EuropeOn is a proud member of the Forum for European Electrical Domestic Safety (FEEDS), which campaigns for the safety of electrical installations in residential buildings.

The annual EU Fire Safety Week took place in November. It was the perfect occasion for FEEDS to hold a workshop on the electrification of buildings that will receive yet another boost as a result of the recently adopted EU Green Deal legislation.

Solar PV, EV chargers, storage systems and heat pumps are all devices that will see increasing demand in the coming decade as we seek to reach the climate and energy targets that have just been set. FEEDS reports that about half accidental domestic fires have an electrical source, and with this increase in high-power devices, it is crucial that electrical safety becomes a key concern in electrification policies.

At EuropeOn, we know very well that electrical safety starts with people. It is critical that we secure enough fully qualified professionals able to safely electrify our consumers’ homes. This was the centrepiece of EuropeOn’s presentation at the FEEDS workshop. We highlighted the dual issue of the lack of workers and continuously evolving technologies with require ever more modern skillsets.

Importantly, we reminded the audience that, while it may be tempting to quickly train unemployed workers to be able to meet the booming demand and install Net Zero technologies, we should rather invest in and value our traditional education system and seek to attract more students. This is the best way to ensure that consumers can rely on fully and adequately qualified professionals to install and integrate electric devices in their homes. Indeed, the workshop started with a video intervention by MEP Sean Kelly who also highlighted the importance of investing and developing the highest standards in electrical and fire safety skills.

You can access all resources of this workshop (slides and video intervention) on the FEEDS website.