This couple should have gave W.E.S Electrical a call.....

Paisley couple forced to eat microwave Christmas dinner A FED-UP couple last night accused “bungling workmen” of wrecking their Christmas ...after being left with no cooker to prepare their festive meal. George and Sandra Cowan have told how their cooker has gone on the blink at the worst possible time – and they insist electricians who were sent in by council chiefs to rewire their home are to blame for Christmas being cancelled. The Paisley couple’s cooker has been out of action since workmen installed a new circuit board. It means turkey is off the menu this festive season...with George and Sandra having to make do with a microwave meal instead. Renfrewshire Council and contractors Waites Living Space both insist the problem lies with the cooker and have told the couple to get it fixed or buy a new one. But George said the cooker is only one year old and maintains it’s the electrics that are to blame. He told the Paisley Daily Express: “The council sent people in to rewire the house and the cooker had been working fine until they put in a new circuit board. Now it keeps tripping and cutting out. “How are we supposed to enjoy Christmas without a cooker? We’re going to have to sit here on Christmas Day with microwave dinners. “We can’t afford to get a new cooker or get this one fixed. We haven’t got a penny to our name.” George, 50, is a carer who looks after disabled Sandra, also 50, at their bungalow in Gallowhill and the couple claim the cooker calamity has left them stressed out. “Nobody is interested in our problem,” said George. “The people at Waites said it was nothing to do with them and the council insist my cooker is faulty. “It’s a nightmare for us. No-one is willing to take responsibility.” The renovation work at the couple’s home was carried out as part of Renfrewshire Council’s five-year push to bring all council housing stock up to the Scottish Housing Quality Standard. The £138million programme began in August last year and will see thousands of council tenants getting new kitchens, bathrooms and heating systems, as well as having their homes rewired and major upgrades carried out to roofs, gutters and downpipes. A Renfrewshire Council spokesperson said: “We have sent an electrician to Mr and Mrs Cowan’s home to test all their circuits and the cooker itself and have found that the fault lies with the cooker – not the circuits. “When homes are rewired, the circuits can become more sensitive and this means that, if an item such as a cooker is faulty, the new box will pick up on that. “We have explained this position to Mr and Mrs Cowan.” ........................................

electricians in ayrshire

South Ayrshire Council News Glowing report for Southcraig campus Southcraig Campus, which provides specialist support for pupils with additional support needs in Ayr from 3 to 18, has received a glowing report from school inspectors. Southcraig Campus was evaluated on learners' experiences, improvements in performance, children's experiences and meeting learning needs. In every single category, it was rated as 'very good'. The report comments: "Children and young people are enthusiastic and happy in school. They are developing confidence and work well with others across the school. They are successfully developing the skills of cooperation and working with a wide range of adults. "The school has a clear vision for the curriculum which it is developing effectively. Staff are working well together, developing comprehensive programmes for English and literacy, and mathematics and numeracy. "They provide a balance of topics which help children and young people make links across different aspects of learning and have developed very effective procedures to help all young people move on from school successfully." The inspector also pointed to how well pupils were being supported and encouraged and put this down to the outstanding leadership of the head of campus with the support of the wider senior management team. The results have delighted Councillor Hywel Davies, South Ayrshire Council's Portfolio Holder for Lifelong Learning who commented: "We are justifiably proud of this excellent report for Southcraig Campus. "It is especially pleasing that the inspector noted how our children and young people, with a wide range of different needs, are encouraged to achieve at the highest level and this reflects positively on how well they, school staff and parents have worked together to make real progress in all areas of the school curriculum." Southcraig Campus Head Teacher Lorraine Stobie added: "I'm over the moon with this positive and very encouraging school inspection report. "Our team encourages children and young people to be independent from an early age and we try to give them appropriate responsibility, such as individual duties in classes, tending the garden and supporting other children to help them achieve this. "This helps foster confidence and achievement from nursery years through to leaving school and we're seeing children and young people make good progress in developing their personal and social skills, taking account of their stage of development and their barriers to learning." "The inspector has given us some pointers to help make further improvement in the school, such as further development systems to track, monitor and assess pupils' progress against the curriculum and how we can work even more closely with children, young people, parents and partner agencies to help every pupil achieve their full potential. "We'll be taking these on board and look forward to further improving the way we work with and develop our young people." Councillor Davies concluded: "Southcraig staff, the Senior Management Team and parents deserve hearty congratulations on this report. "It is a direct reflection on how far the school has come on its improvement journey and speaks volumes for the way they have worked together to deliver an excellent and supportive learning environment, in which pupils from both schools are clearly flourishing".

