IAEI Gives You the Opportunity to Succeed
from IAEI Magazine
All the benefits offered, all the training materials produced and offered, all the seminars scheduled, all the committee work done to increase the value of IAEI membership is for naught if you don’t take advantage of your membership. Membership comes with responsibilities also. Sharing with others your knowledge and expertise by serving on committees, attending division, chapter and section meetings, and teaching not only strengthens you personally but also serves as an example to others who may be just starting in their career. If you are a new member get involved in your local division or chapter. Be mentored and become a mentor. Will it keep your job? Maybe, maybe not; but being a member of IAEI will certainly put you in touch with others and will give you the opportunity to excel. More

Moisture Sparks Second House Fire
from the Waikato Times
A Hamilton, New Zealand, man says he's lucky to be alive after moisture build-up in his underground power cable twice sparked a fire in his switchboard. Ken Phillips wants to make others aware of the problem. "I want to prevent a tragedy from happening," she said. "We were lucky. We could have been burnt alive." More

Hiring Uncertified Electrician Not Worth the Risk
from the Toronto Star
Homeowners who use unlicensed tradespeople to do electrical work risk catastrophic property damage, injury or even death, says Lucy Impera, registrar for the Electrical Safety Authority (ESA), a not-for-profit corporation that regulates Ontario's electrical contracting sector. More than three-quarters of the approximately 3,000 electrical fires that occur annually in Ontario happen in the home, she says. Of those, 33 percent are the result of faulty electrical systems and wiring. More

Let the Sun Shine
from The Wall Street Journal
The solar industry has been struggling this year against weak demand, ample supply and sliding prices. Which means that for anyone thinking about putting solar panels on their roof, there probably hasn't been a better time. "Solar is now affordable for people for whom it wasn't before," says Jeff Wolfe, chief executive of groSolar, a solar-panel system installer and distributor based in White River Junction, Vt. Wolfe says his company has been installing rooftop residential solar systems for three-quarters of the price it would have charged last year. More

Antisocial Behavior
from Electrical Contractor Magazine
Social networking has entered the daily lives of electrical estimators and inspectors, bringing a new level of distraction to an already complicated workday. Electrical contractors should be aware of what this brings to their business: interruptions, addictions, wasted time and potentially sensitive security issues. More

The Electrical Barrier
from Plant Services
When working on electrical circuits and equipment, your employees who are qualified to perform maintenance on electrical systems have two choices: work on circuits that are electrically safe (locked out and tagged), or work on circuits that remain energized. More

Renewable Energy Plan Creates Rift
from USA Today
President Obama wants a "clean-energy economy" that relies on renewable sources such as solar and wind power instead of coal and oil. He wants to put these new utilities on federally owned lands like this stretch of the Mojave Desert, one of the sunniest places on Earth. Obama's goal is to meet 25 percent of the nation's energy needs from renewable resources by 2025. Today, the figure is 11.1 percent, according to the Department of Energy. More