commissioning certification

[mikeywye]

hi new to this so bare with....

ive started a small company and would like to start commiossiong and servicing for my own contracts (ie not under the umbrella of a bigger company). as a individual i have all the bafe qualifications in all areas but as a company i am confused on what insurances we need and do we require any bs approval or registration. when contracting through bigger companys i issue commish certs all the time but really unsure where i stand with my own company..

any advise would be great

mike

[Dragonmaster]

Welcome to the forum.

As an inspecting officer and dealing with false alarm reduction, we always advise Responsible persons to ensure that anyone they enage to instal, commission etc fire alarm or emergency lighting systems are competent. One of the best ways is to seek contractors who are members of a recognised trade or professional organisation such as the IFE register, NIC EIC etc.

We are anxious to weed out those who turn up on a horse wearing a stetson, so i would always advise you obtain regisatration with one of these bodies, who will continuously check competency.

Good luck

[Galeon]

hi new to this so bare with....

ive started a small company and would like to start commiossiong and servicing for my own contracts (ie not under the umbrella of a bigger company). as a individual i have all the bafe qualifications in all areas but as a company i am confused on what insurances we need and do we require any bs approval or registration. when contracting through bigger companys i issue commish certs all the time but really unsure where i stand with my own company..

any advise would be great

mike

Go for it , I don't see a problem , you were basically a subby , so unless your work was overseen correctly , the Company you worked for irrespective of their trade association , certification put you in the position you are going to be in now. Do yourself a favour , do your work well , get product training , go on the courses and keep yourself up to speed. If you get a problem ask , there is a wealth of knowledge , alone on this site, and if its genuine you will get a valued response.

There is a lot to be said running your own thing , good / bad sometimes , personally I think the 'individual' should have to be registered , ie trade test etc .
The insurance company may well ask you to give them a background overview , to ascertain the risk , however you need to ensure that you are covered for the areas you are supplying ie design  etc etc.

As a matter of point one large (trade) association employed a contractor , who wasn't even a member of theirs to refurbish their main building , sounder circuits in PVC singles ,for the fire system , work that one out.

Happy days.

[Midland Retty]

hi new to this so bare with....

ive started a small company and would like to start commiossiong and servicing for my own contracts (ie not under the umbrella of a bigger company). as a individual i have all the bafe qualifications in all areas but as a company i am confused on what insurances we need and do we require any bs approval or registration. when contracting through bigger companys i issue commish certs all the time but really unsure where i stand with my own company..

any advise would be great

mike

Hi Mike

Its always best to get third party accreditation ( for things like Britsh Standards)

Im also an Inspecting Officer, and third party accreditation tells me that the engineers is competent is his / her role and thus gives me the confidence that an installation or testing / maintenance / commissioning of a system has been carried out properly.


All the best with the venture.

[David Rooney]

Welcome to the forum.

As an inspecting officer and dealing with false alarm reduction, we always advise Responsible persons to ensure that anyone they enage to instal, commission etc fire alarm or emergency lighting systems are competent. One of the best ways is to seek contractors who are members of a recognised trade or professional organisation such as the IFE register, NIC EIC etc.

We are anxious to weed out those who turn up on a horse wearing a stetson, so i would always advise you obtain regisatration with one of these bodies, who will continuously check competency.

Good luck

I personally would go the BAFE route. We were in the NIC for a number of years until the BAFE scheme came out and then we left.  All they were interested in was whether we knew how to test a ring main.

[jim]

Sorry, I cant quite understand  how someone who purports to have all the BAFE qualifications is asking the questions regarding BS certification and insurance. the first thing your TP Auditor would want to see is your certificate of public liability and be convinced of your knowledge of the standards, certification procedures and management and administration procedures.
Achieving BAFE accreditation is a long and arduous process but well worth the effort.

[Graeme]

hi new to this so bare with....

ive started a small company and would like to start commiossiong and servicing for my own contracts (ie not under the umbrella of a bigger company). as a individual i have all the bafe qualifications in all areas but as a company i am confused on what insurances we need and do we require any bs approval or registration. when contracting through bigger companys i issue commish certs all the time but really unsure where i stand with my own company..

any advise would be great

mike

Hi Mike

I have all the FIA training parts 1-6 but our company as a whole still needs to be third party accredited.All your engineers have to be able to prove competance for each part of the install they do from design to comission.

alot of time and money required and in my opinion at the moment alot of B*llocks as electricains with no certificates and the usual cocky attitude that fire is easy,still CONTINUE to install fire alarms and STILL make a complete pigs ear of it..



I have only to date been asked once to prove that we are third party accredited and sparkeis continue to rake in the jobs. All i have come across don't have a clue and scoff at having to attend training courses.


I don't go and wire new builds for electrical,make a hash of it,then go and ask an electricain to sort it out and then put HIS name to it..

I would be told where to go.

Why has fire taken so long to catch up with Intruder when fire is life and business critical?

[Galeon]

Its quite simple really :
I have said this before on the forum , trade test the individual and cut out all the crap associated by individuals hiding behind a companies certification scheme.
You then answer the issues including sub contract labour.