Plasti-Bond PVC-Coated Rigid Metal Conduit

ABB sets new power cable record in New York Harbor

2012-03-09T11:23:00.000-08:00

NEW YORK - ABB has completed the delivery and energization of the world's first cross-linked polyethylene XLPE insulated 345 kV AC submarine cable system. Extruded in a single continuous length without factory joints, the new cable system brings 512 megawatts of power generation capacity to the critical wholesale power market in New York City.The ABB extra-high voltage cable system is part of the Bayonne Energy Center BEC power generation and transmission project, a new facility that will provide cleaner, more reliable power for Manhattan and the New York City power transmission network.BEC comprises a new high-efficiency natural-gas fired power plant in Bayonne, New Jersey, that will generate up to 512 megawatts of electricity for transfer via the ABB cable system to a Con Edison substation in Gowanus, Brooklyn. The new power plant is scheduled to start production in the spring of 2012.The cable system links the power plant to the substation and delivers the power at extra-high voltage 345 kV AC across New York Harbor, close to Liberty Island and the famous Statue of Liberty.The cable route of the ABB 345 kV cable system, with the southern tip of Manhattan in the top right-hand corner. The indirect route is due to the many shipping channels and anchorage areas in the busy harbor waters.Completed and energized by ABB in December 2011, the system includes three single-core XLPE submarine cables, each 6.5 miles 10.4 km in length, and two XLPE underground cable segments that connect the submarine cables to the power plant in Bayonne and the substation in Brooklyn, respectively.The 6.5 mile submarine cables are the longest extruded extra-high voltage submarine AC power cables ever manufactured. Most extruded submarine AC cables have so far been at the 145 kV level or lower, including the world’s longest submarine AC cable, which ABB is supplying for the Goliat floating oil and gas platform in the Barents Sea the Goliat cable is 105 km in length and has a voltage rating of 123 kV.The ABB solution for Bayonne Energy Center is entering the record books for two other reasons as well.In accordance with BEC’s requirements, ABB manufactured each of the three 6.5 mile extruded cables in a single continuous length. Such a long extruded extra-high voltage AC cable without factory joints had never been attempted before. It requires exceptional levels of expertise at the cable factory, with no margin for error in the extrusion process which, for a cable of this length, takes more than 10 days.Secondly, New York is a busy international sea port with freighters, cruise ships, ferries and tourist boats anchoring or operating in the harbor. To mitigate concerns about possible future dredging in the harbor and the risk of anchor damage, ABB was required to bury the cables at a depth of up to 15 feet 4.6 m, which is significantly deeper than the 3-6 feet burial required for most other submarine power cables. The water depth along the cable route in the harbor is on average about 20 m.ABB was responsible for delivering a turnkey cable system including design, engineering, manufacture, field construction at the landfall sites, laying and installation, and commissioning.The work at the landfall sites included construction of in-water cofferdams and horizontal directional drilling HDD in Brooklyn. The construction work at the landing sites and the laying of the cables were performed by a local New Jersey based firm Caldwell Marine International under a subcontract with ABB.ABBhttp://www.electricityforum.com/news/jan12/abbsetsnewpowercablerecord.html

Corrosion College Informational Links

2012-03-02T11:25:00.000-08:00

Corrosion College Informational LinksPollution by Oil Pipeline Releaseswww.Corrosion-doctors.orgSurface Preparation for Coatingswww.npl.co.ukCorrosion College-your choice when it comes to corrosion knowledgewww.corrosioncollege.comOffshore Hydrocarbon Releases Statistics and Analysis, 2002www.hse.gov.ukCauses of Plant Failurewww.hse.gov.ukCost of Corrosion Study (1998-2001)www.pra.org.ukCost of Corrosion in Oil and Gas exploration and productionwww.corrosioncost.comCorrosion risk assessment in the offshore industrywww.hse.gov.ukCranfield Universisty Offshore Technology Center Short Courseswww.cranfield.ac.ukPetroleum Refining and Corrosion Health and Safety Considerationswww.hghouston.comTerrific Scientific Corrosion Experimentswww.terrific-scientific.co.ukProtective Coatings, Linings and Resourceswww.corrosion.comKilgore College-2-year Associates degree in corrosion technologywww.kilgore.eduUniversity of Oklahoma-short course in conjunction with NACEwww.occe.ou.eduNACE-National Association of Corrosion Engineerswww.nace.orgCorrview-Various Types of Corrosionwww.corrview.comPlasti-Bondwww.plastibond.com

Plasti-Bond Welcomes Steve Voelzke As General Manager

2012-02-24T14:30:00.000-08:00

Plasti-Bond Welcomes Steve Voelzke As General Manager

Mr.Voelzke brings extensive industrial market experience to Robroy Industries. His core competencies include: strategic planning, financial and operational management; coordination of sales and marketing, human resources, technology development and IT. Prior to joining Robroy Mr. Voelzke was Senior Vice President –Automation & Information Systems at Glenmount Global Solutions.www.plastibond.com

UL and NEC Requirements for Corrosion Protection of Steel Conduit And Electrical Metallic Tubing

2012-02-17T12:45:00.000-08:00

When selecting a wiring method, life expectancy is one of the key issues typically considered. Depending upon the installation, part of that consideration concerns the resistance of the product to corrosive environments. All materials will eventually experience some corrosion, since corrosion is a natural and inevitable process. But corrosion is also a controllable process. Steel conduit systems provide long-lasting protection to the conductors and cables within. Due to the changing environments in which conduit is installed, it is impossible to provide firm life expectancy data. However, an understanding of the corrosion protection requirements of steel conduit product standards and of the National Electrical Code® (NEC) together with guidelines on the use of supplementary corrosion protection will help in the selection of the best system for the installed environment. UL Standards U.S. manufacturers of steel conduit are members of the National Electrical Manufacturers Association (NEMA) Section 5RN and also of the U.S. Conduit Committee of the Steel Tube Institute of North America (STINA). The products we produce include rigid steel conduit, intermediate metal conduit (IMC), electrical metallic tubing (EMT), and elbows, couplings and nipples. In order to have an installation that is in compliance with the NEC, raceways must be listed. NEMA/STI member products are listed to Underwriters Laboratories standards. Rigid steel conduit and associated elbows, couplings, and nipples are listed to UL 6, IMC to UL 1242 and EMT to UL 797. While there are no life expectancy tests in the UL standards, there are tests and performance requirements for the coatings used to protect steel conduit, EMT, elbows, couplings, and nipples. The typical OD (outside diameter) coating for steel conduit and EMT is zinc. The ID (interior diameter) is usually coated with zinc or an organic coating. The UL standards include a copper sulfate test (often referred to as a Preece test) that is used to evaluate the zinc coatings to ensure the required protection from corrosion. The products pass if they do not show a bright, adherent deposit of copper after four 60-second immersions in the Copper Sulfate solution. The process of applying zinc over steel is called “galvanizing” and has been used to protect iron and steel from rusting for over two hundred years. Zinc has a number of characteristics that make it wellsuited to provide corrosion protection to steel products. It protects steel from rusting by forming a protective barrier between the steel and the environment. In addition, it provides sacrificial (galvanic) protection. Since steel is more cathodic than zinc - that is, steel will attract electrons from the zinc (see Chart A) – the current flow from zinc to steel will reduce the corrosion rate of the steel. The zinc coating is thus “sacrificed” to prevent corrosion of the steel. Galvanizing protects the steel even when the coating is attacked. The appearance of white powder on steel conduit or EMT is evidence that the zinc coating is doing its job; when zinc corrodes, the oxide is white. When steel or iron rusts, the oxide is red. The UL standards allow the use of a surface coating on top of the primary corrosion protection coating (e.g. zinc) and most U.S. manufacturers do use a surface coating to provide additional corrosion protection. For rigid steel conduit and IMC, the UL standards require that a protective coating be applied to protect the conduit threads until installation. These products are shipped with a coupling on one end and thread protector on the other end. Manufacturers typically color-code these thread protectors to aid in trade size identification. For rigid, even trade sizes are color-coded blue, 1/2 trade sizes are black and 1/4 trade sizes are red. For IMC, even trade sizes are orange, 1/2 are yellow and 1/4 are green. UL White Book Guidance In 1965 a new requirement was added to the National Electrical Code®. The requirement was that “raceway be suitable for the corrosive environment to which it is exposed.” Since there was no conclusive way to prove the suitability of raceways for their environments, UL conducted surveys as well as field and laboratory tests. This data became the basis for the guidelines for supplementary corrosion protection that appears in the UL White Book General Information for Electrical Equipment and the UL Green Book Electrical Construction Equipment Directory. In concrete: Two of the environments that have a high potential for corrosive conditions are concrete and soil. The UL guidelines state that when galvanized rigid steel conduit (GRC) or IMC are installed in concrete, supplementary corrosion protection is not required. UL states that when EMT is installed in a concrete slab on grade or above, supplementary corrosion protection is generally not required. However, if EMT is installed in a concrete slab below grade, supplementary protection may be required. In soil: UL further states that when GRC is in contact with soil, supplementary protection is generally not required. However, if the soil is particularly corrosive, characterized by a resistivity of less than 2000 ohm-centimeters, supplementary corrosion protection may be required. Local utilities commonly measure the resistivity of soils. The authority having jurisdiction (AHJ) has the authority to determine the necessity for additional protection. EMT in contact with soil generally requires supplementary corrosion protection. From concrete to soil: The UL guidelines also state that severe corrosive effects may occur when steel conduit or EMT emerge from concrete into soil. NEMA/STI conduit manufacturers recommend that supplementary corrosion protection be provided a minimum of 4 inches on each side of the point where the raceway emerges. In areas such as coastal regions, we recommend the same method of protection for EMT emerging from concrete into salt air to lengthen the service life. These UL guidelines are summarized in Chart B and are also included in the National Electrical Code (NEC). http://www.nema.org/stds/eng-bulletins/upload/Bull_96_ULandNECRegforCorrosionProtofSteelConduit_03_09.pdf

Electrical Trends NEMRA Notes

2012-02-10T15:59:00.000-08:00

Welcome to ElectricalTrends.Thursday, February 9, 2012Some NEMRA NotesLast week the industry's electrical supply reps got together in San Diego with their manufacturers. Like other NEMRA meetings I've been at, there was much work conducted with everyone in one-on-one meetings for 2 1/2 days (at least) plus manufacturers having group meetings with their sales teams. For many manufacturers, this is their national sales meeting.Some observations and feedback we heard:NEMRA had a very good turnout.While I didn't get to the opening session (sorry Ken), many people commented on the powerful message of the keynote speaker.Many reps had a good / decent year. While this may conflict with a number of manufacturers, remember that reps carry a plethora of lines and typically call on multiple market segments (as well as geographic areas). Some commented about a few manufacturers that have cut margins over the years, said they were going to re-instate them, haven't, but expect a much higher level of performance (and paperwork).Some expressed frustration with multiple manufacturers going to Salesforce.com, forcing them to use the same system differently for each manufacturer. One Pass & Seymour rep mentioned that they originally fought the Salesforce.com initiative but have since come to embrace it as they use it as a tool to also discuss all of the lines that they could sell on a project that is being tracked in the "P&S" system.There was some comments regarding the ABB acquisition of T&B with a number of people trying to understand 1) why and 2) what will happen to T&B reps (either full-line or Ocal only).A number of reps and manufacturers were trying to understand Crescent joining IMARK but took it as "we have no choice". Those who expressed themselves felt Crescent was looking for acquisitions (and maybe IMARK wanted to have an acquirer within the group.)Christian Siebens of AD gave a very good presentation on the opportunities in Clean Energy. If you are an AD distributor, you should call Christian to get a copy of the presentation (or perhaps he'll do a webinar for the membership). IMARK members should also be able to get a copy as Steve Ruane sat in the session and took copious notes. If you are a manufacturer interested in understanding this segment better, Christian is probably one of the most knowledgeable in the industry on the topic - and sees how these opportunities can be monetized for distributors.A few reps mentioned that NEMRA is settling into a 3 city rotation of San Diego, Chicago and either New York or Boston. This was viewed favorably. The only comment is that Saturday morning was relatively quite as the last bank of flights back east is around noon, so people were looking to leave early, hence shortening the opportunity for one-on-one meetings.Overall, a very profitable and worthwhile meeting for a manufacturer.http://electricaltrends.blogspot.com/2012/02/some-nemra-notes.html?utm_source=feedburner&utm_medium=feed&utm_campaign=Feed%3A+Electricaltrends+%28ElectricalTrends%29

Robroy Industries Conduit Division Promotes Kimberly Slaton to Quotation/Inside Sales Position

2012-02-03T06:27:00.000-08:00

Robroy Industries Conduit Division Promotes Kimberly Slaton to Quotation/Inside Sales Position Gilmer, TX--- Robroy Industries Conduit Division , manufacturer of Plasti-Bond, Perma-Cote and KorKap (ETL- Verified PVC coated galvanized rigid conduit brands) and ECN/KORNS announces the promotion of Kimberly Slaton to the position of Quotation/Inside Sales. Ms. Slaton has been with the Robroy Conduit Division as an Inside Sales Representative since May 2007 and will now add the responsibility of Quotations for the ECN/KORNS product line. For additional information about Robroy Industries:www.robroy.com www.plastibond.com www.permacote.com www.korkap.com www.ecnkorns.comelectrical, wire, conduit, pvc, coated conduit, nema, rigid,

Corrosion Prevention Webinar

2012-01-27T04:38:00.000-08:00

In mitigating corrosion, don't you agree that the ultimate goal is to extend your assets' life?There is a point in every asset's life where the cost of continuing operations outweighs the gain. As assets age and production profiles decline - project economics are squeezed. The added pressure on replacement and maintenance budgets can result in curtailed life expectancy or divestment.But what if the situation can be reversed?Find out how in an exclusive webinar from Nigel Robinson, Vice President of Integrity Management Services & Dr John Morgan, Head of Consultancy and Compliance from GL Noble Denton.The webinar will discuss:• Practical steps you can use to ensure your asset produces with optimum availability and reliability• Proven, pro-active strategies you can use to maximize the life expectancy of the plant or platform topsides and structure>> Click on the following link to access the complimentary webinar: http://www.corrosionmanagementasia.com/redforms.aspx?eventnumber=12551.004&iqcontent=1&content_url=webinar.aspx?EventID=12551.004%26VerticleID=11%26WebinarID=308&sform_id=webinar&MAC=LIcf For more information on ETL Verified PVC Coated Conduit visit:http://plastibond.com/

PVC EXTERIOR COATING CHEMICAL RESISTANCE CHART

2012-01-20T06:13:00.000-08:00

http://plastibond.com/techPVCexterior.cfm

DamCam: Ringside Seat for Project Fans : PaintSquare News

2012-01-11T04:51:00.000-08:00

For the millions of project buffs (and professionals) who can’t spend their days watching the action at every site, the San Diego Water Authority has the solution: DamCam.

DamCam is a newly installed web cam system at the Water Authority’s San Vicente Dam that allows the public to watch the progress on the world’s largest roller-compacted concrete dam raise.

Photos: San Diego County Water Authority

Before: In 1943, the city of San Diego built the 220-foot-tall San Vicente Dam to store up to 90,000 acre-feet of water. The raising will more than double the dam’s capacity.

The Water Authority is raising the height of the 220-foot dam by 117 feet—the tallest dam raise in the United States and the tallest of its type in the world. The raised dam will store an additional 152,000 acre-feet of water, more than doubling the capacity of the reservoir, which is now 90,000 acre-feet.

2 Views

Two cameras offer different views of the construction activities, enabling viewers to see weeks of dam raise work compressed into a brief time-lapse video.

Topside View offers a bird’s-eye perspective, while Downstream View provides a straight-on angle.

The high-resolution photos are updated every 30 minutes, providing a current snapshot of dam raise construction. The time-lapse sequences combine these photos, illustrating the construction process. (Think of a high-tech version of those old hand-drawn cartoon flip books.)

October 2009: About two inches of concrete needed to be removed from the downstream face of the dam. Rails were installed to support hydrodemolition equipment, and workers excavated the hillsides around the dam to provide a solid foundation for the new concrete.

The cameras were provided and installed by Work Zone Cam of New York.

The cameras wirelessly transmit the photos to a secure server at the Water Authority, where software is used to edit and compile them and prepare the time lapse, project manager Kelly Rodgers told the publication Government Technology.

The cameras were installed in December, at the mid-point of the project, which began in 2009 and is expected to be completed in 2013.

Aided by an online photographic tour that predates the cameras, however, the whole project can be viewed. (To view the photographic tour, visit http://www.sdcwa.org/san-vicente-dam-raise and click on Multimedia, then on Photographic Tour.)

Documenting the Record

“The value of this camera technology is that it helps the Water Authority document the historic record of this major construction project, while at the same time allowing members of the public to view its progress online,” Water Authority Board Chair Michael T. Hogan said in a statement.

Unlike live web streaming, the time-lapse approach using still images allows the Water Authority to review each image and select only those it wants to use.

November 2009: To prepare the new dam foundation, crews excavated down to solid competent rock, then placed concrete into any crevices to level it out. Here, representatives of the Division of Safety of Dams monitor the work.

The authority rejected the idea of streaming live video, because those involved with implementing the technology didn’t feel a live video stream would be secure enough, Rodgers told Government Technology.

Project Streaming Grows

But webcam and streaming video are becoming a larger part of project technology—and not just for conventional security purposes. BayBridge360, for example, has been capturing video of the San Francisco-Oakland Bay Bridge’s seismic safety project construction for years.

And with or without a public audience, the US Army Corps of Engineers, NASA, Balfour Beatty, New York City DOT, Skanska, Turner and other major agencies and contractors now use video to record projects under construction.

Video providers—like Work Zone Cam, EarthCam, OnsiteView.com, TrueLook and others—say the technology allows closer monitoring of projects by supervisors, taxpayers and clients; reduces travel expenses; documents critical events; and adds pizzazz to the facility owner’s web site.

‘See Their Tax Dollars at Work’

In San Diego, although the Water Authority is not streaming construction, it is providing another unusual look at the project, via a limited number of public tours. Guests will view the project site from the downstream, or dry side, of San Vicente Dam. Tour participants must be 18 years of age or older and must follow site safety and security procedures.

They must also act fast and stake out the authority’s web site: The first 10 tours are booked solid, and more have yet to be scheduled.

Rodgers said the dam construction had drawn tremendous public interest.

March 2010: Crews used a road header, a drilling machine with a rotating head, to tunnel through 100 feet of concrete at the base of the dam.

“This is a good tool for the public so they can see their dollars at work and the progress we’re making toward securing the region’s water supply,” she said.

