Frequently Asked Questions

 

Terms explained:

CORGI The Council for Registered Gas Installers (CORGI) operates the registration scheme for gas installers in the UK. Under the Gas Safety (Installation and Use) Regulations 1998 anybody undertaking work on gas fittings or appliances by way of business must be a "member of a class of persons approved ...by the Health and Safety Executive" (HSE).

CSCS is the Construction Skills Certification Scheme, CSCS was set up to help the construction industry to improve quality and reduce accidents.
CSCS cards are increasingly demanded as proof of occupational competence by contractors, public and private clients and others.

 

First fix comprises all the work needed to take a building from foundation to putting plaster on the internal walls. This includes constructing walls, floors and ceilings, and inserting cables for electrical supply and pipes for water supply.

 

Second fix comprises all the work after the plastering to a finished house. Electrical fixtures are connected to the cables, sinks and baths connected to the pipes, and doors fitted into doorframes. Second fix work requires a neater finish than first fix.
The division of work is a convenient description because electricians, plumbers and carpenters will probably have to make two separate visits to one property under construction, at separate times. Project managers can report "first fix complete" or "second fix 50% done" and others can understand.

 

The Guild of Master Craftsmen supports and promotes excellence. Their rigorous selection procedure ensures the highest standards. To the trade and public alike, the Guild’s emblem and Coat of Arms represent skill, integrity, quality and service – in all, professionalism.

 

NICEIC is the electrical contracting industry’s independent voluntary body for electrical installation matters throughout the UK. We offer industry-leading certification services, Building Regulations Schemes, products and support to electrical contractors and many other trades within the construction industry. 

 

Part P - UK law, effective Jan 1st 2005. Requirement P covers fixed electrical installations in dwellings. It is intended to increase the safety of households by improving the design, installation, inspection and testing of electrical installations in dwellings when these installations are being newly built, extended or altered.

 

Photocell- A device which measures lux levels. Typical application is the automatic switching of outdoor lights when dusk falls. Some photocells are adjustable, so that they switch at different lux levels and for different periods of time. They can be wired such that a normal switch can overide their function.