electrical contracting in glasgow 2012

2012 Construction Outlook Pervasive Uncertainty, Fear and Unemployment Leading construction experts and economists are certain about one thing in construction right now: The future is mostly uncertain because consumers are scared, and too many Americans are unemployed. Economists see 2012 as a big question mark because of the risk of a double-dip recession. The projections from previous years are out the window, as unemployment continues to hover around 9 percent and the economy has “been bouncing along the bottom in 2011,” said Keith Fox, president of McGraw-Hill Construction during his opening remarks at the Outlook 2012 Executive Conference, held in Washington, D.C., on Oct. 19, 2011. This article analyzes the construction data and economic forecasts from industry leaders to help ELECTRICAL CONTRACTOR readers better understand why most construction markets are mired in a slump and what hope, if any, lies ahead. Perhaps the heavy bleeding is over, but the economy is still limping along a path of uncertainty and volatility. Right now, there isn’t a lot of confidence to go around. Current economic data showcases the not-so-enjoyable trends. Economy still in crisis First, let’s examine the macroeconomic trends that steer what happens on America’s job sites. According to Beth Ann Bovino, deputy chief economist at Standard & Poor’s, the recession has been over since 2009, but recovery is at “half speed.” During her presentation at McGraw-Hill Construction’s Outlook 2012 Executive Conference, Bovino said the U.S. economy grew by a modest 3 percent in 2010, by 1.7 percent in 2011 (estimated), and is projected to grow by a mere 1.5 percent in 2012. One of the main detractors from growth is that 9 percent unemployment rate. In addition, Bovino said government bickering and debt issues, coupled with fear and uncertainty among consumers, put the economy at about a 40 percent risk of another recession. The Federal Reserve’s lowering of interest rates to near zero didn’t do much to boost the economy's growth. “Investors saw that risk was a four-letter word and ran for the door,” she said. Robert Murray, vice president, eco-nomic affairs at McGraw-Hill Construction and electrical , agreed, saying during the Outlook 2012 conference that the chances of a double-dip recession were at about 20 percent in January 2011, but have since risen to more than 40 percent. In other words, the economy is teetering on the edge of another recession, and the slightest nudge can send it off that cliff again. With 25 million Americans unemployed or underemployed, “people are scared,” Bovino said, adding that wealth is down, home prices are down, spending is down, and savings are up. In its most simplistic terms, “a weak jobs market means less construction,” Bovino said. Consumer spending is another obstacle for construction markets. Consumers are focusing on debt reduction. Household debt, as a percentage of after-tax income, was 140 percent in 2007. In 2011, it was 120 percent. Much of that debt reduction has to do with foreclosures, as well. “If you turn in the keys, you don’t have the debt,” Bovino said. The latest Federal Deposit Insurance Corp. (FDIC) data supports that assertion. Total deposits in FDIC-insured banks eclipsed $10 trillion on Sept. 30, 2011. Total deposits increased by $235 billion in the third quarter of 2011, marking a $577 billion increase since the beginning of the year. The FDIC data also shows that about $8.5 trillion of total deposits is sitting in domestic branches of insured banks while the remaining $1.5 trillion is in overseas branches of U.S. banks. “People are putting a little more in the bank and spending a little less at the mall,” said Standard & Poor’s Bovino, simplifying the trend. What is more interesting about the consumer saving is that they are putting their assets in “liquid” accounts, such as savings, checking and money market accounts. Perhaps fears from stock market volatility and the questionable situation in Europe pushed them to find safer, more conservative places for their assets. According to the FDIC report, checking, savings and money market accounts increased $316 billion in the third quarter and $762 billion since the beginning of the year. Conversely, certificates of deposit—which require a time commitment and penalties for early withdrawal—decreased by $36 billion in the third quarter and $130 billion since the beginning of the year. Consumers and small business owners remain conservative with investments. The housing market is included. Most economists agree that, until the housing situation changes for the better, the economy will be mired in this economic crisis, with only slight, incremental growth. The housing bubble that burst a few years ago precipitated this mess. Recovering from it will take much more time. Let’s take a closer look at the construction markets, paying particularly close attention to the residential market—a leading indicator for overall construction. Construction overview According to McGraw-Hill’s Murray, the $412 billion construction market breaks down to $133 billion in residential construction, $152 billion in nonresidential construction and $127 billion in nonbuilding construction. Right now, residential and nonresidential are hurting, while nonbuilding could emerge as a nice opportunity for electrical contractors—at least in the short term. “It continues to be a turbulent time,” Murray said during his annual presentation at the Outlook 