Australian AS/NZS 3112 Plugs and Sockets

Standards Association of Australia SAA AS3112 is the AU standard, and NZS3112 is the equivalent New Zealand Standard; our power cords are manufactured to AS/NZS3112, covering both countries.

We use quality Longwell LP-23A and LP-23AM for 10A, LP-23AL for the angled 10A, plus LP-15AM for 2 pin, and LP-23A for the larger 15A.

Since 2005, all pacific islands plugs must have sleeved or part-insulated active (live) and neutral pins – Morvan Trading was one of the first suppliers to implement this regulatory change.  Further information can be found in document AS/NZS 4417.

Contact our friendly technical team for more information call us on 01264 353489 or click here to contact us

Looking for New Zealand plugs? Type I plugs and sockets are used in Oz and New Zealand, their territories, and pacific islands in Micronesia, Melanesia and Polynesia including Cook Islands, Fiji, Kiribati, Nauru, Papua New Guinea, Samoa, Solomon Islands, Tonga, Tuvalu, and Vanuatu.

The Chinese standard is very similar, and Argentina uses the same pattern but with reversed live and neutral.  Only the correct and approved plugs should be used for these countries, however, so contact our technical department for help or advice.

Variations

The normal general purpose domestic plug is 3-pin, earthed, and rated at 10A 250V AC; the ungrounded version has no earth pin and is rated at 7.5A.

For larger equipment, a 15A plug has a larger earth pin, and 20A has all three pins bigger.  There also exist 25A and 32A versions, with ‘L’ shaped and ‘U’ shaped earth pins.

The system was designed to allow plugs to fit into equal or higher-rated socket outlets, but not lower.  A non-standard version of the 10A plug has a round earth pin and is used for special uses, including ‘clean’ power in data centres. A full overview of the range is available on our Technical page.

Contact our friendly technical team for more information call us on 01264 353489 or click here to contact us

There was originally no specific plug for ‘Straya, with a variety of plugs being imported by boat from England or the USA.

There was no standardisation so no guarantee plugs would fit sockets, varying degrees of quality, unreliable supply and long leadtimes.

In conjunction with a desire to add earthing, these issues were addressed in the 1920s by the implementation of a modification of a now obsolete three pin USA plug designed by Harvey Hubbell, which became AU standard C112. Another benefit was that by having flat rather than round pins the plugs could be manufactured quicker and more cheaply using pressed metal.

The full overview of Ozzie plugs is summarised on our technical page

Contact our friendly technical team for more information call us on 01264 353489 or click here to contact us

Approval can be by SNZ (Standards New Zealand) in New Zealand or any of the state, territory or independent testing agencies Down Under; all recognise approvals from each other. Standards-Australia and Standards New Zealand work together for the joint internationally aligned AS/NZS).

JAS-ANZ is the Joint Accreditation Service of Australia and New Zealand who authorise various bodies. These approvals bodies include: SAA Approvals for SAA plugs, NSW Government Department of Fair Trading in New South Wales, Queensland Government, Global-Mark. Since 2013 many products for Aus require the ‘tick in a triangle’ RCM or Regulatory Compliance Mark.

Contact our friendly technical team for more information call us on 01264 353489 or click here to contact us