Power Distribution for Traders, Caterers & Concessions at Events

Specifically at Events where Juice Sound Limited provides the Electrical connectivity.

Welcome to Juice Sound Limited and this particular page which helps provide some information that we impart on a daily basis on events. We have provided this service for over 40 years and by interpreting the changes in rules and regulations each year, using these as guidelines for all the events we are involved in. We provide for a safe and professional method of power distribution, either from generated or utility fed systems.

Some of this is perhaps a little complicated but have a read, get the idea of what you need to do, if in doubt ask.

Gradually over the years we have advised and explained almost everything we have written below and standards on events we service have gone up and are these days held to a to a high standard. But we want them to be better for everyone so have raised this document to explain what you need to do.

Your job is already hard enough, you are providing a service, whether it food related, service or leisure. Electrical power is something that we all take for granted. The humble 13a socket in our houses or the larger industrial Ceeform type that we see in our business premises are the end result of years of design to make it the safest way to connect to power with a huge amount of technology behind it that is hidden away. When we come to move this out of the fixed usage spaces that we know, we enter in spaces that are uncertain, variable but still expect the same high standards.

Before we get any further, we need to mention something called regulations, these are a set of guidlines which help proffesional people to provide a service to an expected standard and the all have numbers and these numbers mean nothing to almost anyone except those who need to follow them , these include peopel such as oursevles who provide temporary power supplies and have to follow these gudilines for the safe distribution of power and it is these that WE HAVE TO FOLLOW! If we don't and something happens that causes damage, hurts or kills someone, we end up with investigations and possibly in a court of law to explain our actions with possibly hefty fines to follow. This is why at times we have to tell you things that you may not like, why we have to, at times, say “No” because in the end it may only be your one event of a string of events, and no one else has said anything all Summer! Or you first event and you were told by someone or even “your mate did it for you” does not stand up in Court. But in the end it is our job, our livelihood and while we may be negative about what you have done or have been supplied with, we are there to work with you, help you to get it right and  to get you going with a safe and profitable event.

If you are in Doubt ASK! We don't mind and happy to provide advice.

Those numbers we mentioned are about Regulations which change on a regular basis and if you want to refer to these then the first is BS7671:2008 Amendment 3 2015 and BS7909 which was adopted and absorbed into BS7671. BS7671 is the Electricity at Work Act and BS7909 is for Temporary Power and is aimed at the Event Industry.

Not put off so far? You should not be, temporary power distribution is performed by supplying a set of preset tools that are tested and ready to go. Rather like a set of LEGO Blocks and by following a set of instructions that we have planned for at the design stage of the event, we can build a safe and appropriate distribution system that gives you the power that you need without creating a nuisance for other users of that same system or creating a headache for us.

Does that make sense? Who does not like a simple LEGO set?

Lets Start. (with some rules)

Rule number 1, Be honest, in our design of the system we have to know what you are connecting to it. Tell us what the product is, what it does and most importantly the power it draws. Any product that is electrical and sold in the UK has to have a serial/loading plate. It is generally at the back and somewhere near where the power cable is attached. If the product is new (within a year) your product has a manufacturers warranty (although is probably not designed for portable/semi-industrial use you have bought it for), we generally accept this as a tested item. (if you can keep the receipt for this in your legal file with all your other certificates). If your product is over a year old we would like to see a Portable Appliance Test Certificate for it. To get this (and you can do this yourself) you will either need to book a competant person to do the test or you can do it yourself but you need to be able assess faulty components and be able to use, a small computer aided tester that allows you (generally via some converter cables) to electrically test any item that is portable i.e. it can be unplugged from the power! And this is important, you must log the details of the results stating serial number and results with the information that is displayed on your serial/loading plate. I.e. product name, serial number, voltage and power draw. No plate, then no record to correspond and it is an automatic fail both during any test and on one of our event sites.

Below are pictures of typical plates on equipment which show amongst other things the voltage and wattage of the product. There has to be one of these on all

electrcal items sold in the UK

Take note of your plate/labels, you should not be using an electrical product without a label!

There is always a plate, there is always a clearly displayed loading, voltage and product ID, when we ask for that information for equipment being used on the event we don't just want “Fridge” or “Hot Plate” we have to know what is being connected, we have to check it is tested and can be powered by the system we are providing, what switching power it has and whether it will set up vibrations/reasonances in the system that will upset or trip other equipment and so we can check that it is safe to connect, so be honest. List everything you are bringing on our form or have standard print out of equipment you carry and send it with the form and make sure if they are under 1 year you have the receipt or copy of receipt (photograph etc) and if over one year old your electrical test includes all the items that you are bringing. Not just the Unit or trailer but everything in it that you will connect to the power supply.

Seriously we dont just want your Fairground/Circus test certificate for the trailer or generator but all the equipment you will be plugging in to it!