2012 Conference. “There is a sense of uncertainty.” In 2010, Murray predicted a leveling off that suggested growth for 2011. Murray, one of the industry’s leading and most respected economists, was among the masses in missing the mark on that call. Most experts and economists were in the same boat, as they expected the jobs picture to improve in 2011. When that did not happen, in addition to many other variables, the market remained flat or declined. And while government stimulus funding appeared to boost the economy, it was an artificial jolt, Murray said. Residential: trouble at home The housing bubble collapse continues to ripple through the entire construction arena. Things are turning around, but economists are erring on the side of caution with expectations—an evident theme throughout the forecasts. “We believe the turnaround is in progress, but it’s so slow and so painful we can’t get too excited about it,” said Bernard Markstein, chief economist at Reed Construction Data (RCD) during the Oct. 13, 2011, “Economic Forecast Webcast: Flat, Down or Up? Where is Construction Heading?” Markstein also cautioned that large percentage increases in various construction sectors in 2011 look nice on paper but are easy to reach when coming from such a low point. Again, tame your excitement until we see sustained growth over a longer time frame. “We’re not really getting back to where we were [prerecession],” he said during the RCD webcast. Single-family According to Standard & Poor’s Bovino, housing was affordable, interest rates were at record lows and demand increased sharply in 2005. Consumers bought bigger houses, rates went up and some signed up for adjustable-rate mortgages. When those monthly payments increased on the adjustable-rate mortgages, affordability went down, housing dried up and demand fell, thus leaving a huge overstock of available housing in the single-family market. Bovino said there is an eight-and-a-half month excess supply of available homes, which has led builders to pull back on new construction plans. Housing starts, which peaked at 2 million in 2005, dipped below 500,000 in 2011. When you add in the “shadow inventory” of distressed homes—those in foreclosure or on the verge—you can add a couple more months to the inventory-depletion timeline. Other leading economists agree. According to Kermit Baker, the American Institute of Architects’ chief economist, the 2 million units built in 2005 slumped dramatically to 500,000 in 2009 and rose to about 510,000 in 2010. Housing starts were projected to reach 600,000 units for 2011 and should reach 800,000 units in 2012. The number of housing starts is not expected to reach more than 1 million units until sometime in 2013, he suggested, but even that is considered subpar. The 2011–2013 projects are consensus projects, according to Baker. During his presentation at the Outlook 2012 Conference, Baker said there is a dramatic scaling back of new home construction because, “potential homebuyers are nervous about getting back in.” He added that, “we are still sitting on a huge amount of vacant units.” Despite a few years of growth, the industry is not back to normal yet in terms of household formations. “What started out as a problem of oversupply has become a problem of low demand,” Baker said. He added that the under-30 population is doubling up, tripling up or living with their parents, instead of jumping into the housing market. The focus in recent years has been on inventory reduction. That has now shifted toward household formations. According to CoreLogic, Baker said during the McGraw-Hill conference, 20 percent of homeowners with mortgages are “under water.” He said during his webcast presentation that there are a lot of homeowners sitting on the sidelines who want to move but can’t until the housing market improves. If they are sitting on the sidelines and cannot sell or upgrade, what are they doing? Are they improving their existing properties? Remodeling and alterations Despite home-improvement spending dropping by 20 percent during the economic downturn, the remodeling market still accounted for $300 billion in construction, Baker said. The remodeling market peaked in 2007, as growth came from homeowner improvement projects. It hit its trough in mid-2010 with a 15 to 20 percent drop from that 2007 peak. That slump, he said, pales in comparison to the one endured in the home-building arena. Traditionally, remodeling and alterations account for about 40 to 45 percent of the residential construction market. However, remodeling is now growing to more than 70 percent of the residential market—clearly a sign of the times. In the last five years, Baker said, there has been an uptick in discretionary spending on additions, kitchens and bathrooms due to a lack of mobility. Instead of moving to larger residences, homeowners are improving the ones in which they reside, waiting for market prices to improve. Distressed properties also are contributing to the remodeling and alterations category, Baker said. About a third of remodeling construction, he said, is done on distressed properties—those in foreclosure or on the verge of it. These projects account for 20 percent of the remodeling revenue, which is a very significant amount, compared to previous years. This distressed property market will fuel remodeling work for years to come, Baker said. It is perhaps sad that one of the few bright spots in the residential construction market is that distressed properties are contributing