registered Building Practitioner.
The Building Act 1993 requires most people who work in building, to be registered as building practitioners with the BPB. Registered building practitioners are generally required to carry the appropriate insurance to provide consumers with better protection. And the insurance bit is important...if something goes wrong with your electricals, roof falls in, slab cracks open...you want to have something to sue... mmm....donuts Homer Simpson 1956- Links: Site Costs Ready Reckoner | H1 Addiction Medical Advice | Château TDL: The Backyard Re: Electrical Engineer allowed to do Electrical work? 8Mar 05, 2009 8:10 pm TDL said -
Quote: Same as civil engineers...although I can design stuff out of steel, timber, concrete etc...none of my stuff is certified as OK unless signed off by a Registered Building Practitioner. Dare I say it re the original post Sounds like a US gingerbeer wants to know if he can get a job in OZ as a sparky to me Re: Electrical Engineer allowed to do Electrical work? 9Mar 06, 2009 7:50 am The short answer is NO.
The system is setup as a very closed shop and doesn't seem to allow for any exemptions for professionally qualified engineers - effectively, the only way to obtain a licence is via an apprenticeship. In my view, the system is well overdue for an overhaul. Re: Electrical Engineer allowed to do Electrical work? 10Mar 06, 2009 7:56 am It wasn't too long ago that electrical engineers could sit for the wiring rules test (was called SAA wiring rules back then) and if they passed they could do electrical work. This was for work on their own home as to be able to charge involved a contractors license.
I hope I'm remebering it correctly, it was a while ago. Of course, an electrical engineer would probably not wire up a house, they're just not set up for it. But they would certainly change over light switches or light fittings, even if they are strictly speaking not allowed to. Demolition August 2009, Construction Started September 2009, Completed December 2010 Re: Electrical Engineer allowed to do Electrical work? 11Mar 25, 2009 9:28 pm They can in other countries such as England but no, not here Re: Electrical Engineer allowed to do Electrical work? 12Mar 25, 2009 10:41 pm Dukekamaya They can in other countries such as England but no, not here We must have dumber engineers. Demolition August 2009, Construction Started September 2009, Completed December 2010 Re: Electrical Engineer allowed to do Electrical work? 13Mar 27, 2009 9:57 pm Casa2 We must have dumber engineers. Engineers are funny things. Can design any sort of structure and pull out all sorts of equations, formulas and theories on metal fatigue, stress loadings, tell you how much force and how fast you will hit the ground from a 7m fall if you don't wear a harness etc etc., but strangely can't use a screwdriver or spanner to save their life ! To me, an engineer is all theory, very little to no practical. I don't think I would want an engineer to work on anything practically. Conversation with civil engineer at work (and true too) - CE -"I'm looking for a harbor" Me - "A what??" (did he say harbor??), CE - "you know, a harbor" Me - (yeah, he did say harbor) "A harbor?, where abouts?" (scratching my head at this stage because we are minimum 300km from any coast) CE - "There should be one here." I must have looked really confused then so he added "So and so rang and said they need a new harbor, for the hole saw" I realised then what he was looking for, a hole saw arbor, found him one and didn't tell him it was actually called an arbor. And I thought an engineer was someone that shoveled coal into a trains boiler Re: Electrical Engineer allowed to do Electrical work? 14Mar 30, 2009 5:46 pm Hi Im an electrical engineer with 12 years experience in engineering maintenance IN Melbourne, Last time I checked up on this, under the ETU I mean the Energy safe Victoria allows engineers of relevent experience to Recieve an occupiers licence that lasts for 5 years. http://www.esv.vic.gov.au/ForElectricit ... fault.aspx Done. Re: Electrical Engineer allowed to do Electrical work? 15Mar 30, 2009 6:34 pm At last, logic prevails, at least in Victoria. If you're an electrical engineer (and have 80 hours training and experience and passed a Licensed Electrician’s Assessment) then you can perform electrical work on your own home. Now we just need NSW to have the same arrangement. And no, I don't know what an arbor is and I don't want to know. Demolition August 2009, Construction Started September 2009, Completed December 2010 Re: Electrical Engineer allowed to do Electrical work? 16Mar 30, 2009 11:32 pm An Electrical Engineer is not trained for the practical application in carrying out domestic or commercial electrical work. Always amazes me how people think a theoretical knowledge overules a practically gained one. I am an Electrical tradesperson with an Adv. Dip. in Electrical Engineering and work as an operator at a Power Station. My father is a licenced Electrician, and I dont see myself as being up to date with current regs to do an install without a licenced person signing off. Get the picture. Let the baker make bread, and the butcher cut up meat! Keeps everyone in safe hands. Re: Electrical Engineer allowed to do Electrical work? 17Jun 08, 2009 10:58 pm ozberg An Electrical Engineer is not trained for the practical application in carrying out domestic or commercial electrical work. We know that. ozberg Always amazes me how people think a theoretical knowledge overules a practically gained one. And we know that too. Nobody thinks theoretical knowledge outranks practical experience. You're tilting at windmills. The problem is that we want to do simple stuff - replace a broken switch, replace a point, replace a light - and seemingly the only way to do this legally is after completing a 4-year apprenticeship. And sure that 4-year apprenticeship teaches you more than just switches, but we don't want to learn how to wire a panel, or design circuits, or run conduits. We just want to replace switches and points and lights! Nobody needs 6000 hours of on-the-job training to learn how to replace a point. You and I both know that any DIY handymen could learn that skill in a week at the local TAFE. ozberg Get the picture. Let the baker make bread, and the butcher cut up meat! Keeps everyone in safe hands. Nanny state nonsense. If it's dangerous to wire points, then provide courses on how to wire points safely, and certificates showing that you're qualified to wire points. But don't keep the knowledge in the hands of the elite (the Licensed Electricians) and demand everybody else who wants the same privileges must first sacrifice four years of their lives as an apprentice. But the cynic in me says the monopoly on wiring points is paying pretty dividends for all of the Licensed Electricians, and the Electrician's Union is a powerful lobby, so we won't see a change in legislation in my lifetime Re: Electrical Engineer allowed to do Electrical work? 18Jun 22, 2009 3:30 pm Hhmmm.... I know some ******* electricians (tradesmen) too. BTW, my husband and I are both engineers and we are very handy. He built his own shed and we did finishing on our house ourselves, complete with landscaping and everything. It is not good to generalise a group of people into a box. We know how to wire stuff too... the only thing stopping us is the regulations. Regards, Ari Ari & Scott Darwin, NT 3 6389 The engineering is the engineering. It's irrelevant how much material you have. Unless it fits the requirements of your design the engineer can't "make"it work. You might… 7 9656 Block of two storey townhouses requires painting on the roof. A brick parapet wall separates each unit and extends above the tiled roof. The parapet walls require sealing… 0 3497 |