Just so you know, fixed or permanently wired items are tested with the trailer/vehicle. If it can be unplugged and removed it is not fixed but portable and is subject to another test i.e. Portabale Appliance Test or PAT. Presenting the vehicle or trailer test certificate is only one part of the Electrical Test Requirements

If you don't, then don't  panic, we can do a test on the day for a small fee but it will only be valid for that one event on that one day. We can do Portable Appliance Testing for annual/six monthly. What is know as PAT test (which just says Test Twice!) If you want, that is labour intensive as we have to check many things, take 13a plugs apart etc sometimes dismantle the equipment being tested so we try to avoid them on the day of an event as it takes up so much of our time when we should be doing the installation. But we are there to make sure that the event happens so will always try and make sure that you can connect

Number 2, Don’t Argue! Seriously! We don't tell you how to cook or present what you are selling. We don't care what Joe Bloggs domestic sparky did for you or the last event where some kiddies put the equipment in or that you have traded the whole summer that way. We are after a safe event for everyone, we interpret the regulations to the best we can, reflecting the style and nature of the event. It is in our interest to make sure the whole event goes well and our client is happy and we will try and help you have a good event. So if we say that we may have a problem dont scream and shout, don't tell us how the summer went fine with it as it is! No one else noticed! Or I have always done it this way! Listen and learn and we will help you.

Number 3. Look after the electrical equipment. It is no good buying the product you need to connect up, like a cable and screw it up in a ball or wind it round you hand or elbow so tight it forms a slinky toy. Throwing it under the oil cans or placing heavy items on the connectors or connection box. These methods mean the equipment does not last, the cables can fail very quickly if badly treated, dry store, coil or figure of 8 correctly. If you are in doubt ask!

Number 4 Invest Wisely, good money spent at the start on quality equipment will give long life. This is especially for power cables and connectors. You do not need a huge amount, although we cannot specify for you as we do not know what your needs are but as described above, each component is a building block and by using standardised products you will find everything goes together easily.

Number 5 Don't steal the equipment! Seriously, yes it costs money but that does not give you the right to take what we supply for yourself to use somewhere esle. Even if it was very useful, if you wish we will make you one if it means that much to you. But we earn a living from this equipment and even one item adds up to a loss that we have to cover in some way. What's worse is that at some time in the future we will see our cable/adaptor/splitter as they are all marked and that will really p**s us off if we do and probably would be the only time we would not connect you.

So what do you need?

First let's lay down some ground rules. The humble 13amp plug and socket is to be used undercover, in the dry, inside a marquee, inside a trailer and not to be placed on the ground. 13amp Extension leads by the very same nature whether loose or a wind up one are for indoors use only so dont buy one thinking you can use it as a cheap hook up to local power or even from your generator as you cannot.

Many years ago we had a lot of different types of outdoor waterproof and splashproof connection systems but over a time only one has come to be the most common connector and is now widely adopted and used through the Event industry and this is called the CEE17 or Ceeform Connector. It is available in several power ranges and several voltage ranges to suit needs across industry with the event industry adopting the system with 16a at 240v (Blue in colour), 32a at 240v (Blue in colour) used most widely to connect to Food outlets and for stall holders. These connectors allow for (when connected to the right power source and using the right size cable) 16 amps maximum to be drawn (or at 240v then 3840 watts) or 32 amps maximum( at 240v then 7680 watts). There is math involved in getting these values so note I state 240v as even a small change in this Voltage can vary the Watts available. 

See pictures below for Ceeform Connectors, the first is the plug, the second is the coupler and the third is the inlet to a trailer or caravan, note the pins, like a plug.

Do not use building site cables, Blue Arctic Grade or Yellow Artic Grade, even Orange Caravan hook up cables are not correct for use outdoors. I know you see them everywhere and this is the problem, just because you see them does not mean they are right.  Any form of PVC cable is not waterproof! I know! Weird isn't it! But that is the way of PVC cables, they are cheap but not made for wet conditions. When wet or laid in wet ground or worse still in water they allow for a small amount of the electricity to seep through to the outside of the cable which then will trip the safety devices (RCDs) even though there is not a fault and will keep causing nuisance switching of circuits that affects all of the people on that system. So simply said we don't allow it, we have not allowed it for years but of this last few years the BS7909 which said not to use PVC cables for events has been adopted as the rule and we would have to explain why we allowed you to use one, so don't!

See pics below for the types of cable, these are for dry condition indoor building sites and maintain the flexibility in low temperatures, hence the title "Artic Grade"

Do not use for outdoor events or in wet conditions

The two types of cable that you can use outdoors that are fully waterproof are SWA or Steel Wire Armoured that uses a type of plastic called PE, is inflexible and made for installations. It also requires specialist terminations to be used correctly and the other one that is the only one to use for events is HO 5 or 7 R-NF Harmonised Rubber cable which comes in a light duty sheath (HO5 used in pond pumps and garden lights) and HO7 which is a heavier sheathed cable both of which are capable of being submerged in water with no ill effects but cost a lot more than any PVC.