DamCam: Ringside Seat for Project Fans : PaintSquare News

Parking Lot Lights, Overcurrent Protection and More

2012-01-08T07:25:00.000-08:00

by Charlie Trout Published: December 2011If you have a problem related to the National Electrical Code (NEC), are experiencing difficulty in understanding a Code requirement, or are wondering why or if such a requirement exists, ask Charlie, and he will let the Code decide. Questions can be sent to codefaqs@earthlink.net. Answers are based on the 2011 NEC.Grounding a parking lot lightI keep hearing that you shouldn’t use a ground rod at a standard metal parking lot light and that you should use an equipment-grounding conductor run with the circuits. The specifications for the project I’m working on now require both grounding methods. Is there a problem with this, and will I have to install two rods if I don’t have 25 ohms to ground?The NEC requires the equipment-grounding conductor to be run with the circuit conductors, but it does not prohibit the use of auxiliary grounding electrodes, such as the ground rods. Section 250.54 repeats the requirement shown in 250.4(A)(5), where it states that the earth shall not be used as the sole equipment-grounding conductor. These auxiliary grounding electrodes do not have to be bonded to the grounding-electrode system as shown in 250.50 and do not have to meet the resistance requirements of 250.56. There are many pros and cons concerning the value of the auxiliary grounding-electrode ground rods for metal poles. They are of no value in providing a low-impedance ground-fault path to de-energize the circuit, but they may be of some value in providing a path for lightning strikes. Apparently, the specifiers think so.Feeder overcurrent protection sizeIs the feeder or the feeder’s overcurrent protection size any different if the controller is an adjustable-speed drive rather than a NEMA-type starter?NEC 430.122(A) requires the circuit conductors supplying power--conversion equipment included as part of an adjustable--speed drive system to have an ampacity of not less than 125 percent of the rated input to the power--conversion equipment. The conductors must be sized to the rated current on the conversion unit nameplate and not the motor full-load current. NEC 430.122(B) requires that if the adjustable drive system uses a bypass device, the conductors supplying the power-conversion equipment shall be the larger of 125 percent of the rated input to the power-conversion equipment or 125 percent of the motor full-load current rating as determined by 430.6. NEC 430.124 requires overload protection of the motor. However, (A) states that, if the adjustable-speed drive unit is marked that it includes overload protection, additional overload protection is not required.Burial depth for UF cableI am running UF cable from a house to a metal post light at the end of the driveway. What is the minimum burial depth for the UF cable? I am running the cable inside the metal post up to the post fixture. Should I ground the post?Table 300.5 in Column 4 shows a minimum cover requirement of 12 inches for residential branch circuits rated 120 volts (V) or less with ground-fault circuit interrupter (GFCI) protection and maximum overcurrent protection of 20 amperes (A). Yes, although the post is grounded by its burial into the ground, 250.4(A)(5) requires an effective ground-fault current path and tells us the earth shall not be considered as an effective ground-fault current path. An equipment--grounding conductor must be run with the circuit conductors for grounding the pole.Current transformer jumpersI received some CTs for the current transformer fitting I installed, and the secondary terminals had jumpers across them. The service is energized, so I was going to take the jumpers off but was told not to. I thought shorting them out would burn up the transformers. Can you explain this?When the primary is energized and the secondary is open (jumpers removed and no secondary load), there is no opposing magnetic force to limit the core flux. A small primary current will produce a very high voltage on the secondary winding. This voltage under these conditions can reach a value that may damage the insulation and be dangerous. For example, if the line voltage is 120V and the turns ratio is 120:1, the winding voltage is 120 120 or 14,400V. There are many other applications for current transformers besides transformer metering. Measuring meters, such as ammeters relaying equipment and others use current transformers. Most of these instruments are equipped with a shorting switch when the meter is not connected. Section 110.23, “Current Transformers,” reads, “Unused current transformers, associated with potentially energized circuits, shall be short-circuited.”Dead-front?What is meant by the term “dead-front,” and where are dead-front panels required in the NEC?Dead-front is defined in Article 100 of the NEC as being “without live parts exposed to a person on the operating side of the equipment.” Section 408.38 requires that panelboards be mounted in cabinets, cutout boxes, or enclosures designed for the purpose and shall be dead-front. The term is used in other places in the NEC, but basically the Code requires that distribution panels, panelboards (load centers), and switchboards (stage and theater 520.21) be constructed so that switches, circuit breakers and other electrical components can be operated without the user being exposed to live parts.GTO cableWhat is GTO cable, and where is it mentioned in the NEC?Gas tube and oil burner ignition cable does not appear in the NEC other than where Type GTO is mentioned in Section 600.32(E).To the best of my knowledge, GTO cable is used principally for neon sign installations. This cable has been evaluated by Underwriters’ Laboratories and is listed as GTO-5, GTO-10 and GTO-15 to indicate the kilovolt designations of different cable subtypes. The cable generally consists of conductors that use thermoplastic insulation, enclosed in an outer thermoplastic jacket. It is a special-use cable construction and, thus, is not listed under NEC Article 310, which lists conductors for general wiring.20A receptacle on 15A circuit?In a recent Code Question of the Day, you said that if you used an individual branch circuit for the refrigeration equipment in a dwelling-unit kitchen, you could use a 20A receptacle on a 15A circuit. Table 210.21(B)(3) shows only a 15A receptacle can be used on a 15A circuit. Please explain.Table 210.21(B)(3) relates to branch circuits supplying two or more receptacles or receptacle outlets. This requirement prevents someone from looking at the receptacle and mistakenly thinking that, if it’s a 20A receptacle, it must be a 20A circuit and attempting to use loads greater than permitted for a 15A circuit. An individual branch circuit using a 20A single receptacle on 15A circuit would not permit adding other loads.Conductors on a water heaterI am wiring a residential water heater. It is rated 4,500 watts (W) at 240V. What size copper conductors must be used to wire this water heater?The nameplate rating of the water heater is 4,500W at 240V or 18.7A. Assuming the water heater has a capacity of 120 gallons or less, 422.13 requires the rating of the branch circuit supplying the water heater to be not less than 125 percent of the nameplate rating of the water heater. Multiply 18.75A by 1.25 = 23.4A. This rating will require a 25A fuse or circuit breaker, which is the next standard size larger than 23.4A as shown in 240.6. The next higher size is permitted by 240.3(B). In Table 310.16, we find the allowable ampacity of conductors in the 60°C column as required by 110.14(C)(1)(a). A 12 AWG conductor would be suitable for the load, but 240.4(D) permits a maximum overcurrent device of 20A for a 12 AWG conductor. The conductor would have to be a minimum of 10 AWG, which can be properly protected by a 30A overcurrent device.Cold cathode vs. fluorescentThe designer of a house specified “cold cathode” lighting in the valances. What’s the difference between cold cathode and fluorescent?Cold cathode is a form of neon lighting. Cold cathode tubes can be formed into various shapes. The tubes are larger than fluorescent lamps, usually 18 millimeters (mm), 20 mm and 25 mm. The life expectancy of cold cathodes is about 10,000 hours to 20,000 hours. The coves must be larger to handle cold cathode without the lamp showing. If cold cathode is installed in dwelling units, 410.140(B) and 600.32(I) do not permit open circuit voltage exceeding 1,000V, which eliminates the use of cold cathode transformers. A one- or two-lamp cold cathode ballast with an output under 1,000V must be used.Load center infoWhere can I find Code information regarding load centers?The NEC doesn’t define or recognize the term “load center.” Load center is simply a manufacturer’s name for a class of panelboards. Load centers must meet the same requirements as panelboards in NEC Article 408. Load centers are shipped with the interior mounted in an enclosure. Panelboards are actually the interiors (guts) and are designed to be placed in a cabinet or cutout box at the job site and be accessible only from the front.TROUT answers the Code Question of the Day on the NECA website. He can be reached at codefaqs@earthlink.net.http://www.ecmag.com/?fa=article&articleID=13298

Corrosion College Frequently Asked Questions

2011-12-30T07:55:00.000-08:00

Corrosion College Frequently Asked QuestionsWhat is corrosion?Corrosion is the deterioration of a substance, usually a metal, or its properties, because of an undesirable reaction with its environment. How does cathodic protection really work?Cathodic protection is a method of making a metal the protected cathode by using impressed current or connecting it to a sacrificial anode that is higher on the electromotive force series. The anode sacrifices itself to protect the cathode. What is the basic corrosion cell?The basic corrosion cell consists of an anode, cathode, metallic path and an electrolyte. An anode becomes the corroded component, the cathode the protected component, the metallic path is any connection between the anode and cathode. The electrolyte is any medium that conducts electricity. Both anode and cathode must be in the electrolyte simultaneously to create a working cell. How does a coating prevent corrosion?A coating acts much like a barrier that isolates the metal being protected from its environment. Why is the bond the key to corrosion resistance?In order for a coating to work it must adhere to the surface it is to protect. The coating must be tightly adhering with no areas that are not bonded to the metal. A lack of bond will allow corrosion to begin at this area. Does a metal surface require any surface preparation prior to coating?Every surface to be coated will have some type of surface contaminant whether it is dirt, oil, dust or metal oxide. The contaminant must be removed either by a chemical or mechanical process. What is chalking?Chalking is a type of coating failure. A coating usually consists of binders, much like a glue that are mixed with pigments for color or other enhancements. Over time the binder weathers away leaving the pigment that is evident on your hand, much like an aluminum house. What does accelerated testing mean?Accelerated testing is a form of testing materials in a compressed time frame. Two or more materials can be tested at the same time and in the same environment. What is meant by general corrosion?General corrosion is characterized by uniform metal loss of a metal. No one area is any more corroded than another. What causes the corrosion on copper to steel pipe under my sink?Due to the electrical potential difference of these two metals as shown on the electromotive force series, the steel will become the anode and will sacrifice itself to protect the copper. Why are dust particles so corrosive?Dust particles are not corrosive in themselves unless they are from corrosive environments. Dust particles have the tendency to hold moisture and create a concentration cell at their location. Does rust prevent a pipe from corroding any further?Rust is a thermodynamically, unstable material and therefore does not offer any protection from corrosion. My stainless steel tank has rust spots all over it. Why?If your stainless steel tank is in a chloride or salt environment or oxygen has been deprived from the surface, the oxide coating on the tank has been compromised. Once the oxide coating has been compromised stainless steel will “rust” much like carbon steel. What is the electromotive force series?The electromotive force series, EMF for short, is a listing of metals indicating their relative electrical potential to corrode. The closer the metal is to the top or active end of the EMF the more likely it is to corrode. The closer the metal is to the bottom or passive end of the EMF the less likely it is to corrode. Why is aluminum used so much if it is so active on the EMF series?Because of the inherent property of aluminum to create a tightly adhering oxide layer on the surface, it becomes very passive and therefore is less likely to corrosive. It will corrode very quickly should the oxide coating become damage. What is the green stuff on the outside of copper gutters and is it good for corrosion prevention?That green stuff on the outside of copper is what we call patina. It is not a tightly adhering oxide film such as the film on aluminum, but rather an electrically resistant coating. The patina slows corrosion because it resists the electron flow in a corrosion cell. Where do composite materials come from?A composite material is a combination of two or more materials that show better properties than either of the individual components. Polyester resin plus styrene monomer with an organic peroxide added, forms a thermo-set or composite material. Is the corrosion by-product (white rust) of zinc a good protective finish?White rust is a loose powdery coating which is not a good protective finish for corrosion protection. Zinc is used as a barrier and an anode in the cathodic protection process. Unprepared zinc is an inhibitor to a good bond. If corrosion cost to the US is $600,000,000, where is the most corrosion found?Close to 35% of the total cost of corrosion is located in the utility business. Drinking water and sewer systems consists of 75% of the total cost of utility corrosion. http://www.corrosioncollege.com/faqs.cfm

3D Animation Video From Plasti-Bond Explains The Importance Of ETL Verification

2011-12-23T06:23:00.000-08:00

Successful Jobs Demand Reliable Product Service Life New 3D Animation Video From Plasti-Bond Explains The Importance Of ETL Verification For Specifying PVC-Coated ConduitGilmer, TX--- Plasti-Bond, a leader in the PVC-coated galvanized rigid conduit industry announces the availability of a new 3D animation video. This high-impact 3D animation clearly demonstrates the benefits of product service life as verified by internationally accepted ETL testing. Any specifier concerned with the high costs of product failure should see this animation for a full appreciation of the fact that ETL-verified PVC coated galvanized rigid conduit performs 10 times longer than non-ETL brands. It's a proven fact.Click on link below to view the video: http://www.plastibond.com/ETL/ETL_Downloads/ETLPlastibond.wmv Note: file size is large.Allow several minutes to downloadIf predictability of product service life is important to engineering design, avoidance of costly or catastrophic product or system failure, it should be assumed in the specification process, that only PVC-coated galvanized conduit carrying the ETL-verification label, will meet the standards established by all relevant ASTM tests, including those predicting product service life.

All PVC-coated galvanized conduit brands available in the U.S. meet exactly the same UL 6 standard and carry the same UL label relating to safety conformance. However, that does not mean that all brands will perform equally because not all brands have passed the same third-party tests designed to evaluate product performance and predict service life.Specifically, not all PVC-coated galvanized rigid conduit brands are authorized to carry the ETL-Verification label predicting product service life based on having passed the stringent requirements of ASTM D870 and ASTM D2247 --- the two accepted tests designed to predict service life of a coating under the two most common conditions that affect adhesive bonds: heat and humidity.ETL-Verification is authorized by Intertek, the world's largest independent testing, inspection and certification laboratory and verified products are subject to quarterly audits to ensure ongoing compliance. The significance of this is that ETL testing, and consequently ETL-Verification, is based on actual product performance as a predictor of reliable service life. Some brands therefore, have a documented, proven ability to perform in a corrosive environment over an extended time --- a fact which has been evaluated and confirmed by a world-recognized, third-party source.For more details on Plasti-Bond ETL Verification visit: http://www.plastibond.com/ETL_Home.cfmAlso: please visit: www.plastibond.com

Clarifying Intent Revisions to NEC Section 250.30

2011-12-16T07:33:00.000-08:00

Clarifying IntentRevisions to Section 250.30by James G. Stallcup Published: November 2011Section 250.30 is the topic of much discussion in every workshop that I instruct on the changes in the 2011 National Electrical Code (NEC). The section has been completely rewritten in an effort to make the requirements easier to read, understand and apply.Equipment-bonding jumper—250.102(D)Section 250.102(D) outlines an equipment--bonding jumper (EBJ) that is installed on the load side. However, this conductor is sized from Table 250.122 because these conductors have an overcurrent-protection device (OCPD) installed ahead of them. See Section 250.102(D) for more information concerning the sizing and installation of the EBJ. For example, if a fused disconnect with a set of 225-ampere fuses is installed ahead of these conductors, the EBJ is selected from Table 250.122 and sized at 4 AWG copper. However, a supply-side bonding jumper must be sized from 250.102(C)(1) and requires the 12 percent rule to be exercised when the kcmil rating of any one phase exceeds 1,100 kcmil for copper and 1,700 kcmil for aluminum.Grounding separately derived alternating current system—250.30Section 250.30 has been completely revised and reorganized in an effort to provide better clarity and usability. This new layout provides a better structure for requirements pertaining to the grounding and bonding of separately derived systems, and it alerts designers and installers that separately derived systems must be grounded as described in 250.30(A), (B) or (C). For example, the information in existing 250.20(D) has been revised and relocated to 250.30, including Informational Notes 1 and 2 that specifically address switching or not switching the grounded conductor within the transfer equipment and how it relates to separately derived systems.Supply-side bonding jumper—250.30(A)(2)The term “equipment-bonding jumper” was changed to “supply-side bonding jumper” because it is and always has been located on the supply side. Since there is no OCPD ahead of these transformers’ secondary conductors, Table 250.66, in most cases, is used to size this supply-side bonding jumper, when it is installed in a single raceway per 250.30(A)(2) and 250.102(C)(1). The grounded conductor (may be a neutral per 220.61) is sized per 250.30(A)(3). It was necessary to make this change in order to ensure that the proper installation of bonding conductors installed within or on the supply side per 250.102(C) were properly identified. For example, if 4/0 AWG output conductors per 240.21(C)(2) are tapped (my words) from the transformer’s secondary, a 2 AWG conductor from Table 250.66 is used.Grounding electrode—250.30(A)(4)My students often ask about the grounding electrode (GE) and why the metal water pipe was listed first instead of the structural building steel. In my opinion, the metal waterpipe system may be closer to the separately derived system and must comply with 250.30(A)(4). Another explanation may be that the metal water pipe could be sliced with PVC piping, which would isolate the pipe from earth-ground. A separately derived system requires a grounding electrode to be installed in order to provide as close as possible to an equipotential-grounding plane.Outside source—250.30(C)The new 250.30(C) has been accepted to cover a separately derived system that has been installed outside on the premises of the building or structure supplied. The GE connection must be made at the source, and one or more of the GEs from 250.50 must be selected. Furthermore, the grounding electrode system must comply with 250.52 and 250.53. For the definition of “premises,” see Article 100 of the 2011 NEC. This change prevents the wrong interpretation from being made for installations where the grounded conductor is routed from the system to and connected to the service-grounding electrode. This type of grounding scheme had to be clarified that it was not for the separately derived system.Other review sections—Article 250A review of 250.20, 250.21, 250.22, 250.26 and 225.32 is important because they all tie together and apply to grounding and bonding a separately derived system.Section 250.30 has been completely reorganized and revised with material added to the requirements for grounding such a system. These revised rules provide designers and installers with a better understanding of this section and its intended application.STALLCUP is the CEO of Grayboy Inc., which develops and authors publications for the electrical industry and specializes in classroom training on the National Electrical Code and other standards, including those from OSHA. Contact him at 817.581.2206.http://www.ecmag.com/?fa=article&articleID=13229

NRC Challenged on Plant Corrosion

2011-12-09T08:20:00.001-08:00

Repeated stress corrosion cracking of stainless-steel components at a Michigan nuclear plant has a congressman asking federal regulators why they continue to allow use of the metal in such applications.A Nuclear Regulatory Commission investigation into a service water pump failure that recently shut down the Palisades Nuclear Plant has traced the problem to the same intergranular stress corrosion cracking (IGSCC) that caused the same pump to fail in 2009. NRCThe same service water pump failed twice for the same reason in two years at Palisades Nuclear Plant, near South Haven, MI. The plant’s license was renewed in 2007, through 2031.In an Inspection Report issued Nov. 29, the NRC classified the discovery as a so-called “White” finding, indicating an issue “with low-to-moderate increased safety significance.”However, the NRC issued no violations, despite what one congressman says is a long history of such problems at multiple facilities.‘Well-Known History’“I am concerned that this failure is the latest in a string of similar incidents at Palisades and other nuclear power plants over the last two decades, and may be related to the continued use of types 410 and 416 martensitic stainless steel (410SS and 416SS), which are used in components of SW pumps at nuclear power plants,” Rep. Edward Markey (D-MA), senior member of the House Energy and Commerce Committee, wrote last week to NRC chairman Greg Jaczko.“The pumps are critical to reactor safety, and I am concerned that despite a well-known history of problems related to the vulnerability of these metals to intergranular stress corrosion cracking (IGSCC), they continue to be used and continue to cause failures in U.S. nuclear power plants.”Markey says the metals’ vulnerability to IGSCC has been documented by the NRC and in scientific and industry operating literature.Embrittlement ProblemsThe NRC’s finding says that the plant operator, Entergy Nuclear Operations Inc., “failed to take into consideration significant operating experience from as early as 1993 and as late as 2010 that linked IGSCC susceptibility of 410 and 416 stainless steels to temper embrittlement.”Clearly, then, Markey says, making the information available to plant operators has not been sufficient to ensure the safe use of these metals. So why not issue relevant requirements?The lack of mandates is “particularly alarming” since a 2007 NRC Information Notice characterized the pump cracking problem as difficult to detect, even with testing, he says.“Operating experience also shows that pump shaft failures and coupling failures can result in sudden total loss of flow before standard performance monitoring techniques alert plant staff to the impending failure,” the 2007 NRC Notice states, according to Markey.Operator ReportEntergy reported that the pump was inoperable for a month before it failed.The report notes that the 416SS metal was installed in a 2007 design specification change. “Personnel involved in the design change process did not have sufficient metallurgical knowledge,” the report says. “Palisades did not obtain an adequate technical review by personnel with expertise in metallurgy.”The report says that the choice of 416SS did not account for the corrosive Lake Michigan environment.Questions and RequestsMarkey requested that NRC provide a number of documents by Jan. 6. That includes a list of all plants that use 410SS and 416SS components and a list of their uses.Noting that NRC moved in 2005 to increase inspections at plants that used another metal (steel Alloy 600) susceptible to degradation, he asks: “Will you initiate a similar review for the 410SS and 416SS steels used in pump components? If not, why not?”Finally, he asks what actions the NRC will take to address the integrity of the 410SS and 416SS pump components now in use.“If no such actions are planned,” he adds, “why not?”Concrete ProblemsThe steel corrosion issue arose just days after the NRC issued a system-wide warning on the risk of concrete cracking and degradation at its facilities.In that case, the agency was responding to a problem at the control building of the Seabrook Station Nuclear Plant in New Hampshire.The concrete problem was laid to Alkali-Silica Reaction-induced (ASR) degradation, which occurs when alkalis—usually from cement—react with certain types of silica in the aggregate, in the presence of moisture.http://www.paintsquare.com/news/?fuseaction=view&ID=6795

