The Multi-Utility Recognition Status (MURS) is designed for those utility providers who already hold accreditation under the NERS (electricity), GIRS (gas) and WIRS (water) schemes.

Purpose

MURS is not a stand-alone scheme as only those companies who hold NERS (at 1st tier level), GIRS and WIRS and meet the following requirements will be automatically moved onto MURS. This means that whilst there will be a register of companies awarded MURS they will not actually hold MURS accreditation.

For more information on the individual schemes, please refer to the NERS, GIRS & WIRS guidance notes.

About the scheme

The technical requirements in NERS, GIRS and WIRS remain and any utility provider who loses any of these accreditations will automatically lose their MURS listing. Also any deficiency found in a combined assessment that is not addressed will lead to the removal of scheme specific accreditations as well their MURS status.

MURS utility providers must operate as a multi-utility business such that it is practical to combine office surveillance visits.

On entry to MURS, utility providers must not have any outstanding deficiencies relating to office systems and procedures.

Utility providers must be up to date with surveillance visits and must be proactive in making arrangements for visits. They must also undertake to give Lloyd's Register at least 5 working days if a visit needs to be rearranged.

Where the workload in each utility area is sufficient for 4 surveillance visits per utility to be carried out annually, the total number of visits will be reduced by 2 (1 per utility replaced with a single combined office and systems visit). Where the level of work, and hence visits, is less in any utility sector it will not be possible to achieve the full saving as when less surveillance visits are done office and technical visits are routinely combined.

Timings of combined 3 yearly re-appraisals will be set by whichever scheme is next due for re-appraisal. Allowance will be made in scoping such re-appraisals where a scheme specific assessment or re-appraisal has been done in the previous 6 months.

Note - for new applicants who do not hold any of the scheme specific accreditations Lloyd's Register will endeavour to arrange their initial assessment on a multi-scheme basis and combine the evaluation of common systems and procedures. This will be done on a company specific basis and to achieve maximum benefit from this the utility provider must arrange for sector specific audit assessment to be done concurrently.

Further information

For further information on MURS, please visit our new website at http://www.lloydsregister.co.uk/murs.html.