NECA leading regional energy efficiency initiatives

As the peak industry body for electrical contractors in Australia, NECA plays a key role in leading regional initiatives. NECA is a foundation member of the Federation of Asian and Pacific Electrical Contractors Associations (FAPECA) that was formed in 1986 and maintains strong working relationships with the regional body.

FAPECA was formed to advance the electrical contracting industry in the region by mutual cooperation on training, business opportunities, government policy, safety standards and provide a forum for concerns to be raised by individual member nations.

A former Executive Director of the Electrical Contractors Association of Western Australia (ECA – WA), was first involved in establishing Australia’s involvement in FAPECA. The relationship has grown over the last 25 years and in 2006 NECA hosted the annual regional meeting in Melbourne.

In October, FAPECA held its 25th annual meeting in Korea and the theme was energy efficiency policies and initiatives. NECA attended the meeting and presented on the Australian perspective.

James Tinslay, NECA’s Chief Executive Office, was invited to present to the regional FAPECA members on the green energy policies of the Australian Government and the issues facing the renewable energy sector in Australia, especially solar panel installations. Mr Tinslay also outlined NECA’s EcoSmart Electrician training and accreditation model.

Presentations were also given from Thailand, Malaysia, Hong Kong, Philippines, Singapore, Indonesian, Korea and Taiwan. Activities in the Asia and Pacific region relating to renewable energy and energy conservation showed much similarity despite the significant differences in government, climate, geographic location and culture.

Government policies on renewable energy and energy efficiency are areas all members of FAPECA are grappling with at the moment. While Australia has seen a boom in the solar industry, it is interesting that many of the Asian countries have not experienced similar demand because there simply is not the room or land available for this type of renewable energy.

Wave technology, wind farms, biofuels and nuclear operations are areas that many of the FAPECA members are investigating as options for the future.

Some of the key points from the FAPECA member presentations were:

• Significant photovoltaic power was not possible in some countries because of the small land mass, lack of useable land or lack of roof top space.

• Nuclear power is emerging as an alternative clean air energy where geographical conditions suit. This is despite the tsunami in Japan that caused damage to the generating plants.

• Biofuels, including biodiesel and bioethanol, are increasingly important and new technologies are using non-food crops such as grass and plant waste to produce electricity.

• Biomass and waste are increasingly being converted into electrical energy through massive incineration plants.

• The economies of many of the Asian countries are growing faster than Australia’s with enviable unemployment rates.

• The ‘green’ focus in the construction industry is creating significant work for electrical contractors.

NECA’s involvement in the Asia Pacific region has had strong support from the Australian Government. NECA’s presentation at the FAPECA meeting outlined the government’s clean energy future policy – the government’s climate change plan. This included the then proposed carbon pricing legislation which resulted in many questions and comments from FAPECA members about this initiative. 

The Asia Pacific Skills Mapping Project conducted by NECA and sponsored by the Australian Government is still a topic of discussion at FAPECA. The project was a comprehensive comparison of FAPECA members to identify existing skills development frameworks in the electrotechnology industry across several countries. The project strengthened the alignment between these frameworks and the Australian qualifications framework.

Some FAPECA members including Korea have expressed an interest in engaging NECA to further analyse the skills position of the region.

Earlier this year, NECA received funding from the Australian Government through the Department of Climate Change and Energy Efficiency to develop a lighting resource manual that could help regional nations embrace new energy efficient technology in the lighting industry. One of the key reasons NECA received this funding was its strong ties with the electrical contracting industry in the region through FAPECA.

The funding was made available through the government’s Asia-Pacific Partnership on Clean Development and Climate program. NECA produced the lighting manual and had it translated into Chinese (mandarin). NECA also produced pamphlets on the benefits of energy efficient lighting in five languages – Chinese (Mandarin), Thai, Indonesian, Korean and Philippino. These pamphlets and manual can be dowloaded from the Energy Efficienct Lighting and Training page of NECA's website.

As part of the project, NECA attended the world’s largest lighting expo in Guangzhou in June and launched the energy efficient lighting manual and pamphlets. Through the FAPECA network, these items have been distributed to electrical contractors throughout the region to educate them on energy efficient lighting options.

These initiatives are important milestones for NECA as a leader in the region. The outcomes achieved are a clear example of NECA working successfully in collaboration with the Australian Government. NECA is proud to be able to work in conjunction with the Australian Government on energy efficient programs domestically and in the region. Australia has a well developed green energy culture in the electrical contracting industry and it is important this culture is developed further in the region.

During the FAPECA Annual General Meeting, NECA’s CEO was presented with a commendation by the FAPECA President, Sopon Laosuwan, of the Thailand Electrical and Mechanical Contractors Association, for promoting industry interests between NECA and the Asia Pacific region.

FAPECA members:

1. Thai Electrical and Mechanical Contractors Association (TEMCA)

2. The Electrical and Electronics Association of Malaysia (TEEAM)

3. Asean Federation of Electrical Engineering Contactors (AFEEC)

4. National Electrical and Communications Association, Australia (NECA Australia)

5. Hong Kong Electrical Contractors Association (HKECA)

6. Korea Electrical Contractors Association (KECA)

7. KOKKO Kokko Shisetsu Kogyo Co, LTD Japan

8. Taiwan Electrical Contractors Association (TECA)

9. Society of Philippine Electrical Contractors and Suppliers (SPECS)

10. Electrical Contractors Association of New Zealand (ECANZ)

11. Association of Indonesian Electrical and Mechanical Contactors (AKLI)

12. Pacific Electrical Contractors Association (PECA)

13. National Electrical and Communication Association (NECA, Mexico)

14. National Electrical and Communications Association, USA (NECA, USA)

For more information on FAPECA visit - http://www.fapeca.org