Posted By Andrew Griffiths Hi, I have been asked to advise our facilities manager on the requirement to carry out a combined inspection and testing of corporate computers for electrical safety (PAT testing). Having read the HSE guidance leaflet INDG236 (maintaining portable office equipment in offices ...), it would appear that if a computer is double insulated then it does not need to be inspected. Can anyone advise me how I tell if a computer is double insulated and or a monitor? Is there a symbol (a square) or notation on a system that would indicate it is double insulated. Any help or advice would be appreciated. Thanks

Posted By Chris Jerman Andrew, there is a difference between traditional PAT testing (typically a little box that you plug the appliance into) and testing / inspecting. PAT testing is not a legal requirement in itself, merely a means to an end and in truth simpler than stripping every item into its component parts and putting it back together again! Double insulated or not - powered or not, all work equipment should be suitable and in good condition for employees to use. Thing is that computers and other delicate pieces of equipment don't take kindly to part of the PAT routine - namely flash testing and on the whole is not terribly helpful in finding faults in them. However, being temperamental as they are, computers tend not to work when they are faulty, so if they're working, they are generally fine. A simple visual inspection for broken bits and worn cables should be enough. In the main, a user should be capable of this. Many businesses simply build the visual inspection into their update and service regime. Now as an aside to this, the whole idea (or spirit as I like to think of it)of portable appliance testing was to ensure the bits of kit which take a hammering in their lifetime continue to be safe. Powered hand tools, extension leads, fan heaters that sit under the desk getting kicked all Summer, end up full of and left on in the Winter are all bits of kit that benefit from a check over periodically. PCs that sit on a desk and never move are not really what it's about. Neither are mobile phone chargers nor printers. They don't really deteriorate to to a dangerous condition. They just die. Apart from that, they tend to get replaced so regularly that they never get in too bad a state. I heard of a council once that every year paid to have 2500 surplus power leads tested, coiled back up and put back in a box. Mental. Absolutely mental. So regardless of PAT, you need to provide an appropriate regime or system for ensuring all kit is safe to use. I would identify all equipment (electrical) whether it needs a formal PAT or not, just to make sure it's on the asset register and you know where it is. A visual inspection by the PC team upon commissioning should be fine. You could build visual assessment into your DSE work station inspections too. Obviously I cannot vouch for how long any Microsoft product will keep working and PCs may be subject to significant verbal abuse and possibly violent blunt trauma when they crash. Hope this helps. Chris Jerman

Posted By Ian Gardner I wouldn't recommend performing a flash test on ANY appliance, let alone just computers/IT! It really isn't necessary, and only really belongs in production testing. There are many PAT testers available that can do 'soft' tests, electrical tests that won't destroy IT equipment. The decision whether to inspect & test (i.e. a full PAT test) or just to inspect should be down to your own risk assessment of the equipment, the environment it is in, and the usage it gets. Also, don't confuse a formal visual inspection with user checks. They are not the same thing, and user checks are no substitute! Looking back at the OP: Yes, there is a symbol that indicates if an appliance is Class II aka double insulated. It is a square within a square, and all Class II appliances *should* be marked with it.