Seaward Helps Gentoo Maintain Safety Standards with Apollo 500

An integrated electrical safety testing package from Seaward is helping social housing organisation Gentoo Group meet its portable appliance testing (PAT) requirements.

North East social enterprise, Gentoo Group is a registered housing provider with almost 30,000 homes and more than 70,000 customers.

As part of the company’s preventative maintenance programme, Gentoo’s electrical section is responsible for the safety testing of all power tools and electrical appliances used by the company’s installation and maintenance teams.

In addition, a team of specialist PAT testers carry out safety testing of all electrical items across office premises, depots and all homes including sheltered accommodation and extra care facilities.

This widespread testing responsibility requires a rigorous safety management approach that links test schedules with appliance identification systems and maintaining comprehensive test records for all items tested.

To meet this need, Seaward has been a long term supplier of appliance testing equipment for Gentoo and recently equipped the Group with hand held Apollo 500 testers.

The Apollo 500 is a compact and lightweight unit and incorporates all the recommended safety tests for portable electrical appliances in line with the IET 4th Edition Code of Practice. These include point to point testing of fixed equipment and the testing of extension leads, power cords and RCDs.

The Apollo 500’s battery powered test capability is ideal for carrying out testing at a range of locations, boasting practicality for organisations like Gentoo Group. In addition, by simply scanning barcodes of individual appliances, previously tested equipment is recognised immediately, automatically setting the required test sequences for that item and speeding up the whole process of asset recognition and testing.

The incorporation of a large internal memory in the Apollo 500 supports data handling needs, allowing stored test records to be transferred via a USB link or downloaded directly to PCs or smartphones using Bluetooth connectivity for inclusion in central database records.

The use of these features is completed with the production of important test certificates and test reports to demonstrate full compliance with in-house safety management protocols.

John Turner, Deputy Director of Gentoo Property said: “The safety of our customers and staff is of primary importance. Across the Group, we use a vast range of electrical equipment and as part of our health and safety and equipment maintenance policies, portable appliance testing is undertaken regularly and systematically.

“With such a large workload at a number of premises, the integration of testing with asset identification and the ability to maintain formal test records is essential in enabling us to work efficiently and effectively.

“The Apollo 500 is central to helping us achieve this and ensuring the safety of all electrical items used across the organisation.”

The Apollo 500 tester forms part of Seaward’s comprehensive range of portable appliance test instrumentation, software and accessories that are used widely to ensure the safety of electrical equipment used in the workplace.

More details at www.seaward.co.uk/apollo500 and www.gentoogroup.com