Electrical Contractor: Tools Most Used by Electricians

2011-12-02T07:42:00.000-08:00

Electrical Contractor: Tools Most Used by Electricians

Stress Cracking Corrosion

2011-12-02T07:07:00.001-08:00

Stress corrosion cracking (SCC) is the unexpected sudden failure of normally ductile metals subjected to a tensile stress in a corrosive environment, especially at elevated temperature in the case of metals. SCC is highly chemically specific in that certain alloys are likely to undergo SCC only when exposed to a small number of chemical environments. The chemical environment that causes SCC for a given alloy is often one which is only mildly corrosive to the metal otherwise. Hence, metal parts with severe SCC can appear bright and shiny, while being filled with microscopic cracks. This factor makes it common for SCC to go undetected prior to failure. SCC often progresses rapidly, and is more common among alloys than pure metals. The specific environment is of crucial importance, and only very small concentrations of certain highly active chemicals are needed to produce catastrophic cracking, often leading to devastating and unexpected failure.[1]

The stresses can be the result of the crevice loads due to stress concentration, or can be caused by the type of assembly or residual stresses from fabrication (e.g. cold working); the residual stresses can be relieved by annealing.http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Stress_corrosion_cracking

PVC: A Unique Material

2011-11-18T07:38:00.001-08:00

PVC: A Unique MaterialDuane B. Priddy - Jan 27, 2011

PVC Coated ConduitTechnical Paper - PVC occupies a unique position amongst the comity of all materials of construction. It is the only polymer where the basic organic building block can be extended more than 3 times while converting into value added end products - the remaining material being predominantly low cost materials inorganic in nature. It is the only polymer which transgresses the boundaries of extreme elasticity to extreme rigidity with a unique range of flexural modulus values (3 MPa - 3000 MPa) - thereby yielding a versatile range of products from soft rubber like to very hard metal like applications. It is the only polymer where 60-70% primary applications go into very long life (more than 25 years) products thereby minimizing the waste load on our fragile eco-system. It is one of the few synthetic materials which, while supplementing and complementing scarce natural resources, have emerged as materials of construction meeting unique techno-economic requirements of modern society. PVC is the predominant material that supports infrastructural requirements across the globe thereby meeting the developmental needs in this crucial sector; it would be impossible to conceive modern activities in Building & Construction, Water Supply, Power Distribution and Telecommunication without the use of PVC. PVC has also played a very crucial role in meeting socio-economic needs particularly in developing economies. The low cost yet aesthetic end products from this polymer have almost turned around the social lifestyles and societal demands and in meeting the aspirations of the poorer sections of economy.More information on: http://www.icpeenvis.nic.in/...Source : Bandopadhyay, T. K. Indian Centre for Plastics in the Environment, India. Popular Plastics & Packaging (2010), 55(5), 18-23. Publisher: Colour Publications http://www.omnexus.com/resources/rdhighlights.aspx?id=27057&q=pvc%20coatings

Department of Defense Statement on Corrosion

2011-11-11T07:43:00.001-08:00

How can you help them?Corrosion – A Persistent Battle Corrosion – the deterioration of a material or its properties due to a reaction of that material with its chemical environment – has been with us forever.People have recognized, accepted, coped with and, occasionally, battled corrosion for millennia. In the 19th century, we began taking steps tounderstand, prevent, and treat corrosion, and we have gradually expanded these efforts ever since. But recently, corrosion has become a major concern,partly because our demands for more complex and sophisticated systems and products have been satisfied by materials that are more susceptible tocorrosion. The insidious and pervasive effects of corrosion have now reached the point where it is a major cost for our economy and qualityof life – in fact recent studies estimate the direct cost of corrosion in the United States to be nearly $300 billion dollars per year.https://www.corrdefense.org/CorrDefense%20WebPage%20Content/CorrosionAPersistentBattle.aspx

Zapping Steel Seen to Halt Corrosion

2011-11-04T06:10:00.000-07:00

Zapping Steel Seen to Halt CorrosionPulses, rather than paint, may prove to be the next big thing in protecting structural steel from corrosion.Researchers at the UK’s University of Hertfordshire have found that applying high-intensity electromagnetic fields (EMF) to steel dramatically increases the material’s resistance to corrosion. International Molybdenum Association International Molybdenum AssociationResearchers say the technique has dramatically increased corrosion resistance in high-strength, low-alloy (HSLA) steels.Exactly how and why that happens remain the subjects of continuing research—specifically, a new, two-year FP7 Marie Curie International Incoming Fellowship (IIF) project to investigate the effect of EMF on the properties of structural metals. The fellowship carries a €278,680 (about $382,000 US) grant.Microstructural Effects“Our previous work has shown that using electromagnetic treatment as a post-processing routine increases corrosion resistance in steel by about 50 percent,” said Dr. Andreas Chrysanthou, founder and leader of the university’s Materials Research Group.“Now, we need to understand the microstructural effects that take place when the field acts on the steel.”The results have been replicated in seven previous studies conducted with the school’s Dr. Anatoli Babutskyi, Chrysanthou said. But the researchers still don’t fully understand how the currents affect the electrochemical corrosion mechanism.One possible factor, they say: Pulsed electric current (PEC) treatment relaxes the mechanical stresses that lead to metal defects and causes “homogenization” of the stress structures, the scientists wrote in research published in 2009 in the journal Strength of Materials.By manipulating the composition of the material at the microstructure level, the scientists hope to produce a “more uniform structure” that will then reduce corrosion levels, Chrysanthou recently told The Engineer, a UK publication.2 Techniques, 1 OutcomeThe researchers have tested two techniques. One involves passing an electric current through a material; the other, applying an electromagnetic field to a material for two to three minutes. Most of the testing has focused on the first technique, but both have produced the same effect, Chrysanthou says.Most of the tests have used sheet material ranging 0.8mm to 1.5mm in thickness; one was done on a 10mm-diameter cylindrical bar, The Engineer reported.Although research shows that the electrical current treatment “substantially affects corrosion of metals,” Chrysanthou has written, the results haven’t always been positive.The treatment increased corrosion resistance in high-strength, low-alloy (HSLA) steel and in 5182 aluminum alloy (the metal used primarily for the bottoms of soda cans in North America).However, the same treatment dramatically reduced corrosion resistance in 5754 aluminum alloy, commonly used in Europe in pressure vessels, tanks and boat hulls, the scientists found.Corrosion’s CostCorrosion is a high-stakes issue worldwide, and Europe is no exception, with most EU countries spending 3 to 4 percent of their GDP on corrosion control and remediation, according to Chrysanthou.Globally, 10 to 30 percent of the annual production of iron is irreversibly lost to corrosion every year, and corrosion accounts for 90% of failures in oil-field pipes, he has written.“When we have established how exactly this technique works,” he says, “it will be a useful cost-saving tool for the automotive, construction, defense and aerospace industries.”http://www.paintsquare.com/news/?fuseaction=view&id=6458&nl_versionid=1447

ROBROY INDUSTRIES AND CHEMSTATION PARTNER TO ACHIEVE ENVIRONMENTAL SUSTAINABILITY PROGRESS

2011-10-28T09:20:00.000-07:00

Gilmer, TEXAS --- Robroy Industries Conduit Division, manufacturer of ETL-Verified PVC-coated galvanized rigid conduit brands: Plasti-Bond, Perma-Cote and KorKap, has released its inaugural sustainability report.The result of five years focus on lessening the environmental impact of its business, this report illustrates Robroy’s commitment to good governance and transparency and includes policies and programs that encompass a wide variety of operational elements.David A. Marshall, President and COO of Robroy Industries states: “We have succeeded in reducing waste, water and energy use, raw material and packaging. We are now sending our waste to recycling facilities instead of landfills, and we are making more recycled commodities available for new products.”One example of such efforts includes recycling all sludge, oil and paint waste. Additionally, all Robroy Industries steel scrap is now reused to build mining equipment; all scrap plastics is reground and sold to be used again for a variety of products; and all used cardboard is sold to companies that produce recycled pulp and paper.

Tamy Graham, Methods Analyst, Robroy Industries reports that the company’s sustainability efforts gained added traction in 2009 when it began new partnership with ChemStation of the ArkLaTex in Longview, TX, franchise of ChemStation International of Dayton, Ohio. Founded in 1977, ChemStation offers custom formulated, environmentally friendly industrial cleaning and process chemicals. The company’s patented refillable container process eliminates Robroy Industries’ need for drums and subsequently its need to find viable options for waste drums. In addition, because of reduced handling the process is safer, better for the environment and saves expenses related to transportation and labor in processing discarded drums.ChemStation’s product number 63000 has passed EPA’s stringent process for improved environmental impact and sustainability and is now available for use. The highly concentrated and mildly alkaline product is an effective low-foaming floor and general purpose cleaner. 63000 contains no inorganic phosphates, hazardous solvents or environmentally harmful surfactants and instead uses a proprietary blend of surfactants, solvents, pH adjustors and other ingredients that exhibit more positive environmental and human health characteristics than conventional cleaning formulations.Says Ms. Graham: “We made the switch to ChemStation's 63000 product line because it is in compliance with the Environmental Protection Agency’s Design for the Environment (DfE) program. This initiative works in partnership with industry, environmental groups, and academia to reduce risk to people and the environment by finding ways to prevent pollution. According to Ms. Graham: ChemStation's philosophy of “Refill, Not Landfill” annually prevents hundreds of thousands of empty drums and totes from going to already overcapacity landfills. “This,” she notes, “creates environmentally friendly products and delivers them to refillable containers, thereby makes life safer and healthier for everyone.”For additional details:• EPA's Design for the Environment (DfE): http://www.epa.gov/dfe/• ChemStation of the ArkLaTex, 4002 Lake Harris Circle, White Oak, TX 75693. 903.291.8400. http://www.chemstation.comWebsites: www.robroy.com www.plastibond.com

Intelligent Lighting: Standby power efficiency is make-or-break

2011-10-21T05:07:00.000-07:00

Good article from EDN

Intelligent Lighting: Standby power efficiency is make-or-breakMargery ConnerOctober 18, 2011At the Designing with LEDs Workshop last month in Boston, the keynote panel, moderated by Carol Lenk, CTO of Reliabulb, addressed the emerging topic of intelligent lighting. The three panelists all had strong viewpoints and diverse backgrounds in intelligent lighting, so I’ve made transcription of each of them. First up was Eric Holland, VP of engineering at Lighting Science Group. Eric’s presentation.Next up was David Ewing, Chief Technology Officer at Synapse Wireless. Synapse provided the low-cost, low-power wireless network that was used in the recent TRON movie. David’s Presentation.Wrapping it up, Paul Wilson of NXP covered the practical matter of power efficiency in intelligent lighting payback:Lighting represents one of the world’s greatest opportunities for significant energy savings as up to 25% of home energy usage is from lighting. We all know the energy savings potential of LED lighting in replacing the existing base of incandescent lights. We estimate that another 30% of savings can be gathered by applying these LED lights combined with intelligent lighting: Using light when you really need light. With smart controls you can do dimming, scenes, profiles, adjustments, monitoring, preventive maintenance, plus intelligent lighting enables participation in utilities’ demand response programs resulting in reduced tariffs.Some of the key elements of an intelligent lighting network are the switches, sensors, controllers, and the wirelessly-enabled smart lamps themselves.. And if you want to have access to them though smart phones, tablets and other internet connected devices then you need to have some sort of gateway. I’ll talk a little about what’s going on inside that wirelessly-enabled smart lamp, because there is a price to pay in terms of power when you’re putting all this smart technology inside a light bulb.nxp-7_small.jpgThe figure above shows what’s inside a smart LED bulb: AC power goes into a rectifier and feeds into both the LED driver/power supply and a “smart” power supply for the wireless transceiver. These two parts – the smart power supply and the radio transceiver – are necessary to make the LED bulb both intelligent and wireless.One of the “gotchas” in smart lighting is that the smart power supply must be constantly on and drawing power. Even when the switch is in the off position the light must be listening for controller signals. Intelligent light bulbs, which are often centrally positioned in every room, can make ideal network routers, but they do draw continuous amounts of power even when “off” so standby power can impact system power efficiency.Standby power can vary dramatically based on power supply topology. For example, a low-cost linear supply can consume as much as 3W; in a 13W LED you’d negate the power savings of using an LED lamp. A better choice is a buck topology with about 10mW of standby power. State-of-the art for a radio transceiver for the wireless portion is about 17mA of current.The networking stack you choose has an impact as well. David mentioned 6LoWpan – I think the key is to get the code size small and the keep the RF transceiver and uC power needs as low as possible. Using a “mostly asleep” duty-cycle design where the transceiver and uC don’t have to be constantly on also helps cut down on standby power.An example of how real this issue is, a 10W bulb on 4 hours/day uses 40Wh/day. If the standby power for the device is 1W standby power it will consume about 20Wh/day, or 33% of the total power is consumed in standby. At 100 mW standby it falls to 2Wh or just 5% of the total power. At LightFair last May, NXP demo’d a 6LoWPAN chipset operating with a duty cycle of about 10% on and listening for control signals, resulting in a standby power of about 30mW.Virtually everyone has WiFi in their home. Why not just use WiFi inside the bulbs? WiFi is a fine system and supports a high data rate, but it’s also very high power. When you compare WiFi to a low-power 30-70 duty-cycled RF technique, WiFi costs about $113 to operate, low-power RF is $8.45.wifi-table.jpg(There’s also a problem with WiFi being more of a star network than a mesh and getting across the network can be a problem.)Dimming control becomes much simpler when designing for smart lighting networks. Currently, LED lamps must be able to dim with existing triac phase-cut dimmers, and including this circuitry in an LED lamp costs about 50 cents. In an intelligent lighting system users control dimming from a tablet, smart phone or a wireless device. Eliminating the triac-dimmable circuitry will help offset the cost of including wireless circuitry and intelligence in LED lamps.Once a lamp is “smart” many other functions can be implemented with relative ease, such as color-mixing and color-temperature control, brightness, power monitoring, end-of-life prediction and detection, and occupancy response.The “sell” of LED lighting is no long the cost of the bulb – intelligent lighting changes it to a system sell and system benefits.http://www.edn.com/blog/PowerSource/41391-Intelligent_Lighting_Standby_power_efficiency_is_make_or_break.php

How Coatings Perform over Waterjetting in New Construction

2011-10-13T04:53:00.000-07:00

How Coatings Perform over Waterjetting in New ConstructionFrom JPCL, September 2011 | Free Product InformationAs a follow-up to their May 2011 JPCL report on waterjetted surfaces in new construction, the authors summarize results of coating performance over waterjetted surfaces.Philippe Le Calvé, DCNSFranceJean-Pierre PautassoDirection Générale pour l’Armement, FranceNathalie Le BozecFrench Corrosion Institute, FranceIn the naval industry, especially for new construction, conventional surface preparation by abrasive cleaning is becoming more and more costly because of environmental regulations that require collection and disposal of the spent abrasive and paint debris.Surface preparation processes influence the performance and lifetime of coating systems applied to steel substrates. Thus, the state of the steel surface immediately before painting is crucial. The main factors influencing the performance are the presence of rust and mill scale; surface contaminants including dust, salts and grease; and surface profile. For aggressive environments such as marine atmospheres of C5M corrosivity category and high-performance coatings that require cleaner and/or rougher surfaces, blast cleaning is often preferred (see ISO 8501-1 or SSPC-VIS 1). It is well known that surface preparation using abrasive cleaning in particular can produce a considerable amount of waste, mainly containing blasting media, paint debris, and rust products.It is desirable to replace abrasive blasting with a technique that creates less waste in the environment. Among the alternative methods, UHP waterjetting appears to be the most promising one.Ultra high-pressure (UHP) waterjetting may be a promising strategy for surface preparation as long as the performance of the coatings on steel structures is not adversely affected. UHP waterjetting technology has been described intensively in previous papers,1-3 and the surface quality of steel substrates prepared by UHP waterjetting has been characterized in terms such as flash rust, salt contaminants, and surface roughness. The influence of these characteristics on coating performance, as studied with accelerated corrosion tests and field exposures, has been reported.4-6

UHP waterjetting has become widely used for maintenance; there are, however, some questions about the use of this technique for new construction. The questions arise about the durability of commonly used paint systems on a new state of surface preparation.Against this background, a project was initiated with the aims of increasing the knowledge about coating systems for highly corrosive marine atmospheres and, in particular, of assessing the performance of UHP waterjetting as a method of secondary surface preparation compared to the traditional abrasive blasting of zinc-rich shop primer coated steel. The first part of this study, reported previously in PCE and JPCL,7 focused on the characterization of surfaces after UHP waterjetting of a shop primed steel surface.This article reports on the performance of commonly used paint systems for the protection of ship exterior topsides applied on zinc shop-primed steel after abrasive cleaning (Sa2½ of ISO 8501-1) and after UHP waterjetting (DHP4 of NF T35-520). The article describes the condition of seven paint systems after salt spray test, artificial cycling test, and natural ageing at a site qualified for a C5M corrosivity category. In addition, the two artificial tests are compared.ExperimentalSamplesSteel panels (DH36, commonly used in naval constructions) were prepared with different surface preparations to represent different practical cases that may be found on a structure. As shown in Table 1, the steel panels (100 × 175 mm) were abrasive blasted (metallic abrasives) to grade Sa2½ and coated with a zinc-rich shop primer (zinc silicate, 10-15 μm) as initial conditions. Further surface preparation consisted of robotic UHP waterjetting. Table 2 gives details on the UHP waterjetting to get a degree of cleanliness of DHP4 according to NF T35-520 and a flash rust level less than OF1 as defined in the same standard. More details on the surface properties may be found in reference.8As shown in Table 3, seven commercial paint systems for new construction—identified as P1, P2, P3, P4, P5, P6, and R—were selected to represent the three main corrosion protection mechanisms of coatings: the barrier effect, the galvanic effect, and the inhibiting effect. The coatings were also selected based on knowledge of their behavior in marine field exposure. Among the selections was one reference paint system (R), of known performance (data from field exposure and from accelerated ageing in lab tests and in service). R is composed of a vinyl epoxy primer coat (100 μm), a vinyl epoxy intermediate layer (80 μm), and a silicone alkyd topcoat (2 × 30 μm). The primer had a corrosion inhibitor.The painted samples were conditioned for three weeks (under laboratory conditions, i.e., at 20-25 C and 55% relative humidity, or RH) before being exposed in accelerated corrosion tests and at a natural weathering site. Before exposure, a 100 × 0.5 mm vertical scribe, parallel to the longest side of the panel, of was applied to each panel using the same scribing tool equipped with a rectangular blade 0.5 mm wide. Two duplicate samples were exposed in the different testing conditions.Table 1Description of the steel samplesReference T1 T2Type of steel DH36 DH36Initial state Blasted to Sa2½ and shop primed Blasted to Sa2½ (mix grit and shot) and shop primedSurface preparation Blasting to Sa2½ (ISO 8501-1) Medium Grit (ISO 8503-1) Waterjetting (cf. table 2)Roughness (Ra) After UHP cleaning 10 - 12 μm 7 μmTable 2Description of UHP waterjetting using a robotParameters RobotDegree of cleanliness according to NF T35-520 DHP4Level of flash rusting according to NF T35-520 http://www.paintsquare.com/archive/?fuseaction=view&articleid=4533

