Electric.ie Jan/Feb 2021

ELECTRIC.IE • The Magazine & Website for the Irish Electrical Industry • 5 Editorial electric.ie Electric Bureau Ireland Ltd., Bluebell House Business Centre, Bluebell Avenue, Dublin 12 Tel: (087) 6698028 Info@electric.ie Reg. Dublin: 512293 Colin Sherlock Sales & Marketing Manager Layout/Design colin.sherlock@electric.ie DISCLAIMER Electric Bureau Ireland Ltd. accept no respon- siblity for the accuracy of contributed articles or statements appearing in this publication. Electric.ie is published by Electric Bureau Ireland Ltd. The magazine is circulated throughout Ireland and is available on wholesale trade counters and from representatives of electrical distributors who are members of EMDA The editor welcomes: contributions of technical papers, information on new products, details of installation projects and all editorial input of interest to our readers. As we wish a happy new year to all our readers, advertisers and supporters we can ref lect a little on the difficulties our industry faced in 2020. What a year it has been! In January last year, we would not have believed what was lying ahead for us all in 2020. Despite current restrictions, many in the electrical industry reported stability and even growth in sales in the last quarter of 2020. However, we are now facing a new shutdown that may last for three months. Industry overall seems to accept these restrictions with some air of resignation and respect for the Government’s stated objective to protect public health and education. The suggestion that any easing of restrictions will start with the construction industry gives some comfort. Despite the lack of certainty in the future, we are now experienced in safety procedures. Industry will continue to apply the knowledge that it has gained to ensure survival both health and business wise. We have to hope that vaccines can be rolled out as quickly as possible and that we can get this Covid-19 under control so we can all get back to work again. With all minds focussed on the Covid, the Brexit seems to have become a reality with minimal fuss. In this edition we give you a Brexit checklist for your business. This really is a good informative article to guide you through possible pitfalls. Initial reaction from the food and retail communities suggests that delays and increased costs will be inevitable. It’s early days and we will be interested to hear from readers who are finding solutions to issues that may arise. As in previous January editions, we have published our updated EMDA Directory. This can be a handy pull out for contact numbers and a broad reference for product information. Congratulations to ATC who in 2021 will celebrate 30 years in business. We look at how this business was established and developed into the force it is today. AP Haslam has introduced the Klippon TTB range. Simple, fast and safe wiring of current and voltage transformers. The Association of Electrical Wholesalers (AEW) has announced that it will become a 'kindred association' of the Electrical Distributors' Association (EDA) in 2021. The key reference for ATEX was ET 105:2011. The National Rules for Electrical Installations in Hazardous Areas has been withdrawn for some time now. It has been replaced with a number of separate documents. Read more in our article on page 44. See the Hager leaflet inside this issue ElectrIC ie Happy New Year .