Whoever would think of Shakespeare and electrical inspections together? Throughout the preparation of this issue, my thoughts kept returning to the Bard’s definition of being real, “This above all: to thine own self be true, and it must follow, as the night the day, thou canst not then be false to any man.” It seems that many of our writers are asking how we as members of IAEI can be real to our communities and clients.
Incoming President Stan Benton urges IAEI members to seek a safer electrically built environment. Steve Foran asks us to develop greater collaboration, while David Shapiro warns again dangerous ignorance.
Michael Savage asks, who will follow us? Who will be our future electricians? And are we being real in our training of them? Thomas Domitrovich wonders if we are living in silos of safety without regard to the greater good.
The board just approved a mission statement for us: “IAEI, as the keystone of the electrical industry, is a membership driven, non-profit association promoting electrical safety throughout the industry by providing premier education, certification of inspectors, advocacy, partnerships and expert leadership in Electrical Code and Standards development.”
That’s who we are. How then do we go about being true to that mission? By doing what we do best — learning, sharing and inspecting, and promoting electrical safety.
Lisa Wood, executive director of Institute for Electric Efficiency, shares with us the expanding benefits of smart meters and makes sure that we understand so that we may share with others.
Some writers reexamine our positions on various situations. Steve Campolo looks again at arc-fault circuit interrupters. Randy Hunter returns to NEC Article 210 and continues the study of branch circuits. John Wiles fields questions from inspectors on solar photovoltaic installations.
Steve Douglas explores wiring methods from the viewpoint of the Canadian Electrical Code. As do Les Stoch in his discussion of neutral grounding devices and Ark Tsisserev, with electrical interlocks with a building fire alarm system.
Are we being true to ourselves, our training, and our mission? The only way we will know is if we are the same every day and every night and treat all our members and clients with respect. Then we will not deceive or mislead ourselves or anyone else.