About a third of all industrial fires are created by electrical problems and electrical fires currently cost Australia $600 million per year. Many insurance companies are now requesting evidence of a Thermal Imaging Report when renewing policies as they see Preventative Maintenance as an extra step in reducing the instances of electrical fires. [ + ]

IT networks are troublesome; there are so many potential points of failure, so much monitoring, analysis and troubleshooting required. Ask anyone from any business, not just IT professionals, and they’ll tell you that any network downtime spells trouble. [ + ]

Data centres are power-hungry beasts; here are a few factors that influence overall consumption and show how effective design can help lessen energy usage. [ + ]

As we veer away from a reliance on fossil fuels in a quest to reduce greenhouse gas emissions, renewable energy is moving to the forefront. For all the benefits that renewable sources provide, the move to clean and green is not as easy as you would think. [ + ]

When a building design includes a large number of individual spaces such as apartments or offices, developers are always on the lookout for ways to reduce construction costs. There will always be a project expense for supplying hot water to a large number of units, but the installation and ongoing costs can be minimised with the appropriate choice of heating system. The main options for supplying hot water to apartments in medium- or high-density developments are a centralised gas-fired water heating system or instantaneous heating systems installed at, or very near, the point of use. [ + ]

As a series of storms, floods and fires recently swept across the country, Master Electricians Australia (MEA) has called on insurance companies to buy local when they are sourcing contractors for repair work. [ + ]

You get a patch or an upgrade for your firewall from the vendor. They say it fixes that one problem that’s been bugging you for the last few months. But you can’t just install the update, right? You have to test it first. [ + ]

In 2012, the telecommunications regulator - the Australian Communications and Media Authority (ACMA) - introduced major changes to the Cabling Provider Rules (CPR) that will affect most cablers across the country. [ + ]

Lapp cable products are in demand in large sporting facilities. From energy chains to solar cabling, Lapp products can be found in the homes of champions worldwide. [ + ]

France’s largest solar plant, with a total installed capacity of 105 MWp, is the Toul-Rosières Solar Park project located on a former military base near the city of Nancy in the Lorraine region. Developed by the French renewable energy provider EDF Energies Nouvelles, the photovoltaic power plant covers an area of more than 400 hectares and will generate 105 MWp, which is enough to provide for the electric power needs of a town with 62,000 inhabitants. [ + ]

One in four power outages and four of the five most significant blackouts occurring in Australia and New Zealand during 2012 were the result of severe weather. The causes included once-in-a-decade storm winds in Perth that left 161,000 people without power, severe winds that damaged poles and brought down lines in Taranaki, North Island, and damaging winds and torrential rainstorms in Sydney. [ + ]

The operator of the South Australian electricity distribution network, SA Power Networks, is the latest organisation to benefit from the expertise of local company Jumbo Vision, which specialises in the development and integration of control rooms that deftly balance the human factor with the latest audiovisual technology. [ + ]

NECA is playing a major role in a new electrical apprenticeship pilot being trialled throughout Australia by the industry skills council E-Oz Energy Skills Australia, focused on improving electrical apprentice completion rates across the country. [ + ]

From 1 July 2012, if you are a contractor in the building and construction industry, businesses in this industry will have to report to the ATO the total amount they have paid you each year for building and construction services. [ + ]

In our role as electrical industry peak body, Master Electricians Australia (MEA) is often asked by media what people should look for when they are engaging an electrician. Of course, our first answer is always to ensure you are dealing with someone who holds the appropriate licence and insurance for whichever state they’re working in. [ + ]