Page 11 - Blog

Here at Test Meter we do our very best to help pair our customers with the perfect product for their needs. We love hearing the new ways our customers make use of the instruments we sell, so we were buzzing to tell you about this one!

Carbon Dioxide monitors have long been a plausible method of monitoring air quality in public environments such as offices, schools, factories, and hospitals to name a few.

A recent report by the UK Government’s Scientific Advisory Group for Emergencies (SAGE), suggested that ventilation plays a considerable role in keeping coronavirus at bay indoors, and that ventilation could be tested using CO2 monitors.

The group concluded that measuring CO2 levels would be an effective way to observe whether air quality levels have reached a level where COVID-19 is more likely to circulate through aerosol transmission.

“Continuous CO2 monitoring is not likely to be a reliable proxy for transmission risk in most environments,” the report informs.

“However preliminary research suggests that in spaces where the same group of people regularly attend, for example schools, universities and offices, continuous monitoring may be possible

On the 11th March 2020, The World Health Organisation (WHO), responsible for assessing the global developments of COVID-19, characterised the outbreak as a pandemic¹. As of 31st March 2020, it is reported that the pandemic has affected more than 179 countries, with more than 823,000 cases confirmed worldwide².

WHO confidently write that ‘all countries can still change the course of this pandemic’, and in order to supress and control the virus, it advises that countries should take measures to ‘detect, test, treat, isolate, trace and mobilise their people in the response’³ to the global emergency.

The 1st of January 2019 was a significant date on the electrical calendar, it was the day we at last saw the implementation of the 18th Edition of the IET wiring regulations. First introduced in July 2018, changes were made across the board as chapters were redesigned, rewritten or indeed introduced for the very first time. Definitions were altered, the scope was extended, and a declaration was made concerning only using the approved parts. Beyond these amendments however, perhaps the most important difference was the emphasis placed both directly and indirectly on green energy.

From providing brand new functions, improving on the old or simply finding solutions to make the operators job easier, this year has produced some incredible new innovations in the field of test equipment. We've put together a convenient shortlist of what we believe to be the top five devices released in 2019. With such an incredible range of products available - if you work in gas, electrical or buildings sectors - we guarantee you should give these a look!

Sulphur hexafluoride – SF6 – is widely used in the electricity distribution industry in medium- and high-voltage installations such as substations, transformers and power stations. It is an odourless, colourless, non-flammable gas that acts as an insulator and prevents explosions and fires brought about by short circuits.

These qualities have made it the most common gas insulator for HV switchgear and use is increasing as a greater number of smaller generators come onto the grid. However, concern has been raised about the global warming potential of SF6 as use increases, perversely driven by increased demand for renewable energy.

On 9th August, Britain experienced one of the biggest power cuts in a decade as over 1,000,000 people were left without power across England and Wales. As well as thousands of homes going without power, the blackout also had a massive disruptive effect on transport with problems on the rail network and at Newcastle airport in addition to disruption for community facilities and businesses. But what lessons can be taken from the outage?

From 2017, a change in the law required the introduction of a new refrigerant – HFO-1234YF (also known as R-1234YF) – in air-conditioning systems of vehicles, replacing the widely used R134a. This has implications for automotive engineers and HVAC technicians, particularly when it comes to using appropriate gas leak detectors.

Energy suppliers are obliged by Ofgem to take all reasonable steps possible to have a smart meter installed in the premises of all their domestic and small business customers by the end of 2020¹. The benefits of smart meters from both a consumer and environmental point of view have been loudly trumpeted in press releases and advertisements, but significant doubts remain and the 2020 deadline looks more and more optimistic when set against the facts. So where is the UK’s smart meter project?

The International Performance Measurement and Verification Protocol (IPMVP) is an internationally recognised protocol for making businesses more efficient when it comes to energy use.