GE Evaporation Technology Used by Oil Sands Project

2011-10-07T07:16:00.000-07:00

Alberta, Canada -- Grizzly Oil Sands ULC has selected GE’s produced water evaporation technology for its Algar Lake project near Fort McMurray, Alberta, Canada. Phase 1 of the Algar Lake Steam-Assisted Gravity Drainage (SAGD) project will produce 5,000-6,000 barrels per day of bitumen and, by using GE’s produced water evaporation process, will recycle up to 97 percent of the produced water.Today’s announcement reinforces GE’s commitment to improve water reuse, a key commitment of ecomagination, a business strategy to create new value for customers, investors and society by solving energy, efficiency and water challenges.Grizzly’s Algar Lake is one of three recent projects, including Harvest Black Gold, to choose GE’s patented evaporative technology to treat and recycle its SAGD wastewater, assisting this producer to minimize water consumption and comply with the Alberta Energy Resources Conservation Board (ERCB) regulations and directives pertaining to water use. Coupled with GE’s proprietary contaminant reduction system, the technology can produce a high-quality distillate suitable for use as feedwater to high-pressure drum boilers.“Our selection of GE technology is the result of their experience and application of the technology in the oil sands,” said Ryan Chase, director of projects at Grizzly Oil Sands. “The team at GE has supported our Advanced, Relocatable, Modularized, Standardized (ARMS) design.”As projects in Alberta’s oil sands continue to grow, so does the potential for production activities to produce large quantities of wastewater. Developers of oil sands resources are increasingly turning to GE’s evaporative and zero-liquid discharge (ZLD) technologies to address this critical issue.Until recently, SAGD produced water could not be recycled as boiler feedwater because conventional treatment technologies were unable to produce the necessary water quality. GE’s patented evaporation process and contaminant reduction system is the only commercially proven method currently in use that achieves complete water recycling. It dramatically reduces freshwater requirements and also offers lower total capital and operating costs.“For more than 15 years GE has been helping oil sands operators manage water resources and optimize plant performance, and our patented produced water evaporation technology is the only process capable of recycling 97 percent or more of de-oiled produced water,” said Jeff Connelly, vice president, engineered systems—water and process technologies for GE Power & Water. “By Grizzly using GE technology at the Algar Lake SAGD project, it will help conserve the region’s freshwater supply and will greatly reduce wastewater discharge.”In addition to GE’s produced water evaporation system, GE also is providing the Algar Lake SAGD project with system design, equipment, instruments and controls, training and site support. GE will deliver equipment to the site in the first half of 2012, with installation and commissioning scheduled for the second half of 2012.Grizzly Oil Sands was formed in early 2006 to explore for and bring bitumen into production using thermal technologies. Grizzly holds one of the largest oil sand lease positions in Alberta among independent development-stage oil sands companies with more than 700,000 net acres of oil sands leases and permits.GE’s produced water evaporator has achieved the distinction of ecomagination-qualification. GE’s ecomagination is a corporate-wide initiative to aggressively commercialize new technologies that will help customers meet pressing environmental challenges.Source: http://www.ge.com/http://www.waterandwastewater.com/www_services/news_center/publish/article_002581.shtml

Preventing galvanic corrosion

2011-09-30T10:38:00.000-07:00

There are several ways of reducing and preventing this form of corrosion.

One way is to electrically insulate the two metals from each other. Unless they are in electrical contact, there can be no galvanic couple set up. This can be done using plastic or another insulator to separate steel water pipes from copper-based fittings or by using a coat of grease to separate aluminium and steel parts. Use of absorbent washers that may retain fluid is often counter-productive. Piping can be isolated with a spool of pipe made of plastic materials or made of metal material internally coated or lined. It is important that the spool has a minimum length of approx 500 mm to be effective.
Another way is to keep the metals dry and/or shielded from ionic compounds (salts, acids, bases), for example by painting or encasing the protected metal in plastic or epoxy, and allowing them to dry.
Coating the two materials or if it is not possible to coat both, the coating shall be applied to the more noble, the material with higher potential. This is necessary because if the coating is applied only on the more active material, in case of damage of the coating there will be a large cathode area and a very small anode area, and for the area effect the corrosion rate will be very high.
It is also possible to choose metals that have similar potentials. The more closely matched the individual potentials, the lesser the potential difference and hence the lesser the galvanic current. Using the same metal for all construction is the most precise way of matching potentials.

Electroplating or other plating can also help. This tends to use more noble metals that resist corrosion better. Chrome, nickel, silver and gold can all be used.
Aluminium anodes mounted on a steel jacket structure

Cathodic protection uses one or more sacrificial anodes made of a metal which is more active than the protected metal. Metals commonly used for sacrificial anodes include zinc, magnesium, and aluminium. This is commonplace in water heaters. Failure to regularly replace sacrificial anodes in water heaters severely diminishes the lifetime of the tank.

Finally, an electrical power supply may be connected to oppose the corrosive galvanic current. (see impressed current cathodic protection)
Stainless steel cable ladder with mild steel bolts

For example, consider a system is composed of 316 SS (a 300 series stainless steel; it is a very noble alloy meaning it is quite resistant to corrosion and has a high potential) and a mild steel (a very active metal with lower potential). The mild steel will corrode in the presence of an electrolyte such as salt water. If a sacrificial anode is used (such as a zinc alloy, aluminium alloy, or magnesium), these anodes will corrode, protecting the other metals. This is a common practice in the marine industry to protect ship equipment. Boats and vessels that are in salt water use either zinc alloy or aluminium alloy. If boats are only in fresh water, a magnesium alloy is used. Magnesium has one of the highest galvanic potentials of any metal. If it is used in a salt water application on a steel or aluminium hull boat, hydrogen bubbles will form under the paint, causing blistering and peeling.http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
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Metal boats connected to a mains shore line will normally have to have the hull connected to earth for safety reasons. However the end of that earth connection is likely to be a copper rod buried within the marina, resulting in a steel-copper "battery" of about 0.5V. For such cases the use of a galvanic isolator is essential - typically 2 diodes in series, preventing any current flow while the applied voltage is less than 1.4V (i.e. 0.7V per diode), but allowing a full flow in case of an earth fault. It has been noted that there will still be a very minor leak through the diodes which may result in slightly faster corrosion than normal.
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Galvanic_corrosion
To learn more about corrosion think about attending:
Corrosion College---
http://www.corrosioncollege.com/

What is wrong here from EC&M magazine

2011-09-23T12:50:00.000-07:00

What's Wrong Here?

Hint: See-through conduit?

I think it’s fair to say that this setup was probably installed before 1930. The service lateral is run from an underground manhole on Hanover Street in the North End of Boston, and has been in this condition for a very long time. I believe that this type of corrosion is typical, especially near the seashore, and has gone unnoticed for some time.

What's my beef with the arrangement? I think the electric utility really needs to pay careful attention to these types of old cruddy and corroded installations, and fix them before a catastrophe happens. Although the electric utility may not be required to adhere to NEC rules, I don’t think we should have to live with this type of power supply, do you? I’m also fairly certain the load side of this installation is in bad shape. The only way to rectify the situation is to change the service out entirely.

The corroded conduit reminds us why we have the following NEC rules:

[300.6] Protection Against Corrosion and Deterioration. Raceways, cable trays, cable bus, auxiliary gutters, cable armor, boxes, cable sheathing, cabinets, elbows, couplings, fittings, supports, and support hardware shall be of materials suitable for the environment in which they are to be installed.
[300.6(A)] Ferrous Metal Equipment. Ferrous metal raceways, cable trays, cable bus, auxiliary gutters, cable armor, boxes, cable sheathing, cabinets, metal elbows, couplings, nipples, fittings, supports, and support hardware shall be suitably protected against corrosion inside and outside (except threads at joints) by a coating of approved corrosion-resistant material. Where corrosion protection is necessary and the conduit is threaded in the field, the threads shall be coated with an approved electrically conductive, corrosion-resistant compound. Exception: Stainless steel shall not be required to have protective coatings.
[300.6(A)(1) Protected from Corrosion Solely by Enamel. Where protected from corrosion solely by enamel, ferrous metal raceways, cable trays, cable bus, auxiliary gutters, cable armor, boxes, cable sheathing, cabinets, metal elbows, couplings, nipples, fittings, supports, and support hardware shall not be used outdoors or in wet locations as described in 300.6(D).
[300.6(A)(2) Organic Coatings on Boxes or Cabinets. Where boxes or cabinets have an approved system of organic coatings and are marked “Raintight,” “Rainproof,” or “Outdoor Type,” they shall be permitted outdoors.
[300.6(A)(3) In Concrete or in Direct Contact with the Earth. Ferrous metal raceways, cable armor, boxes, cable sheathing, cabinets, elbows, couplings, nipples, fittings, supports, and support hardware shall be permitted to be installed in concrete or in direct contact with the earth, or in areas subject to severe corrosive influences where made of material approved for the condition, or where provided with corrosion protection approved for the condition.
[300.6(B)] Non-Ferrous Metal Equipment. Non-ferrous raceways, cable trays, cable bus, auxiliary gutters, cable armor, boxes, cable sheathing, cabinets, elbows, couplings, nipples, fittings, supports, and support hardware embedded or encased in concrete or in direct contact with the earth shall be provided with supplementary corrosion protection.
[300.6(C)] Nonmetallic Equipment. Nonmetallic raceways, cable trays, cable bus, auxiliary gutters, boxes, cables with a nonmetallic outer jacket and internal metal armor or jacket, cable sheathing, cabinets, elbows, couplings, nipples, fittings, supports, and support hardware shall be made of material approved for the condition and shall comply with (C)(1) and (C)(2) as applicable to the specific installation.
[300.6(C)(1)] Exposed to Sunlight. Where exposed to sunlight, the materials shall be listed as sunlight resistant or shall be identified as sunlight resistant.
[300.6(C)(2)] Chemical Exposure. Where subject to exposure to chemical solvents, vapors, splashing, or immersion, materials or coatings shall either be inherently resistant to chemicals based on its listing or be identified for the specific chemical reagent.

Robroy Industries Appoints Michael O'Bryan As Human Resource Manager

2011-09-16T07:53:00.000-07:00

Gilmer, TX--- Robroy Industries Conduit Division and its sister companies, Duoline® Technologies and ECN/KORNS, announces the appointment of Michael O'Bryan as Human Resource Manager.

Mr. O'Bryan’s experience will contribute to the continued manufacturing growth for all three business organizations. His most recent position was as a Director of Operations Support in Irving, Texas, where he was directly responsible for the quality assurance, human resources, training safety, process control and cost accounting for a food manufacturing facility. He held prior positions in operations, production and process control. He studied Business Management at Southwest Missouri State University.

“ Michael's plant operational experience combined with his knowledge of manufacturing will be of direct value to our employees and customers," states David Marshall, President and COO, Robroy Industries.

Robroy Industries Conduit Division manufactures Plasti-Bond, Perma-Cote and KorKap, leading brands of ETL- Verified PVC coated galvanized rigid conduit. Duoline® Technologies produces a premium internal corrosion resistant lining system for oilfield steel tubing and line pipe. ECN/KORNS manufactures galvanized couplings, elbows, clamps and nipples including the original KORNS clamp. For complete details:

www.robroy.com
www.plastibond.com
www.permacote.com
www.korkap.com
www.duoline.com
www.ecnkorns.com

Electrical Contractor: Creepy Crawlies

2011-09-09T07:00:00.000-07:00

Interesting article about protecting yourself as an Electrical Contractor against bugs.
Electrical Contractor: Creepy Crawlies

Electrical Corrosion Prevention: In Three Easy Step

2011-09-02T07:02:00.000-07:00

Electrical Corrosion Prevention: In Three Easy Steps Rudy Alegre, P.E. San Francisco Airport Facilities Division

National Association of Corrosion Engineers estimates a staggering $600 billion of corrosion-related damage each year in the United States alone. So, it is has become essential for engineers today to have the knowledge necessary to solve corrosion problems for their sites/projects.

However, very few college engineering programs demand this course work as part of a degree. So, if you are like me, I am always on the lookout for high quality continuing education opportunities. Several years ago, I was made aware of one program that offers a course with a great opportunity to understanding corrosion and its prevention methods, Corrosion College. Corrosion College is a hands-on short course that provides proven solutions for the prevention of industrial corrosion through classroom and interactive experience. Offered once a month within a specialized facility in Gilmer, Texas, Corrosion College grants 1.5 Continuing Education Units (CEUs) to participants for completing the program successfully. CEUs are available from either Purdue University or Kilgore College. In addition, Corrosion College was recently approved by The Practicing Institute of Engineers in New York State for granting 15 Professional Development Hours (PDHs).

Understanding Corrosion - The Critical First Step By attending Corrosion College, you will learn that corrosion refers to any process involving the deterioration or degradation of metal components. Most metals corrode on contact with water (and moisture in the air), acids, bases, salts, oils, aggressive metal polishes, and other solid and liquid chemicals. Metals will also corrode when exposed to gaseous materials like acid vapors, formaldehyde gas, ammonia gas, and sulfur containing gases.

In addition, Corrosion College teaches how corrosion is much more prevalent than we realized. Being aware of this awakened us to new ways of improving what we do on our projects by selecting the best anti-corrosion products and applying them in the most effective ways. This is vital to our facilities because --- among many other reasons --- we must protect electrical systems from corrosion.

Such systems are frequently located where corrosive media such as dirt, water, salt, acid, caustic or other corrosive media are prevalent. When systems corrode and power to production equipment such as pumps, motors, and lighting equipment can shut down because of uncontrolled outages, several things can occur: the quality of products or services can go down (downtime), maintenance costs and production losses can go up, and costs go up.

By way of a product example: metal conduit is a product used in our installations to protect sensitive electrical wiring. Prior to attending Corrosion College, we did not understand the true nature of corrosive environments well enough to know when such conduit was needed --- or, for that matter, what type of conduit was necessary. After attending Corrosion College, we now realize that we should be more aware of the long-term corrosion consequences.

Becoming a Certified Installer and Trainer- Ensures Product Will Perform Properly Taking installation precautions and using the proper tools impact performance significantly. Knowing these guidelines can help you prevent coating damage during installation. With the exception of a few precautions necessary to protect the coating, PVC-coated conduit installation procedures are the same as those used to install standard galvanized conduit. While this industry recognizes the performance of PVC-coated conduit in corrosive environments, correct installation procedures to ensure performance are less widely known. Taking installation precautions and using the proper tools impact performance significantly, assuring the coating remains undamaged.

Installer Certification at Corrosion College for PVC-coated conduit is based upon training that includes classroom and hands-on instruction encompassing: the manufacturing processes of coated conduit, proper installation techniques and tools, hands-on instruction for clamping, cutting, bending, threading and assembly of coated conduit, specifying the vise model and troubleshooting. Official certification to install PVC coated steel products are only given to installers who were able to pass the classroom instruction and examination.

Proper Installation of PVC-Coated Conduit- Third Step Here's a list of precautions to prevent coating damage during installation learned at Corrosion College:

Clamping. When using a pipe vise, replace the jaw assembly with special vise adapters. When using a chain vise for conduit diameters less than 2 in., wrap the clamp area with emery cloth (coarse surface against the coating). Use half-shell clamps to clamp 2 in. and larger diameter PVC-coated conduit. If you use a power unit that spins the conduit, equip the chuck with inserts designed for such conduit.

Cutting. You should cut the PVC-coated conduit with a roller cutter. This will make a square cut end and remove about quarter-inch of PVC coating, which aids in threading the conduit. You can use a hacksaw; however, this method requires a pencil cut so the die teeth engage the conduit. Cutting away quarter-inch of the exterior coating in the same manner as sharpening a pencil allows the pipe guide to ride up and over the PVC coating, facilitates coating removal, and enables cutting the thread in one operation. You must use a reamer to remove any rough internal edges caused by cutting. This prevents insulation damage during wire pulling.

Threading. Before threading, make a series of cuts in the PVC along the longitudinal axis of the conduit. You can use the thread protector attached to the end of each conduit section to gauge the length of these cuts. These cuts help remove the PVC in small pieces rather than long strips, which can foul the die head. Before threading, machine the stationary guide to remove 0.120 in. so it can ride up and over the PVC coating. Always use a new die head, and never use the same one to thread rigid conduit. After threading, clean the threads and conduit interior with a degreasing spray, to prepare for the application of the touchup compound. Cleaning will ensure good adherence of the compound to the unprotected metal substrate.

Hydraulic bending. For best results, use equipment designed to bend coated conduit. You can find hydraulic and electric benders with shoes sized for coated conduit. When bending coated conduit, use rubbing alcohol to clean the inside of the shoe and area of conduit you wish to bend. Never use lubricant in the shoe or on the conduit. Lubricant allows the conduit to slip above the center line of the shoe, resulting in a flat elbow. A conventional shoe can remove 0.060 in. from the inside surface of a standard shoe, accommodating the same diameter conduit.

Hand bending. When using a conventional hand bender, use the next larger size bending shoe to allow space for the coating. You can make hand bends with a special coated bending hickey that reduces damage potential to the coating when making sharp bends, saddles, or offsets. Installers typically use these tools for conduit diameters ranging from half-inch. to 1 in. Assembly. You should use special Z wrenches in lieu of standard adjustable pliers to assemble PVC-coated conduit and fittings. Z wrenches spread the clamping force and enable the tool to grip securely, without damaging the conduit coating. You can also use strap wrenches to tighten damaging the coating. For smaller conduit sizes, you can use Spin-It tools with air impact or standard ratchet wrenches to assemble the conduit and fittings faster than conventional methods. This method never touches the coating and saves time by eliminating the need to touchup damage marks. Special sockets are available for use with ratchets to tighten encapsulated screws on conduit fittings, hangers, and clamps. Sleeves help seal corrosives from the threads at joints. Typically, you should not cut; however, you may need to remove portions of the sleeve when the fitting is close to others such as a close nipple. Here, you can cut away half of each sleeve and apply touchup compound to the threads and joints.

Conclusion Spending time in the construction site gave me some knowledge on how electrical contractors install various sizes of PVC-coated conduit. However, nothing replaces the actual classroom training and hands-on instruction at Corrosion College that would eventually lead to the Certification. The class itself is very limited in size and the students usually would come from various trades within the electrical industry. It is well-organized and conducted by highly trained and experienced instructors. All writing and learning materials were provided to all the students throughout the class. Also, worth mentioning were the audio-visual materials that were used as examples given by the attendees based on their field experience was very valuable. Understanding on how corrosion behaves due to dissimilar metals and/or exposure to different environments was also covered. Towards the end of the class, several actual corrosion case studies were solved by each team of students under the guidance of “CSI Gilmer”, followed by a final test. More importantly, the hands-on training gave everyone valuable skills and necessary experience that can be utilized for their projects. I am certain that everyone enjoyed the class because not only that they gained more knowledge and experience but each student had all the staff support available, everyday from day one. I could only wish that my undergraduate school class experience had been similar as the Corrosion College course.

