Q&A WITH MARK ANNING: HOW SHOULD INDUSTRY NAVIGATE AS/NZ61439? In this interview, Mark Anning, General Manager, Eaton Corporation, Australia & New Zealand, takes an in-depth look at what the updated standard will mean for businesses. What does the AS/NZS 61439 standard mean for the industry in both the long and short term? Overall, the updates from AS/NZS 6139 will introduce a positive step towards safety mandates, including fault containment and type-tested assembly, ensuring longevity in operator, equipment and customer safety. It is clear that the new standard will impact manufacturers, assemblers and end users involved in all types of switchboard assemblies — from distribution boards up to 250 amps, right through to main switchboards above 250 amps. Before the introduction of the industry standard, switchboards only required a simple calculation to be deemed safe and compliant, so the change to a new criterion for compliance is an evolution in the industry. In the short term, there will be an adjustment for all the switchboard builders, regulators and specifiers in Australia and New Zealand to implement the changes and understand what it means to be compliant. In the long term, the standard will set the bar for future revisions and the industry will gravitate towards systems developed and tested by the major manufacturers in the electrical
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industry. Another long-term benefit for the industry is that the end user and the consumer will see uniformity across all the testing and performance compliance amongst available systems offered in the market.
How can businesses best navigate the updated standard? Switchboard builders and manufacturers have been, and will continue, on a learning journey whilst adoption of the AS/NZS 61439 standard and systems is still new. The first step I recommend is getting well-versed with the new standard, including the updated verification and testing requirements. Furthermore, businesses should look to adopt a verified switchboard system from a manufacturer on the market offering training and certification who is able to provide full-time support and assist in the transition to AS/NZS 61439 compliance.
How will the new standard change future innovations? The main aim of AS/NZS 61439 is to bring consistency across testing, performance and compliance to all systems offered in the market, so for now I don’t see any big innovations on the horizon as a direct impact of the standard.
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