to the overall construction market because banks and homeowners are getting properties ready for foreclosure sales or short sales. In addition to distressed properties, energy-efficiency upgrades have also emerged as a leading sector for the residential remodeling market—one that electrical contractors, in particular, can take advantage of. In the third quarter of 2009, green projects made up 25.5 percent of the remodeling market share; a year later, during the height of the stimulus program, that percentage grew to 29 percent. In the third quarter of 2011, in a post-stimulus environment, the percentage fell back to 24.9 percent. Multifamily According to the AIA’s Baker, the single-family home market directly impacts the multifamily market. “Renters went up 1.5 million per year, and home ownership went down as a result,” he said. “One affects the other.” McGraw-Hill’s Murray said multifamily housing is one of the few bright spots in construction that could deliver growth in the near future. “Perhaps the best bet right now is multifamily,” he said. The sector enjoyed 15 percent growth in 2011 and is projected to grow by another 17 percent in 2012. As foreclosures and distressed properties increase, the opportunities for multifamily housing increase. People forced to leave their homes—whether due to affordability issues or unemployment—tend to roll into apartments as a result. In his presentation, Harvey M. Bernstein, McGraw-Hill vice president, Industry Insights & Alliances, said there would be a greater demand for apartments due to downsizing, foreclosures, job switches and unemployment. According to the Engineering News-Record’s Construction Industry Confidence Index (CICI), multiunit residential was the only category that showed increased confidence in recent quarters. Healthcare, higher education, K–12 and office (commercial), showed declines over the same time period. Again, these figures show a growing multifamily sector at the expense of the single-family market. In this tumultuous housing market, home ownership is risky for many Americans. Renting has become the necessary fall-back plan that many of the unemployed or underemployed have embraced—at least until they get above water again. It will be a long, slow process, just like this economic recovery. In his final analysis of the residential market, Baker said the industry would see slightly more demand for housing, as we “climb back on this ladder, gradually.” He added that there is still too much housing inventory that needs to be sold off before we can start a recovery with new home construction. Standard & Poor’s Bovino is in complete agreement on that point. The distressed home market has been, and will continue to be, the wild card in that equation. Now that we have examined the residential market, let’s take a closer look at nonresidential construction. For many electrical contractors, the commercial/industrial/institutional (CII) market is the bulk of their business, and it is vital to keep abreast of the growth opportunities. Nonresidential (CII): flat or down? According to McGraw-Hill’s Murray, the U.S. nonresidential building market, which free-fell in 2009 by more than 30 percent, was down a mere 6 percent in 2011 and is projected for a modest 2 percent increase in 2012. The total nonresidential market includes the $92 billion institutional market, the $47 billion commercial market and $13 billion in manufacturing. Let’s dissect each market to uncover obstacles and opportunities. Commercial Construction in the U.S. commercial buildings sector (stores and shopping centers) peaked in 2007 with 314 million square feet. Over the next four years, the amount of square footage plummeted by an alarming 75 percent to 81 million square feet in both 2010 and 2011. McGraw-Hill projects a slight 2 percent up-tick for 2012. When you consider the 75 percent drop, a 2 percent increase seems insignificant, but at least it is not falling further. McGraw-Hill’s Murray said the commercial market suffered from slow retail sales that led to reduced store openings and more store closings. He cited the Borders book chain as a major example. The only retailers expanding right now are “extreme discounters,” such as Family Dollar and Dollar General. A look at who is building stores in this economic downturn shows that Walmart outpaces every other competitor. All other major retailers paled in comparison to the number of projects Walmart started between January 2009 and January 2011. In terms of warehouses, construction fell sharply from 2008 to 2010 but is now experiencing some modest growth. Some of that growth is coming from Amazon.com, which is constructing several large distribution facilities. Warehouse construction fell from 254 million square feet at its peak in 2007 to 48 million at the trough in 2010. Since then, there has been an 18 percent increase in 2011 and a projected 17 percent increase on top of that in 2012. However, reaching 67 million square feet in 2012, while growing, is still far away from that 2007 peak. Growth will be slow and steady, experts concede. A sluggish economy, reduced business travel and hotel/casino overbuilding led to substantial losses in the hospitality sector in 2009 and 2010, according to Murray. Just as in other commercial areas, hotel construction endured a major collapse during the recession and is now creeping back up again. Murray projected 34 percent growth in 2011 and another 17 percent growth in 2012 in hotel construction. In 2011, business