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Recent Articles

When is the best time to upgrade your plant lighting?

If you're waiting for new technology to show up before taking on a lighting retrofit, you might be wasting a lot of money.

Change management to change the electrical safety culture in your plant

Educated leadership makes better risk-assessment decisions.

Electrical safety experts answer your questions

Our panel of industry experts answers your arc flash hazard questions about NFPA 70E, PPE and much more.

In pictures: Bringing anomalies to light with IR inspection

This image gallery illustrates how workers can use infrared inspection to determine thermal patterns of electrical systems.

More Articles »

White Papers: In Depth Research

PEARL standards bring safety and reliability to secondary electrical distribution channels
Posted: 05/23/2012

Just about every product in the world has two main markets: one for new product and a second market for used — sometimes referred to as surplus, reconditioned, rebuilt or remanufactured — product. Cars, computers, jewelry and electronics are just a few examples of thriving industries that trade in used goods. The commercial and industrial electrical supply markets are no exception.

Electrical equipment, like automobiles and industrial machinery, are designed to last decades. However, like other durable goods, electrical equipment can be dangerous to the inexperienced — whether it is new or used product. The confluence of these two facts means that product safety — not just availability — is critical to a healthy electrical marketplace.

In 1908, the National Association of Electrical Distributors was formed to "establish the electrical distributor as an essential force in the electrical industry and economy," followed by the National Electrical Manufacturer's Association (NEMA) in 1926. These venerable associations eventually expanded to include educational programs and standards to help improve the operations and safety of the electrical supply chain with a focus on new product from electrical original equipment manufacturers (OEMs).

Related articles:

Save money with certified used, surplus electrical equipment
Keep business competitive and safe while cutting landfill waste and saving the environment.

Bring them back
How to recondition motor controls.

Seven types of power problems
Author: Joseph Seymour
Posted: 10/18/2011
Many of the mysteries of equipment failure, downtime, software and data corruption are the results of a problematic supply of power. There is also a common problem with describing power problems in a standard way. This white paper will describe the most common types of power disturbances, what can cause them, what they can do to your critical equipment, and how to safeguard your equipment, using the IEEE standards for describing power quality problems.

Understanding NFPA 79
Author: Ned Lloyd and Mike Levesque
Posted: 06/13/2011
NFPA-79 is the electrical standard that has been developed by the National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) and is "intended to minimize the potential hazard of electrical shock and electrical fire hazards of industrial metalworking machine tools, woodworking machinery, plastics machinery and mass produced equipment, not portable by hand."

The National Fire Protection Association is also responsible for the National Electric Code (NEC)/(NFPA-70).

The scope of NFPA-79 is summarized as follows: "The standard shall apply to the electrical/electronic equipment, apparatus, or systems of industrial machines operating from a nominal voltage of 600 volts or less, and commencing at the point of connection of the supply to the electrical equipment to the machine."

Advances in low-voltage motor control center (MCC) technology help reduce arc flash hazards and minimize risks
Posted: 05/09/2011
Measures to increase equipment and personnel safety in manufacturing are reflected in new approaches and technologies designed to help minimize the risk of workplace dangers. One rapidly growing area of focus is reducing the potentially serious hazards associated with arc flash events. This white paper examines the causes of arc flash, discusses the standards guiding arc flash safety and details the role arc-resistant motor control centers (MCCs) play in helping contain arc energy. It also highlights the key features of an effective arc-resistant MCC design.

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