A third one that we see is called SY Cable which is generally a clear plastic sheath and wire braid inside is sometimes offered as an outdoor cable which is totally incorrect being a control cable for semi permanent industrial installations and again needs to have a specialist installation gland to be correctly used and can be dangerous if not terminated correctly.

The pics below show Sy cable and one of the type of glands you need to use to terminate, in most cases do not use as an extension lead, it is not made for this

As you can read above, we will expect to see any of the cables being used outside of your marquee/trailer/structure to be of an HO7R-NF Standard. Its easy and simple  but these come in different cable sizes and which one is best for your needs?  Rather than going into all of the maths and explaining voltage loss over distances it is better to refer back to the LEGO building block system. That is if you have a cable of a known size it will suffice to the do the job properly over a given distance because all of the math has been done. It is up to us as the installers of the electrical system to make sure that we supply the correct system before your connection so that you get what you want. If you are a long way up the system we will provide an oversized cable to make sure you can draw the power you asked for, so your cable can be of a standard size.

What does HO7 RN-F mean:

H – means conformity to harmonized standards

07 – identifies the voltage rating as 450/750V

R – Refers to the EPR insulation

N – Relates to the PCP outer sheath

F – Indicates flexible copper conductors within

The same type in IEC standards is 60245 IEC 66 (YCW). 

To fit into this LEGO Style Building Block System, it is recommended that you use a 2.5mm three core HO7 Harmonised Rubber cable for all terminations/connectors at 16amp. If you are making up your own cables to save money or have some that you could use this is fine but you need to use a quality 16a amp connector and while we have no affiliation with this company we do recommend the PCE 16a Connectors which is a quick release cover, splashproof with larger terminals, large screws, needs minimal screwdriver work and is easy to terminate. Most of our own rental stock is of this product these days, some with many years service and only a handful of problems, mostly by being driven over!

The pictures below depict HO7 Cable, note the cable actually has HO7 RN-F written on it, this is a must and will appear at short distances all the way along the cable. The size of the cable is also displayed. the middle picture shows 3G4 meaning 3 cores of Copper (G in the periodic table) at 4mm cross section this will appear in between the HO7 R-NF and should alwsys be seen on the cable to pass the Portable Appliance Test.

For 32a you can get away with a short cable using 4mm Three core HO7 Harmonised Rubber Cable but we recommend using a 6mm if you intend to use or plan to use full power in the future as 4mm is only really good for full power up to 10 metres and again we recommend the PCE 32a three pin blue plug and coupler.

The Table below borrowed from VG Cables gives an example of current capacity for HO7 RN-F cables

As you can read this starts to formulate a plan but the next question is how many? And what lengths do I need. To connect to your marquee/trailer etc the simplest is to go with 20 metres. It is the longest length that is fairly easy to coil, carry and store. Over this length you may start to have issues with inner cores twisting in the sheath. Shorter is easier to handle and if you think 2 x 10M would be good for you then fine. You can joint the length as many times as you want but it is rare to have supplies available to you within 5 metres of use so lots of short ones may not be helpful. Back to that question, what lengths do you need, if you have the money buy enough to do 1 x 5M, 1 x 10M and 1 x 20M but beware the cable is not cheap and again while we do not have any affiliation there are companies like Essential Supplies who can supply to you ready made cables and display pricing clearly so you can see how much these cables cost. Your local wholesaler can also provide you with the parts for you to make.

How do I get it into my marquee or trailer? Easy or perhaps not! The simplest way if you are plugging a few items in and only need a 16a plug or less is to have a CEE17 plug to 4 x 13a bar. Choose one with a 13a fuse as this is the correct way to use this type of adapter. Make sure the 4 bar is not on the ground or if it cannot be avoided then screw it onto a piece of plywood or thick plastic to make sure that it is raised off the floor, put a hole in one end of the wood/plastic and you could hang it up but the main point is that 13a is not considered waterproof so keep it out of the wet! This would form a simple mains distribution with 4 x 13 amp sockets. With a trailer this may be permanently wired just like at home but you still need a connection to get in. For simplicity you can have a cable that is fixed to the trailer with a plug on it which you can then put back inside once trading is done or folded back into one of the stowage bays or you can have an “Appliance Inlet” (see Ceeform pics above) this is actually a plug that has a mounting that you attach to the item that power is to be connected to. Sounds easy doesn't it? However every year we come upon concessions that have had installed or installed themselves a socket instead as an inlet and they use a plug to plug cable or “Widowmaker” Cable (as we call it), this, if plugged into the power can then have live pins at the other end and is extremely dangerous. This throws up other questions on the competency of the installation, the quality of the  installer and test certificates etc. So beware and if in doubt ask.

See you on the next event