Salt Corrosion

2011-08-26T08:12:00.000-07:00

Salt is the largest of the basic chemical materials produced from a tonnage standpoint; it sis the basic raw material from many other chemical products. It is derived from brine wells, underground mines, and evaporation ponds.
The corrosion involved wherever salt is found is severe, as it easily pervades all processing equipment. Equipment suck as conveyors, pumps, piping, and transportation equipment, can accumulate salt dust and crystals in many inaccessible areas. So without a thoroughly applied and fully resistant coating, corrosion would be severe.

Do you believe for project where conduit will be exposed to salt will PVC coated conduit and fittings will withstand the severe corrosive environment?

Robroy Industries Conduit Division Appoints Darryl Tyson To Plant Manager

2011-08-19T12:39:00.000-07:00

Gilmer, TX--- Robroy Industries, Conduit Division , manufacturer of Plasti-Bond, Perma-Cote and KorKap, ETL- Verified PVC coated galvanized rigid conduit brands, announces that Darryl Tyson has been appointed to Plant Manager.

Darryl Tyson's wealth of experience will contribute to Robroy Industries' continued path for growth. His most recent position was as a Plant Operations Manager in Mesquite, TX where he was directly responsible for the operational and financial performance of the entire facility. Mr. Tyson has held the prior positions as Value Stream Manager as well as Manufacturing Manager and Production Manager. He graduated from Dallas Baptist University with a degree in Business Administration.

"Darryl Tyson's plant operational experience combined with his knowledge of manufacturing will be of direct value to our customers," states David Marshall, President and COO, Robroy Industries.
http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

For additional information about Robroy Industries:

www.robroy.com

www.plastibond.com

www.permacote.com

www.korkap.com

Annual Worldwide Air Force Corrosion Conference.

2011-08-12T05:11:00.000-07:00

The Air Force Corrosion Prevention and Control Office hosts the Annual Worldwide Air Force Corrosion Conference. This conference provides Air Force and DoD organizhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifations a forum to present the status of their corrosion programs as well as identify and discuss requirements, resolve problems, and present new approved materials and processes.

Technical presentations from other DoD organizations, selected DoD contractors and vendors are presented and discussed. Attendance includes individuals from government and industry involved in all aspects of Corrosion Prevention and Control on aircraft, aerospace systems and support equipment.

For more information visit:
http://afcpo.com/

A little humor for the week--Cause we all need some every once in a while

2011-08-05T08:04:00.000-07:00

How many daylighting consultants does it take to change a light bulb?

None—the sun will be back up in exactly 10 hours.

How many LEED Accredited Professionals does it take to change a light bulb?

Four—one to tell you how to earn LEED points by changing it, one to change it, one to document the change, and one to deliver the check to the U.S. Green Building Council for certifying the change.

How many product manufacturers does it take to change a light bulb?

10,001. Ten thousand to resist the change for as long as possible, and then the same 10,000 to tell you how many LEED points you can earn from making the change with their product. Oh, and one to change it.

How many occupants does it take to change a light bulb?

None. They'd rather curse the broken light bulb, the electrician, the landlord, and the architect.

How much actual energy performance data does it take to change a light bulb?

Don't know—we're still waiting for information from the engineer, who's waiting for information from the utility, who won't provide information until a submeter is installed, and the owner decided not to pay for it.

How many salvage contractors does it take to change a light bulb?

Two—one to change it, and one to sell the broken light bulb as aggregate for landscaping around the new light bulb.

How many code officials does it take to change a light bulb?

CHANGE?! I think not.

How many life-cycle assessment experts does it take to change a light bulb?

Two—one to change it, and one to change it back again after more data has come in.

How many LEED credits does it take to change a light bulb?

One—but you need a writer, 18 committee members representing manufacturers, government, the environmental community, the social justice community, and the health and safety community, three draft versions, two public comment periods, one life-cycle analysis, one pilot period with 100 pilot light bulbs, one member ballot, and one competing system with completely different standards.

How many State of California regulations does it take to change a light bulb?

Three—one to require that you change the light bulb, one to warn you that changing it could cause cancer, and one to ban disposal of the old light bulb.

How many inventors of new lighting technology does it take to change a light bulb?

It just looks like it's broken—the color temperature on these is in the Celsius scale.

How many Forest Stewardship Council-certified light bulbs does it take to change a light bulb?

None—the indigenous light bulb population won't allow it. And that new light bulb isn't certified for chain-of-custody, is it?

How much greenwashing does it take to change a light bulb?

Don't change at all. Just fund an "independent" organization, use it to write a "sustainability" standard, and put this cool planet logo on the same old light bulb.

How many advocates for market transformation does it take to change a light bulb?

Just one to write a green light bulb standard, changing the light bulb market forever. Oh, and one to specify a light bulb certified under that standard; one to start a foundation to subsidize purchases of the certified light bulbs; one to search the ends of the Earth for the actual product; one to buy it, and one to change it.

How many William McDonoughs does it take to change a light bulb?

The real question is, how do we love all the light bulbs of all species for all time? Let's eliminate the concept of the broken light bulb.

How many commissioning agents does it take to change a light bulb?

Two. One to note the problems with the light bulb, the design of the lighting controls, the lightshelves, and the shading system, and one to change the light bulb.

How many owner's representatives does it take to change a light bulb?

Sorry, that item has been value-engineered out!

How many U.S. Green Building Council Cascadia Chapter members does it take to change a light bulb?

You can change the light bulb, but only if there was already a light bulb in that socket before, if you use a light bulb with no PVC, formaldehyde, or halogenated flame retardants, and if the new light bulb is beautiful and inspiring.

How many natural builders does it take to change a light bulb?

Two—one to change it, and one to sculpt a decorative mud-and-straw wall around the old light bulb.

How many lighting designers does it take to change a light bulb?

Uh... "light bulb"? That's a lamp, what you are calling a "socket" is a luminaire, and I think you'd get better efficacy if you changed the ballast instead.

How many Environmental Building News editors does it take to change a light bulb?

Two. One to change it, and one to write, "One billion light bulbs will be changed in 2008, according to U.S. Department of Energy statistics. It's critically important that we use energy-efficiency light bulbs to replace the broken ones, but unfortunately, many light bulbs don't meet our GreenSpec standards, and changing light bulbs entails numerous health and environmental risks that you have never heard of before. In this article, we will examine the history of the light bulb, from its origins with tungsten filament..."http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

This just in...

How many LEED AP exam takers does it take to screw in a lightbulb?http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

Let's see... EA Credit 1, EA Credit 5, MR Credit 2 if you recycle it, and maybe SS Credit 8, depending on the location. Sorry... what was the question?

All humor aside- If you need help with a lighting project green or not green- check out our recent project and let us know how we can help:
http://www.plastibond.com/News/?InputText=72#72

http://www.buildinggreen.com/live/index.cfm/2007/12/3/Green-Building-Jokes

Burrus and Matthews --- Sales Reps for Plasti-Bond PVC Coated Conduit and Stahlin Non-Metallic Enclosures --- Awards Las Vegas Grand Prize

2011-07-29T09:31:00.000-07:00

Burrus and Matthews --- Sales Reps for Plasti-Bond PVC Coated Conduit and Stahlin Non-Metallic Enclosures ---
Awards Las Vegas Grand Prize for the 2010 Graybar LET'S MAKE A DEAL Promotion

During Graybar 's 2010 National Electrical Training Conference, Robroy Industries Electrical Products Division introduced to all Graybar locations a promotion entitled: Let's Make A Deal. Every order fulfilled qualified participating Graybar employees for a chance to win the grand prize --- an all-expenses paid weekend vacation for two in Las Vegas. The winner, selected in an independently conducted drawing, was Brandon Proctor at Graybar-Abilene, Texas.

Mr. Proctor and his wife have since returned from their trip. He states:“Just wanted to send you guys a very sincere thank you! My wife and I had a wonderful time. The hotel was incredible! The "O" show was over the top, especially from the front row. I appreciate everything that you guys do for us.”http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
Robroy Industries appreciates he support and additional business from all thehttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif Graybar employees who participated in Let's Make A Deal.

Bill Fisher:
bfisher@plastibond.com
903-843-5591

Teresa Ramirez:
tramirez@stahlin.com
616-794-0700

www.plastibond.com

www.stahlin.com

Purdue's Engineering Professional Education distance learning programs including short course from Corrosion College

2011-07-22T12:20:00.000-07:00

Corrosion College Short Course
Register Online Now

Course #: corrosion

Instructor(s):

Rob McIlroy, Robroy Industries
Bill Elliott, Robroy Industries
Scott Montgomery, Robroy Industries

Course Location: Corrosion College, Gilmer Texas

Delivery Mode: In-Person

Who the course is for:

Anyone who deals with corrosion on a daily basis in industries such as electrical; food processing, offshore drilling; communications, shipping -- engineers; designers, contractors; jobsite supervisors; conduit installers.

Learning Objectives:

Corrosion College provides hands-on experience in understanding the process of corrosion through two days of intensive instruction conducted by professionals in the field of corrosion protection.
Corrosion College helps participants explore and understand proven strategies for combating corrosion.
Corrosion College enhances learning retention through a comprehensive curriculum including case studies, laboratory workshops plus interactive presentations.
Corrosion College enables graduates to apply the conccepts learned in this course to important aspects of their careers.
Corrosion College grants 1.5 CEUs to participants for participation and successful completion.

Description: Participants of the Corrosion College short course, which is conduhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifcted monthly in Gilmer, Texas, at Robroy Industries, become familiar with the basic understanding of the corrosion process, how it works, how to control it and different methods of prevention. If you deal with corrosion or the potential of corrosion, this short course will help you gain understanding of the mechanisms that promote corrosion and prevent corrosion. Learn how corrosion can be controlled by controlling temperature, altering the environments, maintaining correct acidity or alkalinity. Corrosion College was started in 1996 at Robroy Industries to fill a need expressed in the electrical industry for knowledge of corrosion. Successful completion of the two-day short course, will earn the participant of choice of 1.5 CEUs from either Kilgore College or Purdue University.

Learn more: https://engineering.purdue.edu/ProEd/PD/short_courses?course=corrosion

Why Independent Product Performance Verification is Essential

2011-07-15T13:12:00.000-07:00

Why Independent Product Performance Verification is Essential For Properly Specifying Products For Highly Corrosive Environments --------------------- J. Henry Martin, PE Henry Martin Consulting LLC

---------------------

By law and tradition, a key role of architectural/engineering professionals is to help ensure effective specification of products. This responsibility is especially critical when applications are in highly corrosive environments where product failure is extremely costly but also raises the risk of catastrophe and human harm. The foundation for preventing corrosion damage through proper product specification is to enforce a high priority on continuous education in the understanding of what causes and what prevents corrosion. There is reason to believe that many professionals, although aware of general facts specific to corrosion, do not maintain adequate knowledge of how and why diverse methodologies for corrosion prevention work well in some applications but are ineffective in others. Those who study corrosion and the dramatic implications of the damage it causes realize the following: a.) The literal dollar cost of corrosion is staggering and underscores the inherent economic dangers caused by improper product specification and resulting product failure. Conversely, insistence on the specification of optimum anti-corrosive products provides opportunities for tremendous cost savings. b.) There exists a misconception that nothing can be done about corrosion. There exists a corresponding professional duty to correct that falsehood. c.) Sound corrosion management, built upon proper product specification, depends on a comprehensive understanding of regulations and standards. d.) Product life predictions and performance assessment methods are essential for knowing what products truly are successful over time in fighting the high cost of corrosion. Be aware of the high cost of corrosion: The annual direct cost of corrosion is estimated in excess of $121 billion. The breakdown of these costs among major sector categories is highlighted in figure 1. Not all industries were examined in this study and, therefore, the total economic impact on the U.S. economy is far greater than this estimate indicates.

http://www.corrosioncost.com/summary.htm

Change the misconception that nothing can be done about corrosion: Properly specifying products for corrosion protection. Becoming aware that corrosion is much more prevalent in our business than we realized awakens us to new ways of improving what we do for our customers by selecting the best anti-corrosion products and applying them in the most effective ways. Your client can help you decide how important a reliable system is to the production and profitability of their company. Once the mechanisms of corrosion in the environment are defined, the engineer must do their homework to select the correct material for the application.

To begin, the material of choice must be given equal consideration as the design itself. Choosing the wrong material can result in frustrating or even dangerous situations. Defining the corroding agents and determining the concentration can be a complex process. Usually several corrosive elements are present and interactions are not always well documented. Water is the most common corrosive element and is usually present to some extent in every enclosure application. Adjacent processing operations or other intermittent activities such as industrial cleaning and the general plant environment may expose the enclosure to a variety of corrosive agents and temperatures. Each environment is unique and all possible corrosive agents should be identified for the intended application.

Metal corrosion is influenced by surface finish, surface treatment, such as painting or galvanizing and use of materials such as stainless steel or composite fiberglass materials, which are naturally corrosion resistant. Aluminum, for example, should not be used in high-mineral acid environments. Stainless steels should not be used in applications where a high exposure to salts is present. Should the decision be made to use one material over another without in-depth investigation into potential corrosive media, the user may be looking at a very short life span for their most vital devices systems. Next, you must start to take into account some of the compliance issues, standards for the project.

Understand policies, regulations, standards, and management practices to increase corrosion savings through sound corrosion management.

Listed below are some of the most relevant for the electrical industry and a link for you to find more information, if you need more details for your particular project.

About UL : With more than 110 years as one of the world's leading product safety testing and certification organizations, Underwriters Laboratories (UL) continues to be a valuable resource for safety information. Its' UL Mark is one of the most recognized symbols of safety in the world. UL is an architect of U.S. and Canada safety systems, having developed more than 1,200 safety standards, and actively participating in national and international standards development. UL tests more than 19,000 types of products, and 21 billion UL Marks appear in the marketplace each year. Consumers and regulatory authorities value UL as a leader on safety issues. With public safety at the heart of UL's mission, UL acts as a safety resource and advocate. UL works closely with customers, regulators, insurers, retailers and consumers on research, technology and safety initiatives. UL also promotes public safety through education and outreach, including through and to the media. In 2007, UL reached more than 447 million consumers in North America, Europe and Asia with its public safety message. http://www.ul.com

ASTM International: ASTM International is one of the largest voluntary standards development organizations in the world-a trusted source for technical standards for materials, products, systems, and services. Known for their high technical quality and market relevancy, ASTM International standards have an important role in the information infrastructure that guides design, manufacturing and trade in the global economy. Standards developed at ASTM are the work of over 30,000 ASTM members. These technical experts represent producers, users, consumers, government and academia from over 120 countries. Participation in ASTM International is open to all with a material interest, anywhere in the world. http://www.astm.org

NACE: National Association of Corrosion Engineers NACE International was originally known as "The National Association of Corrosion Engineers" when it was established in 1943 by eleven corrosion engineers in the pipeline industry. These founding members were involved in a regional cathodic protection group formed in the 1930s, when the study of cathodic protection was introduced. With more than 60 years of experience in developing corrosion prevention and control standards, NACE International has become the largest organization in the world committed to the study of corrosion. Their standards are written and approved by industry professionals, instructors, professors, government officials, and experts from regulatory and governing bodies. Trusted by hundreds of corporations and even the International Maritime Organization (IMO), NACE International standards are the most specified for corrosion control in the world. NACE is a member of the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) as an accredited standards developer.

http://www.nace.org

NEMA: National Electrical Manufacturers Association It is NEMA’s belief that standards play a vital part in the design, production, and distribution of products destined for both national and international commerce. Sound technical standards benefit the user, as well as the manufacturer, by improving safety, bringing about economies in product, eliminating misunderstandings between manufacturer and purchaser, and assisting the purchaser in selecting and obtaining the proper product for his particular need. An overview of NEMA standards publications, including: Standardization Policies and Procedures How to read a NEMA standard How NEMA standards are developed How to purchase a NEMA standard Technical Frequently Asked Questions (FAQs) Electrical Standards & Product Guide http://www.nema.org

NECA: National Electrical Contractors Association The NECA Codes and Standards Committee is involved with development, administration, and enforcement of installation codes, safety standards, product standards, and other related industry regulations. This includes, but is not limited to, the National Electrical Code (NEC®), National Electrical Installation Standards (NEIS™), National Electrical Safety Code (NESC), Various NFPA Standards, UL Safety Standards, and OSHA Regulations. Members of the NECA Codes and Standards Committee serve on National Electrical Code-Making Panels, NEIS Technical Subcommittees, and other standards development committees and subcommittees.

http://www.necanet.org/

Advance life prediction and performance assessment methods: Independent Testing

Products meeting identical certification standards are not necessarily "created equal." Many products meet some or all of these standards however these do not guarantee that the product will perform as promised. There is a new need for the importance of independent product performance verification as distinguished from verification of product safety compliance.

So how do you to differentiate between similarly certified products?

You need to start by using empirical data to compare product longevity and accurately assess factors related to the risk of product failure from companies like Intertek that provide Independent Testing results.

Intertek: Independent Testing Intertek is the world's largest independent testing, inspection and certification partner. When a manufacturer enters a product into a verification program, they must provide an initial qualification sample to Intertek. The sample is then independently tested to the specifications of the appropriate standard. If sample is found to meet the requirements, an Intertek field representative is sent to the manufacturer's location to independently select a final qualification sample for further independent testing. Once the second cable is found to meet performance requirements, the product may be marked by the manufacturer as “ ETL Verified”. The manufacturing facility is then subject to quarterly audits to ensure ongoing compliance.

A Case Study for Need for Independent Testing Results: Coated Conduit

For years all available brands of PVC-coated galvanized conduit met exactly the same UL 6 standards and carried an identical UL label relating to safety conformance. Yet, it was apparent in the marketplace that not all brands performed the same. The lack of performance requirements for coated conduit has been recognized by many companies and is gaining recognition by users. This fact is confirmed by recent discussions with consulting, specifying and maintenance engineers at paper plants, waste water treatment facilities, etc. Committees that develop conduit standards are also considering performance testing.

In 2005 ETL SEMKO evaluated all PVC-coated galvanized conduit brands not for safety issues, but for product performance and product longevity as tested under conditions consistent with highly corrosive environments. The results established that some products of this type, previously viewed as equal by way of UL certification, were in fact far from equal in terms of meeting ETL-Verification standards for meeting performance criteria.

The Basics: Testing for PVC coated conduit adhesion and corrosion protection The PVC adhesion and corrosion protection afforded by the current coating process has significantly upgraded the performance as confirmed by the hot water and heat/humidity test results. Heat and humidity are recognized corrosion accelerators in corrosion engineering textbooks and published technical documents from organizations such as the National Association of Corrosion Engineers (NACE).

Immersion in Boiling Water according to the intent of ASTM D 870, Testing the Water Resistance of Coatings Using Water Immersion.

Exposure to heat and humidity according to the intent of ASTM D 1151, Test Method for Effect of Moisture and Temperature on Adhesive Bonds and ASTM D 4585, Testing Water Resistance of Coatings Using Controlled Condensation.

The adhesion was evaluated in accordance with the procedures outlined in Section 3.8, ADHESION, of NEMA Standards Publication No. RN 1, Polyvinyl-Chloride (PVC) Externally Galvanized Rigid Steel Conduit and Intermediate Metal Conduit. The testing began in December 2004 and ended in July 2005; specimens from four sources were tested.