travel improved, industry financials strengthened and occupancy rates improved. In addition, a look at major hotel/casino projects indicates that casino construction is still a good bet for contractors. Of the largest 12 hospitality projects underway, four of them involve casinos. Incidentally, among the largest amusement and recreation projects in the institutional sector, six of them involve casinos. Following all the other sectors of the U.S. commercial market, office construction endured the same precipitous drop following a 2007 peak, from 218 million square feet to a 2011 low of 55 million square feet. Murray predicts a modest 4 percent increase in office construction in 2012. Tight credit conditions, he said, contributed to project deferrals in 2008 and 2009. Those deferrals are now easing. Industrial/manufacturing After peaking at 91 million square feet in 2007, manufacturing buildings slumped to 37 million square feet in 2009 before beginning to climb again. Increases in 2010 (25 percent), 2011 (5 percent) and a projected increase in 2012 (6 percent) should get this sector back to about 51 million square feet—still far short of the 2007 peak. In terms of dollars, the industrial/-manufacturing market fell from $31 billion in 2008 to $9.2 billion in 2010. It is now creeping up to between $12 billion and $13 billion (projected for 2012). The sharp decline in recent years was caused mostly by closings of automotive plants across the country, particularly in Detroit. The modest growth coming now is a result of large-scale projects in both the automotive and energy sectors—ethanol, biofuel and solar manufacturing plants. Institutional The institutional market comprises education buildings, healthcare facilities, public buildings, amusement and recreation projects and airports. Let’s examine each area briefly. School construction continues to lose momentum, down from 224 million square feet at its 2008 peak to 127 million square feet in 2011. That number is expected to drop further in 2012 to 115 million square feet, a 9 percent decline. Leading this trend is a tightening of state budgets, a scaling back on capital expenditures by universities and colleges and shrinking endowments. In 2010, K–12 construction was 3.6 times the size of colleges, universities and community colleges in terms of square footage; however, in dollar terms, K–12 school construction was 2.3 times the size of higher education construction. Despite an ongoing need to replace aging facilities and a growing elderly population, healthcare facilities construction has been flat since 2009. After a 2008 peak at 109 million square feet, the sector dropped to 67 million square feet in 2009 and grew only to 71 million square feet in 2011. McGraw-Hill projects a 1 percent decline in 2012. There is a long-term need for healthcare construction because of an aging population and Veterans Administration future needs, but time will tell how that plays out. Public buildings (detention centers, armories/military, courthouses, police and fire stations and post offices) have also fallen on hard times, particularly post offices. Overall, public building construction fell by about 50 percent from 51 million square feet in 2007 to 24 million in 2011. Murray expects a further decline in 2012 by 9 percent. Wearing off of Stimulus Act support and diminished federal spending will continue to erode public building construction. Post office construction—one of the hardest hit areas—was up by 76 percent in 2010 but collapsed by almost 100 percent in 2011. According to McGraw-Hill’s data, airport terminal work jumped in 2009 by 49 percent to 4.4 million square feet, only to retreat by 45 percent in 2010 to 2.4 million square feet. The 2012 projection is another 5 percent decline to 1.8 million square feet. Nonbuilding: stimulus dried up Nonbuilding construction accounts for $127 billion of the $412 billion construction industry, or about 30 percent. With the impact of stimulus funding now waning, though, many of the federal public works projects that stimulus funds assisted in 2009 and 2010 are no longer feeling the lift. What peaked in 2010 with $58.8 billion in highway and bridge construction, slipped in 2011 to $54 billion. McGraw-Hill predicts another 7 percent decline in highways and bridges in 2012. Likewise, budget cuts affected rail and mass transit projects. From a $7.1 billion peak in 2010, the sector plummeted by 55 percent to $3.2 billion in 2011 and is expected to dip further in 2012. There was a 48 percent surge in electric utility construction in 2011, which followed a 34 percent jump in 2010. After peaking at $42 billion in construction, experts predict a 24 percent decline for 2012 to $32 billion simply because the amount of growth couldn’t be sustained much longer. Either way, this utility work is great news for electrical contractors. Let’s dissect this category a bit more for the electrical industry. Energy bills provided tax incentives for electric utility and transmission line construction. The stimulus act delivered another boost for alternative sources of electricity generation. Alternative-energy power plants now appear to be very strong, according to Murray. In 2010, alternative-energy power plant construction jumped by 111 percent and was up 85 percent (as of October 2011, year to date). Power line construction also remains strong with a 52 percent increase in 2010 and a 100 percent increase (as of October 2011, year to date). Of the top 12 large projects in