Electrical Industry Articles and Stories

I’ll bet this has happened to you. You’re elbows deep in a wiring project, or lost in a trance-like state, figuring out a major troubleshooting problem.

Suddenly, a tap on the shoulder and a quiet “excuse me” interrupts you, sending a jolt right down your spine.

Flashlights used to be just, well, flashlights – handy tools for bringing a little illumination to whatever task was at hand. They also could be a little undependable in the old days. Battery strength was always a question, especially if they hadn’t been used in a while.

Lighting automation has bells and whistles, but a lighting contactor is necessary to switch the actual lighting circuits. Properly selecting lighting contactors can save installation and maintenance costs. What are some of the important considerations in addition to the correct voltage and current?

In new construction, sustainable building practices are becoming the norm. But even in existing buildings, simple strategies can be implemented quickly and easily to address inefficiencies, reduce energy use, improve comfort, and enhance productivity in the space.

Switchboards are critical to the dependability of any electrical power installation because they represent that pivotal point at which incoming power supply is divided into separate circuits, controlled and protected by fuses and switchgear, metered, and then divided into a number of functional units for its given applications. In general, switchboards distribute power to transformers, panelboards, control equipment, and to system loads.

Bonding and grounding are simple concepts, but, unfortunately, they’re also easily confused with each other. Definitions of one term often get wrapped up in the definitions of the other, and, before long, one can begin thinking the words are interchangeable.

“Grounding” refers to the creation of a path from electrical equipment to the earth. It is intended to protect equipment and help prevent fires that might occur due to high voltages resulting from lightning strikes, line surges or unintended contact with higher-voltage lines.