The ASTM Standards do not specify quantitative performance or pass-fail criteria. Section 3.8 of NEMA RN 1 describes how to make the adhesion test; but has no associated performance requirement other than that the PVC tear before separation from the metal substrate. Performance requirements are not defined in existing standards, even though the added cost of coated conduit for application in corrosive environments has been justified by widespread acceptance and application.

Heat and humidity testing were selected for several reasons:

Universally accepted in the coating industry as standard parameters to evaluate corrosion protection provided by a coating. Standard test procedures are documented and recognized.

Widely acknowledged as corrosion accelerating agents.

Typical conditions in coated conduit application environments.

Heat and humidity chambers are available as standard equipment for testing.

Provide a method, which combined with real time exposure, can be used to correlate laboratory and product life cycle in corrosive environments.

Figure Above: shows a PVC coated conduit specimen where the coating adhesion has failed. This conduit sample was exposed for approximately two days in the Hot Water Immersion Test. Once the cuts are made, the PVC coating is easily removed by pulling the coating by hand. The PVC coating is torn to expose the galvanized steel conduit in the photograph.

Figure Above: PVC Coated Conduit Specimen with Acceptable Adhesion.

Positive Results: Conduit Specimen after 200+ Hours in the Hot Water Immersion Test.

The test results provided a quantitative method to compare the relative performance of coated conduit systems in conditions typical of the corrosive application environments. The results of both tests confirm significant differentiation in adhesion performance of the four brands of PVC coated conduit available in the market and why certain brands carry the ETL label.

Summary: The Test results

When an engineer is faced with specifying products for highly corrosive environments, I recommend that they specify a product that carries an independent product testing label like ETL. The reason is built upon solid empirical facts: First: All available brands of PVC-coated galvanized conduit meet exactly the same UL 6 standard and carry the same UL label relating to safety conformance. Second, however: only certain brands are authorized to carry the ETL-Verification label.

The significance of this is that ETL testing, and consequently ETL-Verification, is based on actual product performance, as a predictor of reliable service life. Some brands therefore, have a documented, proven ability to perform in a corrosive environment over an extended time --- a fact which has been evaluated and confirmed by a world-recognized, third-party source. To most CSEs, this is a vital reality because it addresses the extremely important need to specify products that whttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifill enable users to avoid the high cost, and sometimes disastrous, effects of product failure.

As evident from this article, I have presented why there is a pressing need to look for, appreciate, and accept specification-related third-party verification standards that reach beyond traditional or historic ways of qualifying products intended to help fight the high cost of corrosion damage. Solid empirical product data; that is to say, documentation of product performance that is independently validated by recognized, objective, third-party sources should be considered and used.

Henry Martin Consulting LLC 2313 N. Hullen Street, Ste B Metairie, LA 70001 504-833-6189 504-831-6801- FAX henry@henrymartinconsulting.com
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Winning high-first-cost projects Enhance your engineering with economic acumen and sales techniques to overcome first-cost and payback-period barriers

2011-07-13T04:52:00.000-07:00

Winning high-first-cost projects
Enhance your engineering with economic acumen and sales techniques to overcome first-cost and payback-period barriers.

By Michael Ivanovich, The Ivanovich Group LLC, Oak Park, Ill.

If I could do one thing over from my college years, I would take a few economics courses. I neglected to realize that economics and environmentalism would be powerful companions by reframing higher first costs and longer paybacks as investments yielding higher returns than other investments. And, investments in green or clean technologies and energy efficiency would have ancillary benefits as well, such as community and investor relations, positive press coverage, and improved worker and tenant comfort, satisfaction, productivity, and retention.

In two ways, consulting engineers face similar issues today. First, gaining higher fees for the extra time, talent, and resources it takes to design better systems is a tough sell. Second, high-performance systems tend to command higher first costs for new construction and for retrofits and capital improvements following retrocommissioning services or energy audits. How can engineering firms level the playing field when other firms are comfortable selling options that have lower upfront costs but higher operating costs, shorter equipment lifetimes, and undesirable environmental impacts?

Answer: Better economic analyses, and better sales skills.

Even though many engineers may have taken engineering economics as an undergraduate course, the level of sophistication with which engineers generally communicate financial costs and benefits for energy-efficiency investments, retrocommissioning services, and high-performance buildings rarely extend beyond simple payback and return on investment (ROI). These parameters are mismatches for expressing the positive energy, economic, environmental, and human factors benefits, and they play to the strengths of poorer-quality systems.

No wonder so many engineers ask why their higher first-cost projects and equipment selections do not get funded.

In April, I had the privilege of attending a one-day seminar on the economics of energy efficiency instructed by Mark Jewell, president, EEFG. The training session was hosted by ComEd and facilitated by the Energy Center of Wisconsin. According to Sharon Madigan, senior program manager, ComEd, they wanted to offer sales training for their trade allies supporting rebate programs who are in the field selling energy-efficient products and services.

The first half of Jewell’s class was an economic primer that exposed the weaknesses and inaccuracies of simple payback and ROI for complex, long-term decisions, such as those involving single-equipment decisions. He then described how to use modified internal rate of return, net present value, and lifecycle cost analyses to provide the information building owners could consider.

Jewell also covered how to be a better sales professional, offering tips on language (when asked for the simple payback period, say “The payback is ‘X’ years, and what you’ll find more interesting is that over the next ‘Y’ years, this project returns ‘Z’ times what you’re investing in today’s dollars.”), resources for self-directed learning on sales techniques, and how to train your brain for success.

Another attendee, Kate Mullaney, CPSM, associate vice president, director of business development, Primera Engineers Ltd., Chicago, shared what she gohttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gift out of the daylong session. “Mark's session really drove home the idea that engineering firms, more than ever before, need to understand the business of our clients' business. Engineering firms’ sales success will depend on an ability to see the big picture and communicate to decision makers, in their language, how we help them further the mission of their organization,” said Mullaney.

To sum up, if you have the opportunity to attend a session on economics, rebates, or other topics taught by Jewell, I highly recommend you do so.

Ivanovich is the president of The Ivanovich Group LLC, which provides research, analysis, and consulting services to the buildings industry. Read his blog at:
http://www.plastibond.com/_SocialWelcome/?socnet=blogspot&soclink=http://blog.theivanovichgroup.com/?ref=spelling

Robroy Industries 2011 NAED Dessert Reception ---Special Guests Provide Electrical Industry With Inspiration To Overcome Obstacles

2011-07-08T10:35:00.000-07:00

Robroy Industries 2011 NAED Dessert Reception

---Special Guests Provide Electrical Industry

With Inspiration To Overcome Obstacles---

Robroy Industries' special guests for this year's NAED Gourmet Dessert Reception: Mona Dixon, Darrius Shaw, and Tommy Walls, are three remarkable young people representing the BOYS GIRLS CLUB OF AMERICA's Youth of the Year program. Each has had to reach deep within to find the will to overcome significant obstacles growing up in environments defined by poverty, violence, drugs and intolerance. Each has risen far above his or her challenges and continues to reach for the best. Each is now a true family and community leader. Mona, Darrius and Tommy were joined by superstar sports icon and basketball legend: Bill Walton, whose commitment to success on and off the court is defined by years of world-class hard work and enthusiasm for all that life brings.

For more information on Robroy Industries visit:

Electrical Contractors Financial Performance Report 2010

2011-06-17T05:08:00.000-07:00

Electrical Contractors Financial Performance Report 2010 from NECA is a state-of-the-art, industry-wide reporting program that provides you with comparativhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gife information to measure your own operations versus your industry peers — overall, by volume size, by region, and by other criteria. And you don’t have to be financially “sophisticated” to benefit from its easy-to-understand guidelines for identifying business strengths and weaknesses and performance improvement opportunities.
For more info:
http://www.plastibond.com/_SocialWelcome/?socnet=blogspot&soclink=http://www.necanet.org/

Corrosion College is a hands-on short course that provides proven solutions for the prevention of industrial corrosion

2011-06-03T13:41:00.000-07:00

Corrosion College is a hands-on short course that provides proven solutions for the prevention of industrial corrosion through classroom and hands-on experience. Grants of 1.5 CEUs are available to participants upon successful completion.

Corrosion College provides hands-on experience in understanding the process of corrosion through two days of intensive instruction conducted by professionals in the field of corrosion protection.

Corrosion College helps participants explore and understand proven strategies for combating corrosion.
http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
Corrosion College enhances learning retention through a comprehensive curriculum including case studies, laboratory workshops plus interactive presentations detailing the proper installation and use of anti-corrosion products.

Corrosion College enables graduates to apply the concepts learned in this course to important aspects of their careers.

Corrosion College grants 1.5 CEUs to participants for participation and successful completion. CEUs are available from either Kilgore College or Purdue University.

For more information and schedule:
http://www.plastibond.com/_SocialWelcome/?socnet=blogspot&soclink=http://www.corrosioncollege.com/

Robroy Industries Continues Its Commitment to Education Through Corporate Sponsorhsip of Tom Landry Scholarship

2011-05-27T06:20:00.000-07:00

Robroy Industries Continues Its Commitment to Education Through Corporate Sponsorhsip of Tom Landry Scholarship

Gilmer, TX: Robroy Industries, an organization of synergistic companies dedicated to product and service leadership within specialty markets such of the electrical industry and oilfield industry continues to demonstrate its commitment to education. David A. Marshall, president and COO of Robroy Industries, has presented a Tohttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifm Landry Scholarship on behalf of Robroy Industries to Nick Vessels of Allen High School, Allen, Texas. Mr. Vessels plans to use the scholarship toward his education next year at Texas A&M University where he plans on majoring in Mechanical Engineering. This presentation was made during the 11th annual Tom Landry Scholarship Banquet held recently in Dallas, Texas. During the past 11 years of the Tom Landry Classic, there have been 156 students selected as Tom Landry Scholarship recipients. The Tom Landry Classic and its corporate partners have awarded $550,000 of college scholarship assistance to those recipients. In order to apply for the scholarship, each student has to demonstrate excellence in the classroom, leadership among their peers, and 40 documented community service hours.

For additional information on Robroy Industries visit: http://www.plastibond.com/_SocialWelcome/?socnet=blogspot&soclink=http://www.plastibond.com/

Section 300.4 in the National Electrical Code (NEC) provides requirements for protecting raceways, conductors and cables

2011-05-20T06:21:00.000-07:00

The key to expansion, contraction or deflection fittings

Section 300.4 in the National Electrical Code (NEC) provides requirements for protecting raceways, conductors and cables from physical damage with comprehensive details on various installations where damage could occur without the proper required protection techniques. Cables and raceways installed through bored holes or notches in joists, rafters, and wood or metal framing members (studs) are required to be installed and supported not less than 1 inches from the nearest edge of the framing member. Standard steel protection plates that are 1/16-inch minimum thickness or listed and marked plates less than 1/16-inch thick can be installed to provide extra protection against nail or screw penetration.

Where raceways cannot be installed at least 1 inches from the edge of the framing member, rigid metal conduit, intermediate metal conduit, rigid nonhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gifmetallic conduit or electrical metallic tubing can be installed as that extra protection against damage to the conductors. Cables, raceways and boxes cannot be installed in metal roofing, based on 300.4(E), or if they are installed under the metal-corrugated sheet decking-type roofing, they must be installed or supported no closer than 1 inches from the lowest surface of the metal roofing to the top of the cable, raceway or box. This required installation depth is meant to provide protection for the cable, raceway or box against penetration from large hold-down screws designed to fasten the roofing material to the building structure.

For full piece visit:
http://www.plastibond.com/_SocialWelcome/?socnet=blogspot&soclink=http://www.ecmag.com

Welcome to KEY to METALS

2011-05-15T17:47:00.000-07:00

Your largest global resource for metal properties
and cross-references

KEY to METALS contains over 4 million property records for steel, aluminum, copper, titanium, and other metals, from more than 50 countries and standards:

chemical compositions
international cross-reference tables
mechanical properties
physical properties
properties on elevated temperatures
heat treatment data and diagrams
fatigue data
applications guidelines
and more
Link for the site:
http://www.plastibond.com/_SocialWelcome/?socnet=blogspot&soclink=http://www.keytometals.com/page.aspx?ID=Home&LN=EN

Robroy Industries Conduit Division Invests In Additional Energy Efficiency Project

2011-05-06T06:48:00.000-07:00

Robroy Industries Conduit Division Invests In Additional Energy Efficiency Project

Gilmer, TEXAS --- Robroy Industries Conduit Division --- manufacturer of
ETL-Verified PVC-coated galvanized rigid conduit brands: Plasti-Bond,
Perma-Cote and KorKap --- continues to improve its positive environmental impact.

According to President and COO, David A. Marshall: “Robroy Industries has a proven history of environmental stewardship based on policies and programs that assure good business governance and operational transparency. Our most recent achievement, completed during the first quarter of 2011, is a major plant-wide lighting upgrade that has significantly reduced kilowatts used.”

To ensure that the project would validate the intended reduction of kilowatts, Robroy Industries worked in tandem with American Electric Power (AEP) which
pays incentives to service providers who install energy efficiency measures in non-residential facilities that are located within AEP's Texas service territories.
Qualified facilities must have a maximum demand of more than 100 kilowatts. Incentives are paid for both energy and demand savings, and the installed measures must have the potential to reduce peak summer demand by at least 10 kilowatts.

As a result of the lighting upgrade, wattage per fixture at Robroy Industries declined from 1000 watts to 450 watts encompassing a total of 300 fixtures. The project, spanning a 120,000 square foot manufacturing floor space, was completed in one month. The lighting representative on this project was Texas Lighting (http://www.texaslighting.com/); the electrical products distributor was Elliott Electric (http://www.elliottelectric.com/); and Mill Services in Lone Star, TX installed the fixtures.

David A. Marshall summarizes: "For the past five years we have succeeded in reducing our waste, water and energy use, raw material and packaging. We have now worked with valued partners to reduce the electrical wattage used at critical peak times. We will continue on the path of reducing our environmental impact for the good of our community and industry.”

For additional information:

Robroy Industries: 1100 US Highway 271 South, Gilmer, TX 75644. Phone 903-843-5591 Fax. 903-843-2516 Contact: Starla Bickerstaff, Email: sbickerstaff@robroy.com.

Websites:
www.robroy.com
www.plastibond.com
www.permacote.com
www.korkap.com

For More Information visit:
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CORROSION RESOURCES FOR THE WATER & WASTEWATER INDUSTRY

2011-04-29T10:36:00.000-07:00

CORROSION RESOURCES FOR THE WATER & WASTEWATER INDUSTRY

According to a U.S. cost of corrosion study, drinking water and sewer systems are the largest single contributor to corrosion costs in the utilities category, with direct corrosion costs totaling $50.7 Billion per year or 75% of the category's total*.
http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif
U.S. Annual Cost of Corrosion to the Water & Wastewater Industry
Read about the Corrosion Prevention Act

As this critical infrastructure continues to age and deteriorate, the need for more proactive corrosion mitigation and prevention will increase. To address this key challenge to this critical asset, NACE has recently approved the formation of the NACE International Water Advisory Council, which will provide guidance and direction on industry needs and how to best address the pervasive problem of corrosion.

For more info:
http://web.nace.org/Departments/Marketing/Industries/Industry.aspx?id=1210938C-FE7D-DE11-AAB1-0017A446694E

Learn more about Corroison in High Temperature Environments

2011-04-22T08:17:00.000-07:00

George Lai’s 1990 book, High-Temperature Corrosion of Engineering Alloys, is recognized as authoritative and is frequently consulted and often cited by those in the industry. His new book, almost double in size with seven more chapters, addresses the new concerns, new technologies, and new materials available for those engaged in high-temperature applications. As we strive for energy efficiency, the realm of high-temperature environments is expanding and the needhttp://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif for information on high temperature materials applications was never greater.

In addition to extensive expansion on most of the content of the original book, new topics include erosion and erosion-corrosion, low NOx combustion in coal-fired boilers, fluidized bed combustion, and the special demands of waste-to-energy boilers, waste incinerators, and black liquor recovery boilers in the pulp and paper industry. The corrosion induced by liquid metals is discussed and protection options are presented. Hydrogen damage is characterized and solutions given.

The book deals with these sometimes complex topics in a readable fashion, by presenting pertinent “real world” problems and solutions.
For the book visit:
http://tinyurl.com/4xfccq5

Robroy Industries NAED Dessert Reception Details

2011-04-15T11:38:00.000-07:00

For more information visit:
http://www.plastibond.com/_SocialWelcome/?socnet=blogspot&soclink=http://www.plastibond.com/

CORROSION COLLEGE: NO FLUFFS OR FRILLS, JUST CORROSION PROTECTION

2011-04-08T11:12:00.000-07:00

The Situation:
Turtle & Hughes an Electrical Products Distributor office in
Texas sells heavily into the petrochemical industry. This industry
has to constantly battle an extremely corrosive environment.
They have found that many people who are in the industry
have very little knowledge of corrosion. So they wished for a
better way to help their customers understand the damage and
cost associated by it.

The Challenge:
They just didn’t want to refer them to a run of the mill
manufacturer’s training program. They needed a place to
educate their customers that wasn’t just a sales pitch. It would
be somewhere that would teach a full course on corrosion.
The course would teach them its causes and how to control it.
No fluff, frills, just corrosion.

The Answer to the Challenge: Corrosion College.
Corrosion College is a unique opportunity to gain the upper
hand in the never-ending fight against the destructive costs of
corrosion damage.
Mitch’s Thoughts About the
Success of Corrosion College:
“I have attended the class myself and also with my customers.
What impressed me the most is that is not like other
manufacturers training courses. It is not a commercial” Mitch
said. He feels having the college available is a great asset to
have for his business and customers. And because it offers
1.5 CEUs really validates that it is an educational program and
not a sales pitch.

Corrosion College includes:
• Two days of intensive instruction conducted by
professionals in the field of corrosion protection.
• Hands-on experience in understanding the process of
corrosion.
• Exploration of proven strategies for combating
corrosion.
• A comprehensive curriculum including case studies
and laboratory workshops.
• Interactive presentations detailing the proper installation
and anti-corrosion performance of rigid metal PVCcoated
conduits and fittings.
• Accredited for 1.5 Continuing Education Units.

Corrosion College Details:
The $300 course fee for this two-day, 15-PDH's seminar includes hotel, meals and all course materials. Plus, for those who wish to arrive the evening before the seminar, we also include a welcome dinner and hotel for the evening before the seminar. This an exceptional value for any engineer needing to earn PDH's or anyone with an interest or desire to learn more about corrosion issues.

http://www.blogger.com/img/blank.gif

For more information on enrollment visit:

http://www.pdhseminars.com/servlet/Detail?no=4553

FL CEP#0003610

For more information on Corrosion College, visit our website:
http://www.corrosioncollege.com/

Metals and Corrosion Resistance

2011-04-01T08:31:00.000-07:00

Metals and Corrosion Resistance
Common metals and their corrosion resistance to aggressive fluids as acids, bases and more.

A major problem in the process industry is the corrosion of metals in pipes, valves and other parts of the constructions. This guide indicates acceptable combinations of more or less aggressive fluids and commonly used materials.

Note! Remember that corrosion is a complicated issue, depending on the combinations of materials and the fluids, the fluid temperatures, the surrounding environment and the galvanic currents in the constructions. The table below must be used with care. Always check with the producer of the material.

For more info visit:
http://www.plastibond.com/_SocialWelcome/?socnet=blogspot&soclink=http://www.engineeringtoolbox.com/metal-corrosion-resistance-d_491.html

Using PVC-Coated Rigid Conduit For Proper Protection of Electrical Wiring In A Composite Lining Manufacturing Facility

2011-03-25T07:39:00.000-07:00

Duoline® Technologies, pioneers of Duoline®, a unique glass-reinforced epoxy liner used to protect oil and gas steel tubulars from internal corrosion, recently expanded its manufacturing facility in Gilmer, TX.