the electric utilities category, five are major solar plants, one is a new wind farm, and nuclear and gas plants round out the top group. Other trends: opportunities and concerns LEED specification rate It is interesting to note that the nonresidential LEED specification rate has increased steadily since 2004. Since then, when the LEED spec rate was about 17 percent, it has grown to about 58 percent in terms of dollars in 2010. In terms of the percentage of projects, the LEED spec rate grew from about 7 percent in 2004 to about 28 percent in 2010. This trend is expected to continue to grow. Institutional construction, particularly in the education construction sector, is driving this trend. Labor concerns still loom In 2010, retirees made up 25 percent of the labor force, said Standard & Poor’s Bovino. By the year 2030, retirees will make up 50 percent (half) of the entire labor force. This indicates a serious labor issue for the next couple decades, as aging baby boomers head into retirement. In addition, as construction jobs dried up and employees were laid off, a sizable chunk left the industry altogether out of necessity. They might not return when the economy turns again. A shortage of younger, trained electrical workers and an aging baby boomer population spell problems for the labor force in the future. This issue will only get bigger in time. Conclusion Now that we have examined the construction markets and looked at economic and other trends, what’s the bottom line? The housing demand, Baker said, will follow the jobs. RCD’s Markstein summed up what has to come first for construction to creep out of this valley: “Jobs. Jobs. Jobs.” McGraw-Hill’s Murray concurs as well, saying, “The key is what is going to happen with jobs.” Between February 2008 and February 2010, 8.8 million Americans lost their jobs. Some of those unemployed Americans are back to work, but far too many are still on the shelf. Until the unemployment rate drops, don’t expect strong construction activity. Standard & Poor’s Bovino predicts that the unemployment rate won’t dip to 8 percent until 2013. That’s bad news when you consider that most economists point to jobs as the catalyst for just about everything in construction. With continued volatility in the labor force and unprecedented levels of unemployment, 2012 is not only uncertain, but growth will be modest if it exists at all. “It’s a long process, and I don’t think anyone is calling for a lot of improvement in 2012,” said the AIA’s Baker during his RCD webcast presentation. “And I think it will be touch-and-go in 2013.” --------------------------------------------------------------------------------

electricians in Edinburgh

The tram line between Edinburgh Airport and York Place is to be completed in 2014 Continue reading the main story Related Stories Tram work suspended for Christmas Edinburgh trams: What went wrong? Trams inquiry 'on hold for now' Commuters are being advised to add 10 minutes to their journeys through Edinburgh centre when work on the tram project enters a new phase in January. St Andrew Street will be closed to traffic on 7 January, with Shandwick Place closing on 14 January. A series of diversions will be put in place in the city centre as part of what Edinburgh City Council calls a "a co-ordinated traffic management plan". Princes Street work will resume after Christmas and Hogmanay celebrations. City council officials said the project was now "progressing well", following the end of a lengthy dispute with the companies building the line. Expressed concerns Dave Anderson, Edinburgh City Council's director of city development, said: "We are now moving forward with the project and, from January, work on all sections of the route, from the airport to St Andrew Square, will be under way". "We would like to thank the people of Edinburgh for their continued patience throughout this process and reassure them that the project is on track to be completed within our current timescale." The local authority has pledged to support businesses in the city centre, which have expressed concerns about the impact the continuing disruption is having on trade. Gordon Mackenzie, Edinburgh City Council's transport convener, said: "We have been working closely with city centre businesses to minimise the impact on trade during the course of the works, committing close to £1m to our business support scheme over the next two years". The tram line between Edinburgh Airport and York Place in the city centre is scheduled to be completed in 2014. A public inquiry is to be held to examine why the project is years behind schedule and over budget.

injured while on the job

this just a quick blog, as i am currently bed ridden as i had knee surgery last wednesday at vale of leven hospital to cut away some cartiledge, but the main this is i am a small one man company the way things are these days in scotland that is how we can get by. when i was an apprentice there wer loads of bigger companies with 25 - 30 electricians on their books, but now it seems everyone works for themselfs in the trades. which is a good thing but the only problem is that im going to be out of work for around 10 weeks which is a lot of cash for a businss such as mine.im just caught in two minds wether or not to expand my business and create an office with a few electricians means i would still be working but from an office as i really dont know when i will be back to full fitness if you have any advice that would be greatly appreciated.

