Electrical Industry Articles and Stories

About 28% of a building's electrical energy bill is literally consumed in lighting the premises. That's pretty consistent across both industrial and commercial buildings. Obviously, if you can lower that expense significantly, the impact on your overall operating budget reduces.

I know what you're thinking.

"He's going to start talking about LED lighting upgrades, isn't he?"

Once upon a time, the only reason building codes addressed electrical metering was to enable local utility billing efforts. Today, though, metering is seen as a critical tool in efforts to boost our buildings’ energy efficiency. With the understanding that we can’t manage what we don’t measure, the latest energy standards are calling for greater use of submetering of individual building systems – and that means even greater use of current transformers (CTs).

No, I'm not talking about traveling back into the past. I'm talking about moving onward to the future. And the "retro" is really retrofitting to LED lighting.

In another article, I talked more about using LED drop-ins to replace old fluorescent troffers. And I still like that option.

They say you can't teach an old dog new tricks …

But, I'm an old dog and I just learned of a brand new "trick" that literally made me sit up and beg for more. I thought I'd seen everything, but I was wrong … so very wrong.
My mind's been officially … blown.

I get that all the time when calling the bank or the credit union or any business these days. Once connected, a voice on the other end warns me:

"Please listen carefully. Our menu options have changed."

Most of the time they haven't, at least not for some time. But the reminder is still there, enjoining me to practice careful listening.

In another article, we talked a bit about some of the new products that have changed how we design and work with control panels. We discussed many of the electronic components that took the place of old analog and magnetic mechanisms that were common in days gone by.

Of course, many old school components are still used when the need for electronics isn't pressing.
But one thing will always remain necessary in one form or fashion: conductors.