In 2005 Measurement Canada developed a discussion paper which identified concerns and issues relating to the existence of potential inequities in the measurement of the legal unit of measure (LUM) known as volt-ampere (VA). It was identified that there are possible inequities resulting from the fact that there are a number of different VA calculation methods that potentially yield significantly different readings under the same load.
In the fall of 2005, the VA Joint Working Group (JWG) was launched to further review and discuss the issues associated with the establishment of methodologies pertaining to the determination of VA demand and VA-hour energy. The mandate of the JWG was to identify and study the factors which contribute to the potential inequity, and to make recommendations which would minimize or eliminate the inequities found.
The VA JWG was comprised of a balanced representation from utilities, manufacturers and Measurement Canada and is led by Mike Abraham, Senior Program Officer — Electricity.