Nearly 70% of electricians feel under prepared for the Electric Vehicle revolution
69% of electricians do not feel they have the necessary skills and knowledge to install EV equipment confidently, according to a recent study carried out by Una Volta Productions and LearningLounge.com.
The government’s Road to Zero Report, estimates are that ultra-low emission vehicles will make up over half of global car sales by 2040. Therefore, the UK plans to end the sale of new conventional petrol and diesel cars and vans by this date.
Electricians will need to be at the heart of this transport revolution, helping to design and install the EV charging infrastructure so desperately needed to support this rapidly expanding market. A substantial 84% of electricians surveyed* felt that the move to EVs would present a great opportunity for them and the electrical sector as a whole.
However, just 31% felt confident in carrying out these installations, which will no doubt present a significant skills gap between the government’s ambitious infrastructure plan, and those able to implement it.
Whilst any qualified electrician can install EV charging equipment, it does present some unique challenges, requiring specialist knowledge to carry out safely. Anyone hoping to gain OLEV registration to install equipment under any of the government’s grant schemes will need recognised qualifications and training.
“The responses to our survey raised some understandable concerns. The biggest blocker to doing training is a lack of time (76%)* followed by cost (46%). The admission that confidence levels are not high tells us that awareness of the potential complexity of EV installs is penetrating the industry.
The positive message is that relevant knowledge can easily be gained, even in the current climate of social isolation. Online training allows cost effective learning in the comfort of your own home. There is an opportunity to prepare yourself for when normality returns and this horrible period is over,” says Dave Austin, Technical Presenter at LearningLounge.com
For anyone interested in gaining skills in this fast-growing sector of electrical installation, EVE, the recently launched online EV Installers Course from Learning Lounge, is fully compliant with the recently updated IET Code of Practice (4th Ed.) and takes about 7 hours to complete. The course is just £149+VAT, or upgrade to C&G exam for an extra £200. For more information visit: www.learninglounge.com/eve
*Learning Lounge surveyed 379 professional electricians regarding training and EV equipment installations and the numbers quoted in this document are based on the responses received.
About Learning Lounge
Learning Lounge is the online training platform for Una Volta, an established training provider for electrical professionals. Alongside their sister company Navigator Productions, they have been producing high quality training videos for colleges, training centres and individuals for over 20 years, using high-quality online content delivery and on-location demonstration videos, to create highly engaging courses. Learning Lounge has a 100% pass rate across all of its courses and an enviable 4.5 star rating on TrustPilot.