12.2 Carrying Out the Practical: Inspection, Tests, Verification & Documentation

AC5.3 and AC5.4 — Inspection and the Schedule of Inspections

The inspection comes first, before any instrument is connected, and it is carried out against the schedule of inspections in BS 7671 rather than from memory. Work through the schedule item by item and physically look at each one. The assessor will notice if you tick a line about the condition of conductor connections without having opened an accessory.

Typical items include the presence and adequacy of earthing and bonding conductors, the condition of conductor connections, correct cable selection and current-carrying capacity, methods of basic and fault protection, the presence of RCDs and their correct type, identification and labelling, the condition of enclosures and their IP integrity, and the suitability of accessories for the external influences of the location.

Marking the schedule

Remember which document you are producing — this is exactly the distinction from section 4.5:

On the combined 2391-52 assignment you produce both, so you have to switch modes deliberately. Carrying C-codes onto the EIC schedule is a common and avoidable error.

AC5.5 — Carrying Out the Tests

Work the sequence from Chapter 5 and do not improvise the order. For the initial-verification part of the assignment that means dead tests first, in the Regulation 643 order, then energise and complete the live tests.

Practical points the assessor is looking for:

• Null the leads at the start of each set of continuity measurements, and be seen to do it.
• Set the correct range and test voltage before each test — 500 V DC for a 230 V circuit, not 1000 V.
• Disconnect or link out equipment that the insulation resistance test would damage, and say why.
• Measure at the furthest point for R1+R2 and Zs, and record the highest value.
• Test RCDs at both start points (0° and 180°) and record the longer operating time.
• Restore every temporary link and disconnection as you go. A link left in the board at the end is a serious defect, not an oversight.
• Work tidily. Loose conductors, an open board left unattended, or an instrument left connected while you write are all noted.

AC5.6 — Verifying the Results

This criterion is the one candidates most often treat as automatic. Recording a value is not verifying it. Verification is the comparison and the conclusion.

For each result, state:

1. What the limit is, for the actual device installed — a 32 A Type B circuit-breaker has a Table 41.3 maximum Zs of 1.37 Ω; the same rating in Type C is half that.
2. Whether the measured value satisfies it, applying the 0.8 rule for a cold measurement.
3. What follows — compliant for an EIC, or the appropriate classification code for an EICR.

On a condition report the same logic drives the overall outcome: any C1 or C2 makes it unsatisfactory, and C3 or FI alone does not.

AC5.7 — Completing the Documentation

The documentation is assessed as closely as the testing, and it is where time pressure bites. Build it into your rehearsal.

The documents

What a good entry looks like

• Real values with units. "0.43 Ω", not "OK" and not a tick. Match the resolution of the instrument — 0.43 Ω, not 0.4 Ω, where the instrument reads to two decimal places.
• Supply characteristics complete — earthing arrangement, nominal voltage and frequency, number and type of live conductors, Ze and prospective fault current at the origin, and the origin protective device.
• Circuit details complete — reference, description, conductor cross-sectional areas, protective device type, rating and short-circuit capacity, and RCD rating and type.
• Observations written so a non-technical reader understands them. "Consumer unit: no main protective bonding to the incoming water service pipe — C2" tells the owner what and where. "Bonding — C2" does not.
• Extent and limitations filled in, not left blank.
• Instrument serial numbers recorded.
• Every signature block completed with name, capacity and date. On an EIC that means design, construction, and inspection and testing.
• The overall outcome and the next inspection interval stated on the condition report.

Common documentation failures

1. Blank boxes. Every box gets a value, N/A, or LIM.
2. Observation codes used on an EIC schedule of inspections.
3. Zs recorded but never compared against a limit.
4. The recommended next inspection date omitted.
5. A satisfactory outcome recorded on a report that also carries a C2.
6. Schedules unsigned or undated.

Managing the Assessment Day

A practical plan that works:

1. Read the whole assignment brief before touching anything, and note what has to be produced.
2. Establish the safe system of work and carry out the safe isolation, deliberately and visibly.
3. Complete the inspection and fill in the schedule of inspections as you go, not from memory afterwards.
4. Work the dead tests in order, recording each value immediately.
5. Energise and complete the live tests.
6. Verify each result against its limit and write the conclusion.
7. Complete the certification, then re-read it once against the brief.
8. Restore the installation, remove every temporary link and lock-off, and leave the area as you found it.

Reserve the last block of time for step 7. Testing well and certifying badly is the most common way to fail an assessment that was otherwise going fine.