paisley electrical

Paisley News £4million programme launched to regenerate former Arnott’s site in Paisley A £4million programme is being launched to transform a derelict site in Paisley which was once occupied by the town’s famous department store. An innovative partnership has been signed between Renfrewshire Council and Park Lane Developments Ltd who now jointly own the site of the former Arnotts store on Gauze Street, Paisley. The council and its commercial partner aim to boost the potential for redevelopment by firstly cleaning up the site. Then the partnership will look to seek developers for different parts of the site with a mix of residential and commercial use along with car parking. The £4million programme for the Arnott’s site involves a £3m purchase price and a further £1m fund to help kick start development. The bulk of Renfrewshire and Ayrshire Council’s contribution comes from the £1.83m which the council secured for Paisley from the Scottish Government’s Town Centres Regeneration Fund. Renfrewshire Council and Park Lane Developments Ltd will each have 50/50 shares in a limited liability company which owns the site. The store on Gauze Street originally opened in 1927 and changed to Arnott’s in 1973 next to the paisley piazza shopping center

bearsden glasgow

Designed to perform in harmony with local electric utility conditions around the world, modern internal power supply units (PSUs) are more robust than ever. They operate normally over a wide range of input voltages and frequencies, have internal energy storage to ride through brief power interruptions, feature input power factor correction circuitry, and operate at a power factor close to unity. But in spite of their robust design, PSUs require additional protection from a range of power quality problems that are generated by the electric utility or arise within the facility. For this reason, IT equipment needs a consistent source of conditioned power that meets industry specifications to operate properly. Responsible for providing that consistent, conditioned power is the uninterruptible power system (UPS). Data center personnel check racks for proper power protection before critical IT equipment is installed. With a vast array of UPS options in the market today, which design will meet the needs of your IT equipment? The answer depends on a combination of factors, including industry trends, advances in technology, and the degree of protection required. It helps to look at the issue from an "end-user"point of view — the perspective of the PSU inside the IT equipment. Following are five basic power quality requirements you should consider to meet the needs of an internal PSU. Requirement #1 — input voltage within acceptable limits Most equipment manufacturers use universal PSUs that support the various input voltages and frequencies found in different countries. That means the PSU in your IT equipment is likely to support the low, 100VAC voltage used in Japan as well as the high, 240VAC voltage used on most other continents. In North America, the PSU may have to accommodate single-phase sources of 120V and 240V and 3-phase sources with voltages of 120V, 208V, and 240V. According to standards set forth by the Server System Infrastructure (SSI) Forum, a PSU rated for 120V to 127V should operate normally at voltages ranging from 90V to 140V. A PSU rated for 200V to 240V should operate normally on input voltage from 180V to 264V. Real design margins are somewhat broader, again because of the need to handle input voltages from any country around the world. The power output from the PSU may even be automatically limited by input voltage, to protect it and internal circuitry from damage if connected to the lower voltage range. The bottom line is today’s PSUs are more versatile, robust, and tolerant than they were even five years ago, with many supplies capable of handling input voltages anywhere between 90V and 264V. This means the UPS must be able to supply voltage within the specified range required by the PSU, for all voltage variations found in the AC power sources (utility mains or generator). For example, for higher watt rated power supplies requiring an input voltage of 200V to 240V, the UPS must deliver power within the 180V to 264V range. Requirement #2 — input frequency within allowable ranges Once again, power supplies for IT equipment are typically designed for universal operations. That means a typical PSU can operate normally at frequencies from 47 Hz to 63 Hz (many supplies have a 45 Hz to 65 Hz window) to accept electric utility power at both 50 Hz and 60 Hz. For your specific uses, the UPS must be able to regulate output frequency to meet the PSU’s specification range of 47 Hz to 63 Hz for all frequency variations in the AC power source — whether that power is coming from utility mains or a generator. Requirement #3 — sufficient input power to compensate for power factor Circuits containing a mixture of reactive components (capacitors, inductors, switching devices) characteristically have what is known as a distortion power factor. The current drawn on the input is a mixture of the fundamental frequency as well as several harmonic frequencies (multiples of the base frequency). Power supplies used in IT equipment generally fit into this last category. Harmonic distortion and power factor are directly related. The higher the power factor of an IT power supply, the lower the harmonic distortion. Poor http://www.wesuk.co.uk/electricianglasgow-bearsden.html, due to high input total harmonic distortion (THD), has been known to cause failed neutral conductors, overheated transformers, and, in the worst cases, building fires. This was a concern with older switch-mode power supply designs used 10-plus years ago. These problems led to the creation of international design standards (EN61000-3-3, EN61000-3-2, IEC 1000-4-7) aimed at limiting allowable harmonic distortion on a power source. Most modern power supplies above a 50W rating are designed to correct for poor power factor. They have an input power factor correction (PFC) circuit to raise power factor and lower input current distortion. In addition, most power supplies above 200W have an active PFC circuit that automatically adjusts the power factor based on the actual power required by the IT device. These capabilities enable such power supplies to drive power factor