PROCESS REQUIRED TO REGISTER AS A REGISTERED PERSON
The ‘Unit Standard’ process required to register as a Registered Person is a Department of Labour requirement and all persons who wish to register as Testers for Single Phase (SPT), Installation Electricians (IE) or Master Installation Electricians (MIE) must be declared competent in a number of Unit Standards.
Firstly, to be declared competent in the required Unit Standards involves a process that consists of a number of training interventions. The process begins with the student being asked for his/her Curriculum Vitae (CV). This CV would include, but is not limited to, a description of the applicant, the applicant’s ID number, first name(s), surname, work history, training history and hobbies.
It also requires certified copies of achievements such as a Trade Test Certificate, N3 or N3 equivalent, other training interventions and the applicant’s results for Installation Rules exams (SANS 10142-1). It also requires a certified copy of the applicant’s ID document.
This all forms part of the applicant’s Portfolio of Evidence (PoE).
The next step is to attend a Certificate of Compliance (CoC) course, after which the applicant will be required to test at least three installations. The three installations that need to be tested are determined by the level of registration being applied for.
An applicant applying for registration as a SPT will be required to test three single-phase installations; an applicant wishing to register as an IE is required to test a single-phase installation, a three-phase commercial installation; and a three-phase Industrial Installation, etc. Furthermore, all tests must be done under the supervision of an already Registered Person who must state that he/she has assisted the applicant.
It is important to note that, as per the unit standards, the applicant must test and inspect the installations and then complete the Certificates of Compliance (CoC) for said installations. The applicant is not accepting accountability for the installations at this point but is finding faults in the installations and recording this on a ‘fault sheet’ in order to add this to his/her PoE. Remember, the applicant must supply evidence that he/she knows how to test and inspect. This evidence can be in the form of (but is not limited to) a faults’ list, photos, drawings, references to SANS 10142-1 and so on …
The more ‘evidence’ the applicant supplies, the better.
To recap: So far, the applicant has the following in his/her PoE:
· Curriculum vitae (CV);
· Certified copies of all qualifications, certificates and identity document;
· Statement from a Registered Person;
· The CoCs and all the related information on the installations that the applicant tested; and
· The statement of results of the CoC course attended.
To further the process, the applicant’s PoE must be submitted for evaluation. Once this step has been completed, the next step can begin.
The applicant will be given a date on which he/she will have to attend an assessment session. During this assessment session, the applicant will be required to demonstrate to an assessor his/her testing and fault finding ability and his/her understanding of the CoC and the required correct information. This will also give the assessor the opportunity to check the applicant’s test instruments and tools as these must be supplied. Remember that a Registered Person must possess the correct equipment.
Once all this has been done, the information is added to the applicant’s PoE. The completed PoE is then assessed, moderated and a request to have the unit standards recorded against the applicant’s name is submitted to the EWSETA. The EWSETA will moderate the PoE and issue a letter stating that the unit standards have been recorded against the applicant’s name. This statement, together with a letter from the Training Centre and an application for registration (remember to include photos) will be submitted to the Department of Labour for processing.
At the ECA(SA), we are often asked how long this process takes and this is difficult to answer as the applicant controls the process. The quicker the paper work is submitted, the quicker it can be assessed and moderated. The ECA(SA) submits PoEs in batches of about 10 portfolios. The EWSETA moderates the portfolios every two months. If an applicant submits his/her work timeously, the process should not take more than six months.
For more clarity and case-specific information please contact William Maraba or Chris Koen in Gauteng, George Senekal in Cape Town, Teshent Sookdeo in KwaZulu-Natal, or Pieter du Toit (Free State). For general enquires, contact Leola Petersen at the Highveld Regional Office.
More info: Leola Petersen +27 (0)11 392 0000
William Maraba: william@ecasa.co.za
Chris Koen: koenc@ecasa.co.za
George Senekal: ecact@iafrica.com
Resheka Sewpersadh resheka@ecasa.co.za
Pieter du Toit: pieter@ecasa.co.za
