Electrical Industry Articles and Stories

Wireless lighting controls using Wi-Fi communications are nothing new – Philips introduced its Hue wireless bulbs back in 2012. The ability to dim lights and set scenes using a smartphone app was a big step forward from traditional, wall-mounted on/off and dimming switches.

Kids. You've got to love the little rug rats. It's so much fun to watch as they scoot around the floor. For years, my wife ran a childcare service from our home.

We also have three grandkids of our own, all of them girls. The oldest is seven (going on 15) and the other two are four-year-old twins.

Commercial building owners pondering renovations are quickly learning that building energy codes are getting stricter. Those codes are based on national standards that are increasingly focused on how lighting is controlled. The upshot is that any new lighting installations have to include some form of sensing to ensure that light fixtures aren’t turned on when they aren’t needed.

It was during a lecture in the school auditorium where I came across my first floor box. I was bored to death and looking around for something to pass the time. When I glanced down, I noticed a brass device on the floor beneath me.

It had what looked like a round cover with a slot in the middle. Just perfect for sticking in a quarter and turning.

Sure enough, the lid came off and an electrical outlet appeared before my eyes.

Steel fittings in a variety of formulations have been liquidtight raceway products of choice since the early days of electrical distribution. When these products have been galvanized, a thin zinc coating offers corrosion resistance for use in many outdoor and exterior applications where non-galvanized steel might otherwise rust through. But electrical wiring requires extra protection in more significantly corrosive environments. So, contractors need to consider materials that offer more advanced protection in settings where chemicals, salt spray and other damaging substances are common.

With an average age of 58, according to 2018 National Electrical Contractors Association (NECA) figures, electrical contractors might not fall into the “early adopters” category, when it comes to technology use. However, electrical pros are increasingly seeing the value in the range of construction software and other productivity tools now available as mobile device apps.