very close to unity; however, there still can be some issues with higher powered power supplies running at very low loads, with the power factor actually causing other issues for some UPS systems and generators. In sizing a UPS, the power rating (kW) is actually more important than the kVA rating (apparent power) due to the high power factor of the IT equipment. When assessing output power and battery backup time, make sure to use the real power (kW) rating of the UPS. If the kW is not apparent in the UPS specifications, you can calculate it by multiplying the UPS kVA rating times the output power factor rating of the UPS. PSUs used in IT equipment today have a power factor trending toward unity, because of the need to reduce harmonic current content in the AC source feeding the IT loads. As a result, in today’s power supply designs, a power factor of 0.9 would be considered acceptable, 0.95 would be typical, and a value of 0.99 would be excellent. Requirement #4 — transfer to backup power faster than PSU "hold-up"time PSUs inside IT equipment have an energy storage device (usually a capacitor) that stores enough energy to keep the device running during very brief power interruptions. This is known as "hold-up"time and depends on the internal capacitance — consider it a very low-capacity battery — of the power supply and the output power rating. At higher output power, the energy is drawn from internal capacitance faster than at lower output power. According to IT equipment standards in bearsden glasgow set forth by the SSI Forum, minimum hold-up time at fully rated output power is one cycle. Because most IT equipment is designed for the global market, the minimum hold-up time is 20 msec (50 Hz AC cycle) — the time may be longer at lighter loads. However, under pressures to reduce PSU size and cost, manufacturers are designing PSUs with smaller capacitors, which lead to shorter hold-up times. This effect is somewhat offset by the prevalence of redundant power supplies, because each power supply would be loaded to less than 50% of its capacity. A related issue with respect to hold-up time is the peak inrush current required to charge up the capacitor that provides the ride-through capability. When first connected to an AC power source (or when powered up on an already connected source), the equipment temporarily draws a large inrush current that can last for 2 msec to 10 msec and be as much as 10 to 60 times the normal operating current. Similar to the start-up inrush current, there is also a surge current drawn to recharge the capacitors after short interruptions in power. If the power interruption is less than 5 msec, surge currents will typically last for half a cycle (10 msec) and will be less than 300% of nominal current. For interruptions of 10 msec to 15 msec, the surge current could be 700% to more than 1,000% of nominal current and can last for 1.0 to 1.5 cycles (20 msec to 30 msec). For performance requirements, the UPS must first ensure no interruption in its output that lasts longer than the hold-time of the IT equipment’s PSU. This means that the UPS must have an acceptable transfer time for all transitions between different modes of operation — such as from normal operating mode to battery mode and back again or between high-efficiency mode and double-conversion mode for new energy-saving UPSs. Note that hold-up time will be different for single- or multi-corded servers, because the more PSUs on the IT equipment, the less power load on each PSU — and the longer the available hold-up time. Single-corded IT equipment will need a UPS with faster transition times to prevent unplanned shutdowns and reboots. The UPS transfer time should actually be much faster than the maximum allowable hold-up time, because the longer the PSU goes without power, the larger the surge current it will draw when it receives power again. In cases where the PSU is without power for more than 5 msec to 10 msec, the inrush current required by the PSU could easily exceed the maximum current output capacity of the UPS inverter, forcing the UPS to shut down to protect its own inverter components. Requirement #5 — protection from damaging power conditions in bearsden PSUs are designed to handle voltage that sags 10% below nominal specification or surges 10% above, without loss of function or performance. The PSU is also required to handle surges of 30% from the midpoint of nominal (286V for a 220V PSU) for 0.5 cycles (8 msec to 10 msec). For fast AC line transients, the power supply is designed to meet the EN61000-4-5 directive and any additional requirements in IEC1000-4-5:1995/the Level 3 requirements for surge — and withstand capability without disruptions to normal operations. These tolerances are well defined by the Information Technology Industry Council (ITIC) curve, published by ITIC Technical Committee 3 (TC3). The ITIC curve, which actually represents a stair step more than a curve, describes a voltage envelope that PSUs can typically tolerate without interrupting function. UPS output voltage must be within the acceptable zone specified by the ITIC curve for all input AC line conditions. The UPS must be designed to ensure the voltage to the PSU is not in the prohibited range, because voltage in that range could damage the IT equipment. The UPS must also be designed to handle high-speed impulses, such as lightning strikes or surge currents of longer duration, even though most PSU are designed to handle some level of surge current without damage. Final thoughts Designed to serve global markets, modern PSUs have a wider range of capability than ever before. Despite their capabilities, PSUs still need vital UPS protection from power quality problems in the facility. However, with such a vast selection of UPS configurations available today, choosing the best fit for your needs can be challenging. If you consider the "end-user"needs of the PSUs in your IT equipment, choose a UPS with the appropriate input voltage/frequency and sufficient input power to compensate power factor. In addition, by making sure the unit can transfer backup power faster than PSU "hold-up"time and provide adequate protection from damaging power conditions, you can meet the key power quality requirements set by international standards and provide consistent, conditioned power. Loeffler is a data center applications manager for Eaton