Notices issued on unsafe TPS cables

WorkSafe New Zealand has been investigating electrical building wiring cables following a complaint received on the compliance of a particular TPS cable.

The regulator has identified that TPS cable marked with EESS-150102-0 is electrically unsafe. Testing of this cable indicates that the insulation will become prematurely brittle and be prone to fracture, resulting in a high electric shock and/or fire risk to any person or thing that comes into contact with the cable.

The unsafe TPS cable may have been supplied and installed by Lyon Electrical, said WorkSafe NZ in a statement.

WorkSafe NZ recently published two prohibition notices on the supply and installation and the use of this cable in the New Zealand Gazette under Regulation 87 of the Electricity (Safety) Regulations 2010. These notices prohibit the: sale, supply, offer of sale and installation of the unsafe TPS cable — with immediate effect; use of the unsafe TPS cable — to take effect in 4 years, from 2 May 2022.

There is a significant risk of electric shock and fire to people and property where this unsafe TPS cable is installed, which will become greater as the cable ages, said WorkSafe NZ. The second notice gives building owners four years to replace any unsafe TPS cable interval.

The NZ workplace health and safety regulator is therefore recommend that building owners and/or occupants who may have had electrical wiring installed or supplied by Lyon Electrical since June 2016 arrange for that wiring to be checked by an electrician to ensure any unsafe TPS cable is removed before the prohibition on use takes effect.

Image credit: ©stock.adobe.com/au/Charles Schug