Client Overview
Stirling College is a prestigious private school in the eastern Adelaide suburb of Burnside, catering to students from Reception through Year 12 across a sprawling campus that includes over 80 classrooms, six science laboratories, two gymnasiums, a performing arts centre, a commercial kitchen, a library, and extensive administrative offices. The school employs 180 teaching and support staff and maintains over 2,000 individual electrical items ranging from interactive whiteboards and student computers to laboratory equipment, sports facility systems, and groundskeeping tools.
The Challenge
Like all Perth schools, Stirling College is required to comply with AS/NZS 3760 testing requirements for its portable electrical equipment. However, testing during school terms is impractical and disruptive. Classrooms are in constant use from 8:30 AM to 3:30 PM, laboratories are occupied for extended hours with after-school programs, and the sheer volume of equipment means that testing during term time would require multiple visits over several weeks.
The school's business manager, Rebecca Thornton, had previously engaged providers who attempted testing during term time. The results were unsatisfactory �" technicians were unable to access occupied classrooms, items were missed because rooms were locked or in use, and teaching staff complained about disruptions to lessons. The previous year's compliance rate had reached only 72 percent, with significant gaps in the science laboratories and sports facilities.
Our Solution
We proposed a concentrated holiday testing blitz designed to test the entire campus in a single engagement during the Easter school holidays:
Holiday Scheduling: We scheduled a five-day testing blitz during the Easter holiday period, from the Monday after the Easter long weekend through to the following Friday. With no students or teaching staff on campus, our team had unrestricted access to every room, building, and facility.
Full Campus Coverage: A team of four technicians systematically worked through the entire campus, building by building and room by room. Every interactive whiteboard, computer, printer, projector, science experiment apparatus, kitchen appliance, gymnasium equipment piece, groundskeeping tool, and office appliance was located, tested, tagged, and registered.
Specialised Equipment Handling: Science laboratory equipment, including fume hoods, autoclaves, heated water baths, and centrifuges, required careful handling. We worked with the head of science to understand each item's safe disconnection and reconnection procedures. Commercial kitchen equipment was tested in coordination with the catering manager.
QR Code Integration: Every item received a durable QR code tag linking to its digital record. Staff can scan any item to check its compliance status, and the school's administration can access the full asset register from any device.
Results
Over the five-day Easter holiday period, our team tested a total of 2,147 individual electrical items across the entire Stirling College campus. This represented 100 percent of the school's electrical asset register, with no items missed and no rooms left unchecked. The breakdown included 680 classroom items (interactive whiteboards, computers, projectors, and peripherals), 420 laboratory items, 310 office and administrative items, 280 kitchen and canteen items, 220 sports and gymnasium items, and 237 groundskeeping and maintenance items.
The overall pass rate was 94.3 percent, with 122 items failing testing. Of those, 89 were repaired on-site (predominantly failed earth continuity tests due to damaged power cords), 24 were quarantined and referred for professional repair, and 9 were condemned and disposed of. All failed items were clearly tagged as unsafe and removed from service immediately.
For the first time, Stirling College started the new term with 100 percent of its electrical equipment tested, tagged, and compliant. Rebecca Thornton reported that not a single teaching staff member was aware that testing had taken place.
Key Metrics
- 2,147 items tested across the entire campus
- 5-day testing blitz during Easter holidays
- 94.3% pass rate with 122 items repaired or replaced
- 100% campus coverage including all classrooms, labs, and facilities
- Zero disruption to teaching or school operations
- 4 technicians deployed for efficient parallel testing
Client Quote
"This is the first year we have started term one with every single item on campus tested and compliant. The holiday blitz approach is perfect for schools �" four technicians came in, tested everything in a week, and our staff did not even know it had happened. We went from 72 percent compliance to 100 percent overnight. The QR codes are great too; our teachers can check any item with their phone."
�" Rebecca Thornton, Business Manager, Stirling College, Burnside SA