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EV CHARGING EQUIPMENT

John Peckham
I am hearing from my network of contractors, that have actually read the new 722, that they have been asking charging equipment manufactures for documentary proof to comply with Note 5 of 722.411.4.


They are getting knocked back for asking or in one case a Declaration that says the particular device complies with BS 7671. I think that is wrong to declare that as BS 7671 is an installation safety standard and not a product standard. I believe that as a minimum the equipment must comply with the Low Voltage Directive and be CE marked. I also believe that manufacturers have to issue a Declaration of Conformity. 


BS 7671 722 has numerous references to the various standards required such as BS EN 61851 that the equipment must comply with. I am thinking it may be illegal to offer the sale of equipment that does not comply with the Low Voltage Directive and is not CE marked?


I am hoping the countries top man of equipment safety standards, Paul Skyrme , sees this post and will come on and give us his expert view?


Has any forum member asked for a Declaration of Conformity from EV charging equipment manufacturers and received one?
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    davezawadi:

    The fact that cars supposedly comply with some BS EN standard is no longer relevant as we have left the EU. If BS wish to deviate from unsatisfactory standards, that is perfectly possible. 




    Agree with what Paul Skyrme said here - the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations, along with all the other legislation based on EU Directives, will remain in force past the end of the Year - and even then, changes will be dependent on EU Directives.


    However, we can have different standards in the UK. The problem (other than free market movement), is that national deviations actually cost quite a lot of money for consumers - for example having a UK plug on an appliance costs between £2 and £10 per appliance over the cost of having a Shuko, or similar, and that's purely a supply and demand thing.



    The OP asks if chargers are fully compliant, and asks the manufacturers to certify this in the manner required to allow a CE mark.



    The OP was asking about the protective devices described in 722.411.4.1 (ii), (iv) and (v) - for which there is no current product standard for the device as a whole. This is explained fully in section 5.3.5.1 of the 4th Ed of the IET CoP for EV Charging Equipment Installation. I think another problem is that some manufacturers have proprietary technology, which they have spent a lot of time and money investing in, and is the subject of patent applications. They are not always willing to tell "just anyone" about their technology and how it works - and that causes a problem for installers.


    I guess there are also installers who doubt some of the claims being made, and hence this discussion thread?



    This does not appear to be the case, so what standards they are supposed to meet is again irrelevant. In Britain for the rest of the year it is probably illegal to sell devices without the CE and fully compliant with all relevant standards. However the grant is probably being paid anyway, which is a disgrace. Next year the situation is far from clear, if we have escaped from our house arrest.



    I guess the OLEV grant is another issue for discussion here?



    It could be, and in fact is likely, that there are not many countries with this TNC-S problem, but that is no reason not to take action and do something. I feel that some enhanced version of TT, which can still be dangerous, is not the best way to go. In fact as we shall have to replace most of the street level electrical infrastructure anyway if we go largely electric, we should change the distribution system back to TN-S, as the additional cost would be tiny compared to the civil works needed for electric vehicles. Really I can see no downside of such a change, although I expect considerable push back from certain quarters not least political. It would certainly point out to everyone that electric vehicles and everything else are far from free, in fact very expensive indeed!



    Yes, I think the real cost of installing EVSE safely is, in many cases, far in excess of the OLEV grant.

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  • 0

    davezawadi:

    The fact that cars supposedly comply with some BS EN standard is no longer relevant as we have left the EU. If BS wish to deviate from unsatisfactory standards, that is perfectly possible. 




    Agree with what Paul Skyrme said here - the Electrical Equipment (Safety) Regulations, along with all the other legislation based on EU Directives, will remain in force past the end of the Year - and even then, changes will be dependent on EU Directives.


    However, we can have different standards in the UK. The problem (other than free market movement), is that national deviations actually cost quite a lot of money for consumers - for example having a UK plug on an appliance costs between £2 and £10 per appliance over the cost of having a Shuko, or similar, and that's purely a supply and demand thing.



    The OP asks if chargers are fully compliant, and asks the manufacturers to certify this in the manner required to allow a CE mark.



    The OP was asking about the protective devices described in 722.411.4.1 (ii), (iv) and (v) - for which there is no current product standard for the device as a whole. This is explained fully in section 5.3.5.1 of the 4th Ed of the IET CoP for EV Charging Equipment Installation. I think another problem is that some manufacturers have proprietary technology, which they have spent a lot of time and money investing in, and is the subject of patent applications. They are not always willing to tell "just anyone" about their technology and how it works - and that causes a problem for installers.


    I guess there are also installers who doubt some of the claims being made, and hence this discussion thread?



    This does not appear to be the case, so what standards they are supposed to meet is again irrelevant. In Britain for the rest of the year it is probably illegal to sell devices without the CE and fully compliant with all relevant standards. However the grant is probably being paid anyway, which is a disgrace. Next year the situation is far from clear, if we have escaped from our house arrest.



    I guess the OLEV grant is another issue for discussion here?



    It could be, and in fact is likely, that there are not many countries with this TNC-S problem, but that is no reason not to take action and do something. I feel that some enhanced version of TT, which can still be dangerous, is not the best way to go. In fact as we shall have to replace most of the street level electrical infrastructure anyway if we go largely electric, we should change the distribution system back to TN-S, as the additional cost would be tiny compared to the civil works needed for electric vehicles. Really I can see no downside of such a change, although I expect considerable push back from certain quarters not least political. It would certainly point out to everyone that electric vehicles and everything else are far from free, in fact very expensive indeed!



    Yes, I think the real cost of installing EVSE safely is, in many cases, far in excess of the OLEV grant.

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