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Could a proactive approach to electrical maintenance save you money?

When you’re running a business year upon year, electrical maintenance is bound to rear its head at some point. As well as keeping you compliant with health and safety laws, it makes sure your system and appliances are functioning properly to keep your business ticking.

But as with any expense, you’ll no doubt want to keep the cost of electrical maintenance down. The question is – could a proactive approach help?

What is a proactive approach?

First things first, let’s define what’s meant by a proactive approach to electrical maintenance. In short, it means having your appliances and installation checked on a regular basis, regardless of whether you’ve had any issues.

That’s opposed to the reactive approach, where companies only call an electrician when there’s a problem. That could be anything from an appliance breaking or a power outage to a member of staff getting shocked or seriously injured.

Prevention vs cure for electrics

The saying goes that prevention is better than cure. That’s certainly true when it comes to electrics. One of the main benefits of a proactive approach is that it prevents serious problems from occurring unexpectedly with your electrical system and appliances.

Rather than paying for the cure (a potentially expensive repair job) you’ll be paying for prevention (a few small tweaks that are more affordable). You might also have to pay a premium for contracting electrical services at such short notice with the reactive “cure” approach.

Let’s look at two scenarios:

A – You don’t call the electrician until there’s a problem. One of your appliances is faulty, but nobody knows about it. The appliance causes a fire or introduces an electric shock risk and your property is damaged or one your employees is injured. The consequences of such a serious fault could be expensive damage and/or serious injury to one of your members of staff or visitors. As well as replacing the appliance, you could be hit with insurance claims, high costs and down time.

B – You have your electrical appliances checked on an annual basis. A faulty appliance is identified, and a replacement recommended. You pay out for the cost of a new appliance and the cost of the inspection.

Affordable and manageable

As well as making electrical maintenance more affordable, a proactive approach can also make costs more manageable. We’ve all been there – you get a quote or invoice for work on your commercial property, and it’s much more than you were expecting.

When it comes to overdue electrical maintenance, the costs can indeed be a shock – pun intended! Regular, scheduled maintenance is much more manageable. For one, because repairs are smaller and usually cost much less. But also because it’s an expected outgoing that you can book in advance and prepare for.

How to take a proactive approach

There are two main areas to consider for electrical maintenance – your installation and your appliances. Thankfully, these are covered by two key services:

PAT

PAT testing (portable appliance testing) is required for anything that’s plugged into a plug socket or generator. After a thorough inspection and test, appliances will be certified safe to use (or not), with a recommended date for their next test.

EICR

Short for electrical installation condition report, EICR comprises a comprehensive inspection of your building’s electrical system in line with the BS7671 standard. A qualified, competent professional will check for defective work, unsafe wiring, shock risks, fire hazards and more, before outlining their findings and any recommended repairs on an EICR certificate.

For more information on electrical compliance for Yorkshire businesses, visit: voltacompliance.com/electrical-compliance/