Test & Inspection

 

AME Services Ltd are able to provide a full and comprehensive Test &  Inspection  service, please click on any of the following categories for further information:-

• Portable Appliance Testing  P.A.T  
• Thermal Imaging                                          
• Electrical Periodic Test & Inspection               
• Lightning Protection                               
• Emergency Lighting                              
• Fire Alarm                                              
• Hazardous Areas ( DSEAR - Dangerous Substances and Explosive Atmospheres Regulations )

 

 PAT Test 

Portable Appliance Testing is the electrical equivalent of your cars annual MOT test. Regular P.A.T  is a must for many businesses as part of their health and safety policy.

Electricity at Work Regulations 1989 states that employers have a duty to ensure that the electrical equipment they provide such as microwaves, kettles, toasters, computers and workshop tools all comply with regulations and are safe for use by employees and visitors. Portable appliances can be extremely dangerous if left unchecked and the Health & Safety Executive (HSE) reports that portable appliances are responsible for a quarter of all reported electrical accidents. 

Thermal Imaging

Thermal Imaging is used as a preventative maintenance technique.

This involves using a hand held thermal imaging camera to measure the actual working temperatures of apparatus during normal operating conditions, from this our experience is then used to determine whether the equipment is operating within its temperature range or whether an underlying fault is present which may then result in eventual breakdown and risk of fire.
Electrical faults are often time consuming and costly to diagnose, since  switchgear and termination panels have to be shut down, stopping workflow in the process. Also, the very nature of the problem is often hidden by this action!
Infrared thermal imaging, however, avoids both of these issues and can pinpoint faults in seconds, perhaps months before they actually cause failure. This allows maintenance to be scheduled and workflow to continue, generally saving far more expense than the cost of the survey.

Thermal Imaging can find:-

• Loose terminal connections
• Imbalanced phase loads
• High resistance in switchgear
• Circuit overloads

 

Electrical Periodic Test & Inspection

 

 Why is a fixed wire test needed?

  Electrical installations can and do deteriorate and sustain damage in everyday service.

Switches, sockets, conduits & cabling are all susceptible to impact damage, wear and tear. Also depending on the type of environment the installation is situated within, dust, corrosives & liquids can all have an adverse effect on the installation. 

AME Services Ltd can provide a fully comprehensive Fixed Wiring Test in accordance with the latest IEE Wiring Regulations - Currently 17th Edition. All AME Services Ltd engineers are qualified to the new standards.

 Regulations

All commercial electrical installations should be inspected and tested regularly to comply with current legislation, and you must take proper precautions to reduce the risk of electrical failure causing injury or death. Since July 2008, IEE Regulations 2008 -17th Edition have brought testing into line with European standards.

 Under the current legislation, periodic inspection must be carried out at intervals not exceeding:

• External Installations - 3 years
• Buildings open to the public - 1 year
• Commercial Installations - 5 years
• Industrial Installations - 3 years
• Caravan Parks - 1 year
• Fire Alarms - 1 year
• Short Term Installations - 3 months
• Site Installations - 3 months.

 If you would like a quotation for testing & certification of your premises please feel free to contact us via our contact form.

 

Emergency Lighting

It is imperative  that emergency lighting comes on in the event of normal light failures. It needs to be sufficiently bright and illuminated for enough time in order that all persons can be safely evacuated from a building in the event of an emergency, the lights must be positioned in such a way as to illuminate all exits and changes of direction within a building.

Regular maintenance of emergency lighting and fire alarms is essential, to ensure correct operation when an emergency occurs, and compliance with current regulations and insurance requirements. Any faults discovered during maintenance should be repaired with the utmost haste.
Emergency Lighting is covered under the British Standard For Emergency Lighting, BS 5266, all installations should be installed and maintained inline with these standards.
 
Emergency lights are a system that uses a battery backup, so should the power fail, the lamps illuminate from the battery, with this in mind, the batteries also need to be tested and maintained on a regular basis.

Our engineers carry out work on emergency lighting systems on a regular basis; our services include providing advice on compliance with current regulations, risk assessments and servicing  /  maintenance visits.
BS 5266-1:2005 Emergency lighting. Code of practice for the emergency lighting of premises.

 

Fire Alarms

Fire detection & alarm systems should be regularly tested.
Fire alarm regulation ( BS5839 ) states that the duty holder should undertake periodic  checks to ensure the system is fully functional.

Failure to keep the system in good working order may lead the local Fire Brigade Inspector to serve enforcement notices requiring compliance, the Fire Brigade also have the authority to close any premises which fail to meet standards.

Frequency checks required by ( BS5839 )  :-

• Daily
• Weekly
• Quarterly
• Annually