Bryson Posted October 8, 2003 Share Posted October 8, 2003 Just found this in today's Independent: Letters to the editor: Safe and Sorry Sir: The inability of film graduates to change a plug is not due solely to the collapse of apprenticeships in the film industry (report, 6 October); health and safety regulations in schools make it impossible for students to do anything more complex than turn a switch on and off. They cannot even move a lantern along a lighting bar, let alone get the hands-on experience of changing a plug: all they can do is watch their teacher do this. So when they enter university to study film they have practical knowledge only if their drama teachers have flouted the law.MICHAEL J J DAYSettle, North Yorkshire Interesting, no? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Andrew C Posted October 8, 2003 Share Posted October 8, 2003 Love to know which law he thinks we're all breaking. I don't let them change plugs, but the certainly get "hands-on" here! And I do show them how a plug should be wired. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Posted October 8, 2003 Share Posted October 8, 2003 GCSE physics requires you to wire a plug (or it did 5 years ago) simple, get them to wire a plug that is not connected to anything, this is fine and just take it off and keep it for training in the future that way you dont have to worry about them doing it wrong either as if you fail to spot a mistake it will jus tbe undone and stored for a while, it will never be used. its not hard to work ways around that are fine to use in schools for that. Ben Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
kalmatthew Posted October 8, 2003 Share Posted October 8, 2003 Our GCSE physics Course (last year). Required to has the theoretical knowledge, of how to wire a plug but we never actually did it. Unfortunately this means that some people still cant wire a plug! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Rob Posted October 8, 2003 Share Posted October 8, 2003 I was taught to wire a plug in year five of primary school! I knew how to do it as it happened, but we did do it on actual appliances which we had to bring from home. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ben Posted October 8, 2003 Share Posted October 8, 2003 are there really that many people that cant change a plug or dotn have the common sense to be able to open up a good one and just copy it? Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Angelic Posted October 8, 2003 Share Posted October 8, 2003 A quick flick through Public Eye's book 'Mediaballs' will soon put pay to that question! It includes marvels such as: Anne Robinson - What word starting with J is the name for the joining of two roads? Contestant - Jool Carriageway?! Dear oh dear! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Ellis Posted October 9, 2003 Share Posted October 9, 2003 I grew up living with my grandparents. When I was <10 yo I would be allowed to fit a plug, but it was checked by my Grandfather afterwards... that was until I got a shock while un-plugging the television (unswitched floor socket with earthed metal covering flap), opened the plug, discovered the fuse wire around the fuse holder and sticking out the side of the plug. But I think the main reason that my Grandfater stopped checking plugs I wired after that was because I discovered that he had got the Live and Neutral wires the wrong way round in the plug as well! Supervised practical experience is the best way to learn practical tasks - leave the theory to matters such as choosing the right cable for the job. Rgds Ellis P.S. That was not my last electric shock! Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
JohnMac Posted October 9, 2003 Share Posted October 9, 2003 Brings up memorys of the "Generation game" on cold wet Saturdays.The game was to wire up an oversized plug (prop), using the 'old' and 'new' colours. The contestants had a multiude of different colour ropes, for the flexes. Not one of the four contestants got it right....... Although I may curse the moulded plug at times, if that was a typical public cross section they at least keep people from killing themselves. 'Health & safety' unfortuantly does get abused, Some people use it as an excuss forstopping things because it's too much trouble / inconvienent for them. I learn't how to put a plug on when at school, with a good teacher and an acceptance that in one's mid-teens, I didn't "know / can do everything" and asked and had checked what I did. Nowadays its the 'Compentancy' issue, just because you have a paper qualification does not necessarily mean that you're competant. Part of safe working is to be able to recognise the limits of your knowledge and experience and you just don't know, time to stop and ask...... Having given my age way, retreats to a warm mug of ovaltine..... ;) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
stebee Posted October 9, 2003 Share Posted October 9, 2003 are there really that many people that cant change a plug or dotn have the common sense to be able to open up a good one and just copy it? yes there are, that is why it is now illegal for a retailer of domestic goods to sell an appliance without a plug on it. the plug should also be suitable for the region of europe that you are living in. ste Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Chris Higgs Posted October 11, 2003 Share Posted October 11, 2003 Love to know which law he thinks we're all breaking. I don't let them change plugs, but the certainly get "hands-on" here! And I do show them how a plug should be wired. I think you will find that in most businesses, employees are not allowed to do any electrical work at all. (Most indutrial suppliers will only supply tools with either bare ends or a moulded plug fitted by the manufacturer.)Students are treated in the same way as employees and are also 'young persons' or 'children' and are not allowed by law to be exposed to serious risk. (Management Regs. 1999). I imagine wiring plugs is going to be regarded as serious risk by any school or LEA.The same would apply to use of access equipment of most kinds.The fact that most of us over 40 (and probably a large proportion those over 20)started doing the job at school with equipment that would now not pass a PAT test and access equipment that (still) has never had an inspection is an interesting observation with regard to the actual risk.I think the gentleman from Settle was right, though. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Tomo Posted October 11, 2003 Share Posted October 11, 2003 He's not far wrong anyway. The venue where I help is seriously considering banning us from using the scaffolding tower - the tower in question does need some maintenance and some extra bits so we're not using it right now anyway - but they seem to think that fitting front of house with bars that can be lowered to the floor for rigging will mean that we won't need access equipment. This despite the fact that the only accident we've had was because someone didn't use the scaff tower - he thought building it would take too long so swarmed up the inside of the pros arch... and fell out.Ouch! The management have no problems with us making up cable though - there's even a three-way adapter cable ('W' cable?) in the store that has passed it's PAT test.Despite being a questionable cable to exist, and the fact it shouldn't pass PAT anyway as it's got no strain relief (I know, I made it.) (We were low on plugs and I was going to dismantle it, honest!) Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
peter Posted October 11, 2003 Share Posted October 11, 2003 ...but they seem to think that fitting front of house with bars that can be lowered to the floor for rigging will mean that we won't need access equipment....Of course, they've forgotten about focussing, re-lamping, and all the other activities where we don't bother flying bar's back in, or it would be inpractical to do so. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
steven Posted October 11, 2003 Share Posted October 11, 2003 we were able to wire plugs in our physics lessons, but they had washers attactched to the pins so that you couldn't plug them in. And we also rewired the plugs on lanterns and cables. especcialy when the rig changed from 5A to 15A Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
smeggie Posted October 13, 2003 Share Posted October 13, 2003 hi,at my old place, we were allowed to change plugs and do all sorts of wiring as long as it was checked over by the bossman first and then pat tested. once the bosses were satisfied that we were competent, they let us rig things as normal and pat test them once the new kit was no longer in use. this seemed to work as we were all taught how to wire a series of connectors up and then had to show the boss that we could and did so. this usually meant making up some more iec-->ceeform lines, or, in my case. a 25m socapex kit. (harsh buggers) the problem with teaching lx at the moment is that the teachers are restriced by the eec to such an extent that they can only just teach the essentials. any practical work is checked over and then used. cheers.andrew Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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