MCS Installation Database (MID): what installers register and when

The MCS Installation Database, known as the MID, is the central online register of every MCS certified small-scale renewable and low-carbon installation in the UK since 2008. After commissioning, the certified installer logs in, creates a certificate, and enters the details of the installation: who it was for, what was installed, which certified products were used and when it was commissioned. The database then generates the MCS certificate. The customer gets that certificate in their handover pack, and it is the document they need to access eligible financial incentives and to prove the system's eligibility to energy suppliers.

What an installer registers in the MID

The MID guides the installer through a series of steps after selecting "Create Certificate". The details cover the customer and the installation, the system itself and its commissioning date. All MCS certified products are listed in the database, so the installer selects the products from that list rather than typing them in free hand. Only the MCS certified contractor who holds the contract with the customer can register the installation.

An installation is registered only when it is fully complete and commissioned, and not before. For heat pumps, that means the whole system the unit works with, including the emitters, is installed first. Registering early is a compliance problem in its own right.

When the registration must happen

MCS Standards require the certificate to be obtained from the MID and given to the customer within 10 working days of the commissioning date. The database enforces this: it will not accept a certificate with a commissioning date more than 10 working days in the past without further steps. Installations under MCS' redeveloped installer Scheme have a 30 day window.

A late installation can still be registered. The installer picks the commissioning date, then must choose a reason for lateness from a dropdown list before continuing. MCS states that all late submissions are recorded within the MID.

Why late or incomplete entries cost the customer

The certificate is the customer's proof for incentives and supplier eligibility checks. Until it exists, their paperwork cannot move forward. Some fields can be amended afterwards, but not all of them, so a wrong entry is not always a quick fix. Installers are also responsible for the accuracy of their own MID records, and MCS suggests checking them routinely.

Capture the data on the job record

Most delays come from the installer chasing details after the crew has left site: a serial number on a photo, a commissioning date in someone's notebook, a product model in an email. The better approach is to capture each MID field as the job progresses. In Zigaflow, the job record holds the customer, site, products and commissioning date in one place. Engineers can complete commissioning checks on site using the eForms app, so the date and product details are recorded on the day. A handover pack built from document templates can then include the certificate as soon as it is raised.

A simple routine works well: set a task for the day of commissioning, check the job record holds every field the MID asks for, create the certificate, and attach it to the job. That leaves most of the 10 working day window unused.

MID versus the MCS certificate

The MID is the database. The MCS certificate is the document it produces. People often use the terms interchangeably, but an installer registers on the MID and issues the certificate from it.