The company now produces Duoline® from an ultramodern, ISO9001:2008 certified, 130,000 square foot plant using a highly efficient manufacturing system supported by advanced process controls and automation designed to provide repeatability and precision.

According to Oscar Zapata, product engineering manager for Duoline® Technologies: "In order to accomplish our manufacturing objectives we evaluated every critical building product including conduit options to protect our electrical wiring systems. This is especially critical in applications, such as ours, where the presence of corrosive factors constitute an ever-present and costly threat for damage to equipment as well as potentially catastrophic compromise of vital systems."

Zapata points out that proper corrosion management, built upon proper product specification, depends on a comprehensive understanding of regulations and documented product performance. Proven product life predictions are essential for knowing what, within a manufacturing operation, can be relied upon over the course of time for fighting the high cost of corrosion.

"Choosing the wrong material can result in frustrating or even dangerous situations," states Zapata. He further observes that defining the corroding agents and determining their concentration can be a complex but necessary process. Usually several corrosive elements are present and interactions are not always well documented. Water is the most common corrosive element and is usually present to some extent in every application. Adjacent processing operations or other intermittent activities such as industrial cleaning and the general plant environment may expose the sensitive process equipment to a variety of corrosive agents and temperatures. Each environment is unique and all possible corrosive agents should be identified for the intended application.

According to Zapata: "Should the decision be made to use one material over another without in-depth investigation into potential corrosive media, users may be looking at a very short life span for their most vital systems. For example, before we specified the conduit used for our new plant, we learned how manufacturers of Plasti-Bond rigid PVC-coated conduit went one step beyond their UL listing to ensure customers that they are producing a top quality product. Plasti-Bond has been ETL-Verified following product testing conducted by Intertek ETL SEMKO, a global, independent third-party testing lab and certification agency. ETL evaluates how well the PVC coating on PVC-coated conduit adheres during high heat/humidity testing and high temperature water immersion, tests designed by ASTM (American Society for Testing and Materials) and used in many applications to determine product life. The regulated and quantitative test protocol used by Intertek ETL SEMKO to determine the eligibility for ETL-Verification concludes that Plasti-Bond brand of conduit provided at least ten times the additional coating reliability versus competing products. In other words: if you want to avoid the potentially high cost of failure from corrosion damage, the conduit you buy must carry the ETL-Verification label."

For more details on the expanded facilities please visit:

http://www.duoline.com/NewFacility.cfm

Since 1964, more than 80 million feet of Duoline® glass reinforced epoxy lined tubing have been successfully installed worldwide. Duoline® --- premium internal corrosion resistant lining system for oil and gas steel tubing --- is a high performance, high-value, cost-effective solution to beating the high cost of corrosion. The unique Duoline® insert liner process creates a proven corrosion barrier inside the steel pipe. The benefit is isolation of corrosive oilfield fluids and gases from the steel.
For more information about Duoline® products or services contact: Oscar Zapata: BlueBird Lane, Gilmer, Texas 903-734-1371. Oscar Zapata: ozapata@duoline.com
Or visit: www.duoline.com

See the Intertek-ETL-Verification for Plasti-Bond:

http://tinyurl.com/4zytuwa

Corrosion College Now Approved in ALL STATES for Professional Engineers' Education

2011-03-18T07:20:00.000-07:00

Corrosion College Now Approved in ALL STATES for Professional
Engineers' Education

States that Require Engineers' Continuing Education and States where Corrosion College is Accepted

Alabama

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Alaska

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Arkansas

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Florida

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Georgia

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Idaho

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Illinois

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Indiana

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Iowa

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Kansas

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Kentucky

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Louisiana

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Maine

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Maryland

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Minnesota

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Mississippi

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Missouri

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Montana

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Nebraska

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Nevada

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New Hampshire

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New Jersey

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New Mexico

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New York

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North Carolina

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North Dakota

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Ohio

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Oklahoma

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Oregon

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Pennsylvania

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South Carolina

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South Dakota

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Tennessee

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Texas

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Utah

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Virginia

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West Virginia

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Wyoming

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For more information on enrollment visit: http://www.plastibond.com/_SocialWelcome/?socnet=blogspot&soclink=http://www.www.corrosioncollege.com

OR

Contact Starla Bickerstaff, Corrosion College Director, sbickerstaff@corrosioncollege.com

903-843-3461 for more information

For the full list above visit:
: http://www.pdhonline.org

ASHRAE 90.1

2011-03-11T06:15:00.000-08:00

ASHRAE 90.1 reduces energy consumption - The recently published 2010 version of ASHRAE’s energy standard is expected to provide guidance for reducing energy consumption by more than 20% over savings realized in the previous version. The standard’s purpose is to establish minimum energy efficiency requirements of buildings for design, construction, a plan for operation and maintenance, and use of on-site renewable energy resources. This article focuses on the revisions to Standard 90.1 in sections 6, 8, 9, and and 10; Section 7, Service Water Heating, is unchanged from the 2007 version. For the entire piece visit:
http://www.plastibond.com/_SocialWelcome/?socnet=blogspot&soclink=http://www.csemag.com/home.html

Learn more about PVC-Coated conduit at NEMA

2011-03-04T10:44:00.000-08:00

Steel Conduit and Electrical Metallic Tubing Section
NEMA > Products > Building Equipment > Steel Conduit and Electrical Metallic Tubing Section

The Steel Conduit and Electrical Metallic Tubing Section develops technical standards and guidelines for its products.

* Steel conduit and electrical metallic tubing (EMT) integral part of High Performance Building construction ( [adobe acrobat document] 334kb)

Scope

* Rigid steel conduit, including elbows, threaded couplings, and nipples customarily furnished on or with rigid steel conduit.
* Steel electrical metallic tubing, including elbows customarily furnished with steel electrical metallic tubing.
* Steel intermediate metal conduit including elbows, threaded coupling, and nipples customarily furnished on or with steel intermediate metal conduit.

Technical Activities

Standards play a vital part in the design, production, and distribution of products destined for both national and international commerce. Sound technical standards benefit the user, as well as the manufacturer, by improving safety, bringing about economies in product, eliminating misunderstandings between manufacturer and purchaser, and assisting the purchaser in selecting and obtaining the proper product for his particular need.

NEMA devotes much of its time, effort, and resources to voluntary standardization activities. NEMA standards are offered and recommended to become American National Standards under the procedures of the American National Standards Institute, usually under the canvass method. This decision rests with the particular subdivision or subdivisions concerned. NEMA standards are also often submitted for consideration as IEC standards components or references. It is the intent of the association to continue its support of these, and many more, activities as the best method to continue providing sound and safe electrical products for the use of all.

Key technical activities include:

* Revising and maintaining: NEMA RN 1 Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) Externally Coated Galvanized Rigid Steel Conduit and Intermediate Metal Conduit; NEMA RN 2 Packaging of Master Bundles for Steel Rigid Conduit, Intermediate Metal Conduit (IMC), and Electrical Metallic Tubing; and NEMA RN 3 Product Identification Numbers for Metallic Tubular Conduit Products for Use with Bar Coding and Electronic Data Interchange Applications.

* Participation in the Revising and Maintaining through participation in ASC C80 on the following ANSI standards: ANSI C80.1 Rigid Steel Conduit – Zinc Coated (GRC); ANSI C80.3 Electrical Metallic Tubing – Zinc Coated (EMT); ANSI C80.5 Rigid Aluminum Conduit, Specification for; ANSI C80.6 Intermediate Metal Conduit – Zinc Coated (IMC).

* Completing work through CANENA Technical Harmonization Subcommittee 23A on the conversion of binational US/Can standards for Electrical Rigid Metal Conduit – Steel and Electrical Metallic Tubing to trinational US/Can/Mex standards.

* Expanding the CANENA work plan to include the development of a trinational non-ferrous (aluminum, red brass and stainless steel) rigid metal conduit standard.
* Maintaining active involvement in the National Electrical Code® process.

Technical Committees:

1. Code & Communication Committee

Purpose: The Code & Communication Committee develops code proposal for the National Electrical Code, International Code Council and other codes. The Committee also develops marketing and communication activities for the Group.

Leadership:

Elaine Thompson, Co-Chair
Allied Tube Conduit
ethompson@alliedtube.com

Martin Brett, Co-Chair
Wheatland Tube Company
marty.brett@wheatland.com

2. Technical Committee

Purpose: The Technical Committee develops and manages NEMA and UL standards for steel conduit.

Leadership:

Greg Maurer, Chair
Wheatland Tube Company
greg.maurer@wheatland.com

Les Easter, Vice Chair
Allied Tube & Conduit
leaster@alliedtube.com

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Government Affairs

Through NEMA, the section develops industry positions on legislative and regulatory initiatives that may affect member products, markets, and customers. NEMA's work has resulted in contributions to public policy development and in promoting competitiveness, technological progress, and public safety. On the Government Affairs homepage members can search for and e-mail federal representatives to convey opinions regarding energy policy or other issues related to the electroindustry.

NEMA Government Affairs provides specific services to its members and information in the areas of Environment, Health & Safety; Energy; and International Trade & Commerce.

To learn more about the Section's positions, click on White Papers on Hexavalent Chrome in Steel Conduit and Lead in Steel Conduit.

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Membership

Membership in NEMA is open to any firm actively engaged in the manufacture in North America of a product within the NEMA scope and for sale in the open market. Membership of foreign firms is subject to product section policies and NEMA Board of Governors approval.

NEMA operates on a fee-for-service basis. Each product section establishes its projects and activities and approves an annual operating budget. Visit Joining NEMA for more information on membership.

Related Standards:
American National Standard for Electric Rigid Steel Conduit (ERSC)
American National Standard for Electrical Rigid Aluminum Conduit
American National Standard for Intermediate Metal Conduit (EIMC)
American National Standard for Steel Electrical Metallic Tubing (EMT)
Packaging of Master Bundles for Steel Rigid Conduit, Intermediate Metal Conduit (IMC) and Electrical Metallic Tubing (EMT)
Polyvinyl Chloride (PVC) Externally Coated Galvanized Rigid Steel Conduit and Intermediate Metal Conduit (IMC)
Product Identification Numbers for Metallic Tubular Conduit Products for Use with Bar Coding and Electric Data Interchange (EDI) Applications

http://www.nema.org/prod/be/rigidconduit/

Most States Require Professional Engineers To Earn Continuing Education Credits Be the hero and refer them to Corrosion College---

2011-02-25T08:59:00.000-08:00

Most States Require Professional Engineers To Earn Continuing Education Credits

Be the hero and refer them to Corrosion College---

They will appreciate the referral!

* Corrosion College grants 1.5 CEUs to participants for participation and successful completion. CEUs are available from either Kilgore College or Purdue University

* Corrosion College:Now An American Institute of Architects (AIA) Registered Course

Corrosion College has been certified by the American Institute of Architects (AIA) as a registered course, enabling qualified participants to receive 15 Learning Units upon successful completion. AIA has listed Corrosion College
within its course directory under the category description of: Building Material Environmental Impacts & Conservation Strategies.

* Corrosion College Joins Forces with PDHseminars.com To Expand Its Educational Reach To A Larger Audience of Engineers

Corrosion College: Why Attend This Live Course

Thirty (30) U.S. states require continuing education for engineers to maintain licensure. All seminars listed on PDHseminars.com cover topics that have been evaluated to ensure compliance with the state boards' PDH requirements.

Corrosion College Details:
The $300 course fee for this two-day, 15-PDH's seminar includes hotel, meals and all course materials. Plus, for those who wish to arrive the evening before the seminar, we also include a welcome dinner and hotel for the evening before the seminar. This an exceptional value for any engineer needing to earn PDH's or anyone with an interest or desire to learn more about corrosion issues.

For more information on enrollment visit:

http://www.pdhseminars.com/servlet/Detail?no=4553

FL CEP#0003610

For more information on Corrosion College, visit our website:
http://www.corrosioncollege.com/

Building Officials and Inspectors Show Strong Interest in Corrosion College

2011-02-18T05:58:00.001-08:00

Building Officials and Inspectors Show Strong Interest in Corrosion College

Craig Schell

President

Schell Company Inc

I firmly believe in Corrosion College.

Why?

Because Corrosion College is a true educational experience. Graduates gain real awareness about the high cost of corrosion damage and how to protect against corrosion. When they return to their workplaces, they are armed with knowledge about how to select the proper products to fight corrosion ---- and that helps my business!

Because I am a true believer in the value of Corrosion College, I have spent a great deal of time and energy exploring ways to properly promote the course. One recent effort was very successful and might be of interest to others seeking to grow their businesses by encouraging prospects and customers to attend Corrosion College.

This promotional effort began with a hunch that building inspectors would have an interest in knowing more about corrosion and anti-corrosion products. However, in my 25-plus years in business, I only knew several building inspectors. Consequently I logged on to the internet and began running searches for building inspectors in Louisiana and Mississippi. Contact information was easy to find and I was quickly able to begin cold calling to city and municipal building inspectors. After only a few calls, the level of interest in Corrosion College told me I was on the right track.

Additional internet research led me to the website for the Building Officials Association of Louisiana (BOAL). I noted on this site their goal to foster communication and education between building officials, plans examiners, and inspectors. That goal seemed an ideal match to the curriculum of Corrosion College. Furthermore, BOAL features a list of board members on its site, so I began calling and e-mailing these contacts and talking about Corrosion College.

Once again, after several conversations it became clear that this is a very interested group.

In a very short period of time I have signed up a handful of BOAL members for 2010 Corrosion College courses and have built a solid list of about 150 building inspectors who are targets for ongoing promotion and business.

Additionally, I approached the president of BOAL and asked if Corrosion College could have a link on the BOAL website. In a very short period of time, that request was approved. You can check out this link at:

http://www.lma.org/BOAL/Calendar/BOAL/Calendar/Education.aspx?hkey=c97ebde4-9249-4684-b328-55bf122b73dd

This, in turn, has led to invitations to speak about Corrosion College at some of the BOAL chapter meetings, giving me the opportunity to expose even more professionals to the benefits of the program.

My next goal is to tackle the state of Mississippi to see if I can accomplish the same results.

Because most states have similar organizations, I encourage others to try the same approach. Simply begin by logging on to GOOGLE and searching for building inspectors and/or building officials associations in your state or territories. For a small investment of time, you can help your business by linking interested professionals to the benefits of Corrosion College.

For more information on Corrosion College: www.corrosioncollege.com

Plasti-Bond Launches Online Submittal Tool

2011-02-14T07:09:00.000-08:00

Plasti-Bond Launches Online Submittal Tool

Plasti-Bond's online submittal tool for sourcing PVC-coated galvanized rigid metal conduit products condenses the process into to three steps. Users click to select the desired products from the product categories, check the blank checkboxes from the "Edit Selection" column for the desired product sizes from the charts, and then create a printable pdf of a chart of the selections.

Online, Printable Submittal Forms In Only Four Simple Clicks!

http://www.plastibond.com/SubmittalGuide/

I. Click to select the desired product(s) from the product listings.

2. Click to "Check" the blank checkbox from "Edit Selection" Column for the desired product sizes from the available charts. A yellow highlight will indicate your selection(s) when the PDF is created.

Submittal Guide selections

3. Click button named "Create Printer Friendly PDF" to create a pdf of the product with your selections 'checked' and highlighted within the chart listings, for quick / easy reference.

Submittal Guide selections

4. PRINT or SAVE the new pdf or choose "Return To Product Index". a.) Simply print via your computer in the same way that you would print any on-screen document. b.) You can also save the PDF to your computer by clicking the SAVE A COPY button in your navigation bar. c.) You can click on "Return To Product Index" to start over. This option allows you to: -Start over. If you have not printed or saved your existing PDF all selections will be deleted. Or --- -Return to begin selecting products in a new category AFTER you have printed or saved your existing PDF.

IMPORTANT NOTE: For your convenience, our online submittal forms are organized into 37 product categories in the Product Index. You can select as many items and sizes within each product category to create a printable submittal PDF. However, you cannot combine items from two or more product categories into a single PDF --- each product category must remain its own separate PDF.

For more information, visit the company’s Web site www.plastibond.com.

Battling Corrosion in the Food Processing Plant made easier by attending Corrosion College

2011-02-04T10:13:00.000-08:00

By Rick Nash
Master Electrician
Smithfield Beef Group - Plainwell
(Formally Packerland Packing - Plainwell)

Battling Corrosion in the Food Processing Plant:
The food processing industry is one of the largest manufacturing industries in the United States, accounting for approximately 14 percent of the total U.S. manufacturing output. As you walk through a typical food processing plant you can see equipment of varying ages, constructed of a myriad of materials, including carbon steel, aluminum, stainless steel and plastics. Corrosion --- an attack on a material due to a chemical or electrochemical reaction with a surrounding medium --- can be an enemy of many of those materials.

Typical food processing plant maintenance departments must constantly battle the effects of corrosion on metals in the plant especially because of the necessary food quality requirements. These food quality requirements lead most plants to select stainless steel as a material of choice. Assuming that the stainless steel consumption and cost in this industry is entirely attributed to corrosion, a total annual direct cost of corrosion is estimated at $2.1 billion.

Battling corrosion should start up front with proper material selection for the plant. However, a course in corrosion often is not part of standard electrical educational programs. Therefore, an additional course like the one offered by Corrosion College can improve any electrical maintenance department knowledge of corrosion and methods to prevent it.

Corrosion College:
A Unique, Hands-On Educational Opportunity Offered monthly in Gilmer, Texas, Corrosion College provides the following unique features and benefits:
-Hands-on experience in understanding the process of corrosion through two days of intensive instruction conducted by professionals in the field of corrosion protection.

-Exploration of proven strategies for combating corrosion. Enhanced learning retention through a comprehensive curriculum including case studies, laboratory workshops plus interactive presentations detailing the proper installation and use of anti-corrosion products.

- Empowerment of graduates to apply the concepts learned in this course to important aspects of their careers.

-Additionally, Corrosion College grants 1.5 CEUs to participants for participation and successful completion. CEUs are available from either Kilgore College or Purdue University.

Metal Material Lessons Highlighted At Corrosion College:
Corrosion College includes valuable instruction on metals and their resistance to corrosion. Metals with high potential energy are called active and corrode more easily. Some metals, like gold and silver, can be found in nature in their pure metallic form. They require little added energy to change them into a useable form.

As a result, the balance of energy is relatively stable and these metals corrode very slowly. Metals with low potential energy are called passive. Metals can be ranked by their relative energy potentials. This can be thought of as a listing by the amount of energy that is required to convert them from their natural state to a metallic useable form. This listing is called the Electromotive Force Series or EMF for short.

Metals such as aluminum, iron, steel, chromium and titanium form a thin oxide film under oxidizing conditions. This oxidizing film increases the resistance of the metal to corrosion. The basic resistance of stainless steel occurs because of its ability to form a protective coating on the metal surface. This coating is a "passive" film, which resists further "oxidation" or rusting. The formation of this film is instantaneous in an oxidizing atmosphere such as air, water, or other fluids that contain oxygen.

Once the layer has formed, we say that the metal has become "passivated" and the oxidation or "rusting" rate will slow down to less than 0.002" per year (0.05 mm. per year). Unlike aluminum or silver this passive film is invisible in stainless steel. It's created when oxygen combines with the chrome in the stainless to form chrome oxide that is more commonly called "ceramic". This protective oxide or ceramic coating is common to most corrosion resistant materials.

