Poor electrical installation common

Poor electrical installation common

JAKARTA (JP): As many as 700 buildings, including some
high-rises, in the city have poorly installed electrical systems,
a businessman has said.

Mangatar Tobing, spokesman of the Indonesian Electricity
Contractors Association, told reporters Tuesday that most
developers only tried to provide electricity at the lowest
possible cost.

"They rarely hire legal electrical contractors," he said after
a meeting with Governor Sutiyoso. Instead, construction workers
with little knowledge of electrical installation were often used
to set up a building's electrical system at a far lower price.

"Such practices have been going on for years," he said.

Poor electrical installations had led to many fires and other
accidents in the city last year, Mangatar said.

He urged city officials to take firm action against developers
who made shortcuts for the sake of greater profits.

"This is very dangerous. If a high-rise building is equipped
with a faulty electrical system, it could be prone to fire. And
if the installation is only entrusted to some regular
construction workers, who would be held responsible?" he said.

On top of substandard electrical systems, many buildings were
poorly maintained, worsening the situation, he said.

"Developers only think about how to make a bigger profit by
spending less. They intentionally ignore dangers for the sake of
their own pockets," he said.

"Moreover, most electrical systems have not been checked for
years. They should be checked every six months. But building
owners seem to have forgotten this, too," he said.

Mangatar said that electrical problems tended to be made the
scapegoat every time a fire occurred or an accident happened.

"Actually if building owners gave more attention to this
matter, such problems could be easily avoided," he said.

He urged the municipality to enforce Law No. 15/1983 regarding
the installation of electrical systems in buildings throughout
the city.

"The law states that every developer must hire professional
electrical contractors, recommended by the state-owned electric
company, to install the system within each building," he added.

Ordinance

In a bid to prevent future accidents, he said the municipality
and the association, with the help of related parties, were
currently preparing an ordinance on electrical installations.

"Hopefully, we can submit the ordinance proposal within two
months. It's a long process... but we are optimistic that this
step will lead to better safety and more secure electrical
systems," Mangatar said.

When asked about whether the prices of electrical components
were rising due to the monetary situation, he admitted that
prices had jumped for almost every item, ranging from cables to
lamps.

"This leap is also affecting the price for installation
services. Currently, the fee for installing one electrical
fitting is Rp 30,000 (US$3.75). We are not sure about the prices
anymore... we'll probably have to raise the service price by at
least 20 percent," he said.

Electrical installation businesses have been hit hard by the
monetary crisis because most of their equipment and components
are still imported and paid in U.S. dollars.

"Basically, we want to provide the best service to our
customers. But we have to be realistic here. It's impossible for
us not to raise our prices because all of the material is also
climbing in price," he added. (edt)