The EESS Platform (note from the EESS Platform Project)

The Electrical Equipment Safety System (EESS) Platform which replaced the Registration Database for responsible suppliers and is a single platform for responsible supplier registration, and equipment registration and certification is fully operational.

As with any system changes upgrading old technology and significant data, some aspects of these changes have caused a few responsible supplier problems. The most recent project update to responsible suppliers provided tips for using the EESS Platform. The tips included a reminder to consult the comprehensive learning guides available on the EESS Website, to enable users to make full use of the platform. The project team are working tirelessly to address technical ‘teething’ issues as they arise and help users with their understanding of the key steps to get on board.

Contact the EESS Admin Team if you need help – eessadmin@oir.qld.gov.au.

The EESS Platform Project’s next release

The next release will include the migration of all certificate applicants and certification data from the legacy certificate database to the EESS Platform in readiness for the legacy database’s decommissioning. Migrating this data is expected to reduce the number of issues currently being experienced. Once migrated the certificate data, it will be possible for certifiers to update or easily fix the data in the platform and enable responsible suppliers to more easily access the data to use to register equipment.

• The EESS Platform & Public Search will be unavailable from 6.00pm, 6 December 2024 until 8.00am, 9 December 2024 AEDST.
• From 6.00pm, 6 December 2024 the legacy certificate database will no longer be available.

Communication about these outages will be visible on the relevant log on screens from 29 November 2024 and on the EESS Platform.

Private Certifiers

Certifiers have been informed that all certificate data uploads to the legacy certificate database must be completed by 6.00pm 6 December 2024.

Certifiers will need to be on the EESS Platform from 8.00am, 9 December 2024 AEDST and all new certificates will be uploaded in the data format required by the platform. Any certificates that have been migrated and need to be modified or renewed will need to be enriched to align with the EESS Platform data format. This includes existing legacy certificates when responsible suppliers need to renew registrations.

To assist with the transition, the Standing Committee of Officials (SCO) of the EESS have agreed to an extension of time for requiring the additional mandatory data, that is, additional family and profile features and nameplate and product images, that was set to come in on 6 December 2024. Loading of this data will become mandatory 3 March 2025.

Australian and New Zealand certificate holders

Given the EESS Platform is a single platform, users can onboard as a certificate applicant and responsible supplier at the same time or elect to extend to one or the other as relevant later (users shouldn’t onboard twice).

This is particularly relevant if you are current Australian or New Zealand certificate holders (with an Australian or New Zealand address). You need to onboard the EESS Platform as a ‘Certificate Applicant’ and if you are likely to be, or become, Responsible Suppliers you can extend to this. If you are currently a Responsible Supplier and not on the EESS Platform yet, you should onboard the platform as a ‘Certificate Applicant AND Responsible Supplier’. This will ensure you do not experience data error messages such as ABN already in the platform.

If you use certifiers to make applications on your behalf, they should provide their business name and business email they used to register their EESS Platform account to the certifier. You should ensure you confirm that the certifier uploading certificate data will use this detail as the certificate applicant details, otherwise you will not be able to see that certificate data in your EESS account. Note, any legacy certificate data will only be searchable via the public search unless the certifier has enriched it and updated to include the business name and related details of the ‘certificate applicant and responsible supplier’.

END.

Recent AEMC ruling sparks street lighting revolution

Lets unpack what the recent AMEC ruling on smart street lighting means and the long-term benefits for consumers and industry.

What was the ruling?

The AEMC has released a Final Determination that will recognise the metering capabilities of smart street lighting controls in the National Electricity Market.

What does this mean?

Local councils will be able to install micro-meters on every streetlamp, allowing Council to work out how much electricity is actually used, rather than an estimate based on the number of lights they have.

What are the benefits?

Lighting can be adjusted to suit traffic flows and weather conditions based on how much light we need in these areas. This will deliver cost savings for Councils (and in-turn ratepayers), improved safety and a win for the environment.

For example:

• If you’re in a quiet back street where there are no cars, you don’t want bright lights in your face. You want them dimmed down to a comfortable level and a level that still provides good visibility for your personal safety
• If you’re on a busy street or in bad weather, you want maximum brightness.

This ruling will allow councils to have smarter, cheaper and better lighting that perfectly meets the needs of their communities.

When will this come into effect?

We should start to see these lighting changes implemented in 2026.

Have your say on matters affecting our industry

The Lighting Council and key stakeholders have repeatedly raised the need for this reform. If you’re part of the lighting industry, make sure you’re a member of the Lighting Council Australia and have your voice heard.