Methodology for Prevention of Corrosion: Materials Selection:
A step to economically enhance corrosion resistance and prevent corrosion is the selection and use of a corrosion resistant coating material. Steel is so widely used that some form of coating protection must be used in order to increase the life expectancy of steel structures, piping or conduit. Because the anode, cathode and metallic path are quite often on the same piece of material isolating the material from an electrolyte is the easiest method of prevention.

Metallic coatings provide a layer that changes the surface properties of the piece to those of the metal being applied. The piece becomes a composite material exhibiting properties generally not achievable by either material if used alone. The coatings provide a durable, corrosion resistant layer, and the core material provides the load bearing capability.

The most widely used metallic coating method for corrosion protection is galvanizing, which involves the application of metallic zinc to carbon steel for corrosion control purposes. Hot-dip galvanizing is the most common process, and as the name implies, it consists of dipping the steel member into a bath of molten zinc. In applications where more severe or heavy corrosion conditions exist, the galvanized steel is often coated with paint or other polymer coatings such as PVC for additional corrosion protection.

Robroy polyvinyl-chloride (PVC) externally coated rigid steel conduit has been successfully used to protect sensitive wire and cable systems in extremely corrosive environments for several decades. However Corrosion College helped to inform our department that proper surface preparation such as the two part proprietary system used by the Robroy Conduit Division and a rigorous quality assurance program are necessary to achieve reliable coating protection.

When coating adhesion fails due to improper surface preparation, the underlying zinc becomes the primary corrosion protection. In this case only the galvanized coating protects the rigid steel conduit; the PVC or Polyurethane Coating is no longer an effective corrosion protection. In the case of adhesion failure, the galvanized zinc coating will probably have a shorter service life than plain galvanized rigid steel conduit. If you have the opportunity to select anti-corrosion material, ensure you have investigated the material and coating as the most appropriate for the expected type of environment. In other words, do not use aluminum if mineral acids are going to be used, do not use stainless steels within a salt environment.

Immediate Results at Smithfield Beef Group-Plainwell: Due to Increased Knowledge from Corrosion College.
The knowledge gained at the college was transferred immediately into the Smithfield Beef Group - Plainwell plant. Prior to the Corrosion College course the electrical maintenance department often painted some of the metal housings on its lighting system to prevent corrosion. However it seemed to be only a short-term solution because within a relatively short time, the units needed to be replaced and the peeling coatings were a source of food contamination on the production line.

Now the department knows that another selection of metal material and coating for the lighting system could save the company hundreds of thousands of dollars. Confronting another corrosion issue with a section of conduit within the plant was also made quicker. This section of conduit had become corroded and wires were now exposed.

With the lesson learned at the college we understood that two different metals having contact with each other caused the corrosion. The two metals are now properly protected so corrosion and the chance of having exposed electrical wires again are now reduced significantly. The Corrosion College education significantly helped the electrical maintenance department at Smithfield Beef Group - Plainwell to switch from a short-term to a long-term view of corrosion. The long-term view is one that will offer our plant a significant reduction in the amount of material and labor costs in the plant.

Smithfield Beef Group Food Processing Company:
Drawing on more than a century of industry experience, Smithfield Beef Group brings together some of the most experienced operations in agribusiness, and ranks as a major supplier of protein to people around the world. Based in Green Bay, Wisconsin, Smithfield Beef Group is the nation's 5th largest beef processor with an 8,000 - head per day harvest. The company was established in 2001 after Smithfield Foods acquired and then merged Moyer Packing Company (acquired June 2001) and Packerland Packing Company (acquired October 2001).

For additional information: Smithfield Beef Group: Corporate Office: 2580 University Ave. Green Bay, WI 54311. (920) 468-4000 http://www.packerland.com or http://www.smithfieldbeefgroup.com

For more information on Corrosion College: www.corrosioncollege.com

Finding A Reliable Product Solution for Corrosive Jobsites Is Not As Difficult As You Might Think

2011-01-28T07:42:00.000-08:00

Finding A Reliable Product Solution for Corrosive Jobsites Is Not As Difficult As You Might Think

Randy Cox Colburn Electric Eureka,CA

I have worked extensively overseas and in 22 states across the U.S., but in my own backyard of Crescent City, California is a wastewater treatment facility that has the distinction of being the most corrosive jobsite that I have ever dealt with.

The average rainfall here is more than 60" per year. Our job location borders the ocean beach. Chemicals used in the wastewater process combine with salt air from the Pacific to create the ideal breeding ground for corrosion. For that reason, when it comes to reliably protecting electrical raceways and connections, specifying the “right” conduit product is essential to project survival and success.

With regard to this particular wastewater project, the design firm, Brown & Caldwell Engineering, specified PVC-coated galvanized rigid conduit for all outdoor and corrosive areas but made it our responsibility as contractors to select the brand of conduit to be used. In doing so, we feel that it is vital to consider not only the upfront cost advantages of one product versus another, but the long-term potential costs based on what is known about product performance and service life. The cost to a utility --- or any type of plant --- due to downtime from product failure, is extremely high. We have seen many cases where corrosion damage has harmed the operation of a facility because short cuts were taken during the product selection process. Some people feel they can live with substandard equipment and systems, but that approach is expensive and potentially unsafe. We believe that buying a product that does what it is intended to do invariably represents the best cost-choice over time. The “right” product is the product with proven performance and service life.

I have been familiar with PVC-coated conduit since 1990, first as an installer and now supervising the installation of this product. The most effective way to find the best product for any given application is to research the product to determine if it has been tested for product performance and service life by an independent, objective source. This is especially important with a product line such as PVC-coated galvanized rigid conduit because all brands available in the U.S. meet exactly the same UL 6 standard and carry the same UL label relating to safety conformance. However, that does not mean that all brands will perform equally because not all brands have passed the same third-party tests designed to evaluate product performance and predict service life.

Specifically, not all PVC-coated galvanized rigid conduit brands are authorized to carry the ETL-Verification label predicting product service life based on having passed the stringent requirements of ASTM D870 and ASTM D2247 --- the two accepted tests designed to predict service life of a coating under the two most common conditions that affect adhesive bonds: heat and humidity.

ETL-Verification is authorized by Intertek, the world's largest independent testing, inspection and certification laboratory and verified products are subject to quarterly audits to ensure ongoing compliance. The significance of this is that ETL testing, and consequently ETL-Verification, is based on actual product performance as a predictor of reliable service life. Some brands therefore, have a documented, proven ability to perform in a corrosive environment over an extended time --- a fact which has been evaluated and confirmed by a world-recognized, third-party source

We use Plasti-Bond RedH2OT PVC-coated galvanized rigid conduit on all of our jobsites because that brand carries the ETL label and therefore represents proven reliability. Moreover, to further educate ourselves we have visited the plant where Plasti-Bond is manufactured and have participated in a unique, instructional course called Corrosion College.

Corrosion College: helping professionals make knowledge-based decisions

Corrosion College is a hands-on short course that provides proven solutions for the prevention of industrial corrosion through classroom and interactive experience. Offered once a month within a specialized facility in Gilmer, Texas, Corrosion College grants 1.5 Continuing Education Units (CEUs) to participants for completing the program successfully. CEUs are available from either Purdue University or Kilgore College. In addition, Corrosion College was recently approved by The Practicing Institute of Engineers in New York State for granting 15 Professional Development Hours (PDHs).

The importance for Corrosion College may be difficult to measure for businesses that don't consider how much corrosion can cost them. After I attended the course I was significantly more alert to the fact that corrosion damage is extremely prevalent and incredibly costly. In addition to educating participants about the causes and methods for preventing corrosion, Corrosion College provides hands-on guidance in the proper installation of anti-corrosion products such as PVC-coated conduit. I feel that this experience has given our company the ability to save our customers an impressive amount of money year-in-and-year-out.

Conclusion:

It all comes down to knowledge: Knowledge of what product has been proven to effectively fight corrosion; Knowledge in how to identify and fight the high cost of corrosion by properly using the best available products such as Plasti-Bond RedH2OT PVC-coated galvanized rigid conduit.

For more information visit these websites: www.plastibond.com www.corrosioncollege.com

Corrosion College: Different From All The Rest

2011-01-21T07:53:00.000-08:00

Corrosion College:

Different From All The Rest

Greg Lemoine

Building Official

Parrish of Natchitoches, LA

As a professional in the building industry for more than 25 years, I have attended many training classes to earn CEUs to maintain my license. Although some of the courses in which I have participated have been truly educational, others have resulted in very few instructional benefits. Therefore, when a manufacturer's sales representative suggested that I enroll in Corrosion College, I didn't set my expectations very high. I needed CEU's, so I signed up.

It didn't take long, once I was involved in Corrosion College, to know that this educational experience was different --- and better --- than all the others.

Why?

First: because it was enjoyable and interesting.

That's right. Talking about corrosion and how to prevent it can actually be a good time. I found myself wanting to pay attention in class and was actually having fun learning about the theories, causes and prevention of corrosion.

Second: I was able to take what I learned and immediately apply it to my job.

Over the years I have seen my share of corrosion and thought I understood why products failed as a result of corrosive damage. However, during Corrosion College I learned that in some cases what I thought I knew was different from the way it really is! The experience has made me a more knowledgeable professional, and I feel better able to evaluate the potential of corrosion and to select the best available anti-corrosion products to beat the high cost of corrosion damage.

Third: Corrosion College is a great, painless way to earn CEUs while gaining valuable, practical information.

Offered monthly within a specialized facility in Gilmer, Texas, Corrosion College provides hands-on experience in understanding and combating corrosion. Two days of intensive instruction are conducted by professionals in the corrosion protection field. Grants of 1.5 CEUs are available upon successful completion. Additionally, Corrosion College is approved for professional engineering education in all states through PDHseminars.com. A $300 course fee includes workshop, course materials, hotel, and meals --- an exceptional value for any engineer, distributor or contractor needing continuing education or anyone with a need to learn more about corrosion issues.

Greg Lemoine Parrish of Natchitoches, Building Official P.O. Box 799. Natchitoches, LA 71457 318-352-2714 gregl@nppj.org

For more information visit: www.corrosioncollege.com

Earning Trust By Using Empirical Data Will Lead To Product Specifications

2011-01-14T06:50:00.000-08:00

Earning Trust By Using Empirical Data

Will Lead To Product Specifications

Pete Bynum

Burrus & Matthews

Irving, TX

Dealing with Specifying Engineers: The Importance Of Empirical Data

Part of the duties of Consulting Specifying Engineers (CSEs) includes identifying major risk and regulatory compliance issues. Order-of-magnitude estimates of the costs associated with identified project improvements need to be prepared and provided to the client as part of the specification. By doing so, CSEs provide their clients with a sound assessment on which products and services are ultimately selected.

As Independent Manufacturer's Representatives, our firm offers a wide variety of products and we need to be constantly prepared to provide CSEs with empirical data specific to those products in order to meet their project and job application needs. For such data we are dependent on the manufacturers we represent. Frankly, there are some that provide us with solid evidence of product performance, and some that don't. Not surprisingly, we are significantly more successful in positively influencing CSEs when we are able to provide them solid empirical product data: that is to say, documentation of product performance that is independently validated by recognized, objective, third-party sources.

One Example of Meaningful Evidence: ETL-Verification

When an engineer is faced with specifying products for highly corrosive environments, such as those found in Water/Wastewater or Food Manufacturing facilities, conduit for protecting electrical raceways and connections is often required. In such instances we always strongly recommend that they specify Plasti-Bond PVC-coated galvanized rigid conduit. The reason is built upon solid empirical facts. First: all available brands of PVC-coated galvanized conduit meet exactly the same UL 6 standard and carry the same UL label relating to safety conformance. Second, however: only certain brands, including Plasti-Bond, are authorized to carry the ETL-Verification label. The significance of this is that ETL testing, and consequently ETL-Verification, is based on actual product performance, as a predictor of reliable service life. Plasti-Bond, therefore, has a documented, proven ability to perform in a corrosive environment over an extended time --- a fact which has been evaluated and confirmed by a world-recognized, third-part source. To us, and to most CSEs, this is a vital reality because it addresses the extremely important need to specify products that will enable users to avoid the high cost, and sometimes disastrous, effects of product failure.

Objective testing of actual product performance is the key element of ETL-Verification. ETL evaluates how well the coating on PVC-coated conduit adheres during ASTM-designed high heat/humidity testing and high temperature boil testing. The regulated and quantitative test protocol used by Intertek ETL SEMKO to determine eligibility for ETL-Verification concludes that Plasti-Bond brand of PVC-coated conduit provides at least ten times the coating reliability versus competing, non-verified products.

Intertek ETL SEMKO administers a quarterly follow-up program by selecting and testing coated conduit specimens to insure continued compliance with the adhesion requirements in the specification. Randomly selected conduit specimens must also successfully pass the adhesion tests to maintain the listing and ETL label. This performance testing is open for any manufacturer who would like to verify superior product performance.

Therefore, if predictability of product service life is important to engineering design, avoidance of costly, or catastrophic product or system failure, it should be assumed, in the specification process, that only PVC-coated galvanized conduit carrying the ETL-verification, will meet the standards established by all relevant ASTM tests, including those predicting service life.

Going beyond Empirical Data: Developing Trust

Presenting CSEs with empirical data supporting the recommendations is the first step in an effective working relationship. The next stage, developed over time, is the all-important matter of building trust based on the ongoing reliability of recommendations. Here are some of tips that will ultimately cause CSEs to value and follow your product-related advice:

• Always be willing to help. This establishes a bond based on mutual needs and fulfillment of those needs.

• Keep your promises --- that's the only way to establish confidence.

• Treat customers as individuals. By understanding how each CSE is oriented you can best serve such persons with information that addresses their specific project needs, and provide with product data to educate CSEs as to the product opportunities available to them.

• Make it easy. CSEs are looking to you for real data, not smoke and mirrors. Be honest, be straightforward, and provide them information that really matters.

Trust is significantly related to sales, profits, and turnover. Long-term, trust-based working relationships are an important source of your sustainable competitive advantage, but must be based off the quality of product-related information upon which recommendations to CSEs are based.

For more information about Burrus & Matthews, visit: www.b-m.com

For more information on Plasti-Bond: www.plastibond.com

ETL- Verification ---An Important Component For Staying Competitive Through The Use Of A Value-Add Business Model

2011-01-07T05:43:00.000-08:00

ETL- Verification ---An Important Component For Staying Competitive Through The Use Of A Value-Add Business Model

Mike Gorin
President
Gorin - Hopper - McCoy

A company's long-term success is largely driven by its ability to maintain a competitive advantage, especially during tough economic times. In today's market place where so many products and services are viewed as commodities, the ability to add value to a product or service is an absolute necessity. There is no doubt that in the absence of value-added features and benefits virtually any product or service will be driven down to a single primary factor: price. When forced to sell on price alone it is extremely difficult to integrate, into the mix, high margin products that provide profitability, long term growth potential and, consequently, business stability and success.

Gorin - Hopper - McCoy is an electrical products independent sales agency built across three generations, multiple family "trees," and founded on the principles of providing both professional excellence and value-added product lines to distributor and end user customers.

Several years ago as part of our commitment to remaining competitive we launched a lighting division featuring a highly focused group of specialists capable of providing added value to our customers by helping them with lighting project design and specifications. To earn the trust of our customers our lighting team dedicated itself to a very assertive program of achieving face-time with a targeted core group electrical specifying engineers --- sometimes meeting with them as often as three times a month. We soon started to see positive results from this level of attentiveness and firmly believe that the additional number of direct contacts, combined with our expertise in lighting, provided a type of specialized assistance essential to building solid working relationships with these engineers.

Due to our close rapport with these specifiers and decision makers, it became clear to us that predictability of product service life is critical to them as the primary way of avoiding costly catastrophic product or system failure. Consequently, we realized that they would be receptive to any knowledge-based information that would enable them to differentiate products based on proven performance and on-the-job longevity. One such case-in-point, specific to PVC-coated galvanized rigid conduit is ETL-Verification, a relatively new but highly important standard impacting that particular product group.

Specifically: ETL-Verification is authorized by Intertek, the world's largest independent testing, inspection and certification laboratory. Verified products are subject to quarterly audits to ensure ongoing compliance. The significance of this is that ETL testing, and consequently ETL-Verification, is based onactual product performance as a predictor of reliable service life. Although all brands of PVC-coated galvanized rigid conduit meet identical UL standards for safety, only some brands have a documented, proven ability to perform in a corrosive environment over an extended time --- a fact that has been evaluated and confirmed through the ETL verification process.

In January of 2010 we made a commitment to introduce more products to our specifying engineers that were ETL-Verified. One such product line we represent is Plasti-Bond, a leader in the PVC-coated galvanized rigid conduit industry.

We began by simply educating our engineers that all PVC-coated galvanized conduit brands available in the U.S. meet exactly the same UL 6 standard and carry the same UL label relating to safety conformance. However, that does not mean that all brands will perform equally. In reality, conduit brands authorized to carry the ETL-Verified label perform reliably more than ten times longer than brands that have not passed ETL evaluations. Such testing is based on stringent requirements of ASTM D870 and ASTM D2247 --- the two internationally accepted tests designed to predict service life of a coating under the most common conditions that affect adhesive bonds: heat and humidity.

The results have spoken for themselves: We have written 4 ETL specifications in ONE MONTH TIME PERIOD. The ETL specifications came from a four different sources: MARTA (Metropolitan Atlanta Rapid Transit Authority), SL King & Associates, May River Engineering and Perry, Crab & Associates.

The response from our customers was convincing. Product service life is key --- and many of our specifying engineers quickly recognized the need to add the ETL-Verified requirement to product selection specifications. The benefit to us has been a loyal core of customers who see the importance of our efforts to add value. The benefits to them have included the assurance that they are, in fact, getting the product performance they have paid for.
For More Information visit: http://www.plastibond.com/ETL_Home.cfm

Plasti-Bond Launches Online Submittal Tool

2010-12-20T11:24:00.000-08:00

Plasti-Bond's online submittal tool for sourcing PVC-coated galvanized rigid metal conduit products condenses the process into to three steps. Users click to select the desired products from the product categories, check the blank checkboxes from the "Edit Selection" column for the desired product sizes from the charts, and then create a printable pdf of a chart of the selections.

Online, Printable Submittal Forms In Only Four Simple Clicks!

http://www.plastibond.com/SubmittalGuide/

I. Click to select the desired product(s) from the product listings.

2. Click to "Check" the blank checkbox from "Edit Selection" Column for the desired product sizes from the available charts. A yellow highlight will indicate your selection(s) when the PDF is created.

Submittal Guide selections

3. Click button named "Create Printer Friendly PDF" to create a pdf of the product with your selections 'checked' and highlighted within the chart listings, for quick / easy reference.

Submittal Guide selections

4. PRINT or SAVE the new pdf or choose "Return To Product Index". a.) Simply print via your computer in the same way that you would print any on-screen document. b.) You can also save the PDF to your computer by clicking the SAVE A COPY button in your navigation bar. c.) You can click on "Return To Product Index" to start over. This option allows you to: -Start over. If you have not printed or saved your existing PDF all selections will be deleted. Or --- -Return to begin selecting products in a new category AFTER you have printed or saved your existing PDF.

IMPORTANT NOTE: For your convenience, our online submittal forms are organized into 37 product categories in the Product Index. You can select as many items and sizes within each product category to create a printable submittal PDF. However, you cannot combine items from two or more product categories into a single PDF --- each product category must remain its own separate PDF.

For more information, visit the company’s Web site www.plastibond.com