AEs and APs – Jacks of all trades but masters of none?

Andrew Poplett IEng, MIHEEM, an Authorising Engineer (W&V) with over 30 years’ healthcare estates management experience, and specialist knowledge of fire safety, water, and critical ventilation systems, discusses ensuring that hospitals and other healthcare facilities have a good mix of skills, knowledge, and experience available in such key disciplines via Authorising Engineers and Authorised Persons. He also warns against overburdening such personnel with an unrealistic workload. 

This article has been produced to highlight the issues associated with the provision of resources and identified specific role holders for both Authorising Engineers (AEs) and Authorised Persons (APs) within healthcare premises. It is intended to stimulate debate, and readers are encouraged to submit their own thoughts and ideas on the topic through the IHEEM Ventilation Technical Platform, to canvas the opinions of the IHEEM community as to the issue, and the potential need to provide formal guidance or standards on the subject. The opinions set out are mine; they do not represent any formal position of IHEEM or any other professional organisation or society, but rather are intended to highlight a current and ongoing issue.

Issues due to staff and skill shortages