The changing leaves, cooler weather, and shorter days remind us that another Fall season is upon us. It should also remind us that the demands on our plant and facilities systems are changing. Heating system and boilers are firing up, lighting systems are on for longer periods of time, and systems that have been dormant during the warmer months are being called upon to perform. Some of these systems will be essential in the coming months.

This is a great time to look at your electrical systems, a cooler weather infrared scan can identify issues undetectable during the warmer months. Variable frequency drives for heating and boilers can introduce harmonics and generate a different power quality profile seasonally. Did the summer excavation damage your ground system integrity? Have the upgrades you completed over the summer changed the incident energy levels of your system? Are protective coordination changes needed to protect your system from nuisance tripping?

Plant and facilities professionals are responsible for millions of dollars of capital equipment and critical production where an hour of down time can be measured in hundreds of thousands of dollars and yet, often, a simple ‘check-up” is ignored. Highly sensitive equipment is routinely subjected to poor power quality due to stressed infrastructure, harmonics, sags, swells, brownouts, and aging equipment.  Grounding issues create a myriad of headaches and nuisance challenges. Maintenance budgets are limited, time is short, and resources are stretched. We’re all asked to do more with less and that’s been the industry mantra for decades. Every year unplanned outages, industrial accidents, and failures are the result of a lack of maintenance and sadly, preventable.

A qualified third-party testing company and an engineering or electrical firm that specializes in testing and maintenance can advise you on what testing is available and help you customize a testing program to meet your needs and resources. One readily available resource is to find an InterNational Electrical Testing Association (NETA) accredited company. These firms are independent third-party testing companies with trained and certified technicians who test to established standards. As a third-party company they are there to work for you and support your interest and goals.

The Fall season often means the approach of the end of the fiscal year and planning is underway for a new year. This presents a great opportunity to identify issues and deficiencies to be address under the remaining M&R budget or plan for next year’s M&R or CapEx plan. This is also a great time to sit down with someone and review the plant single lines, evaluate recent upgrades and lay the groundwork for a future operational success. Is the arc flash analysis and labeling up to date? What are the growth plans for the future? What can be done to mitigate arc flash hazards? NFPA-70E recommends that arc flash studies be updated when a major modification or renovation takes place and at intervals not to exceed 5 years. Often the focus during the summer months is to complete renovations and plant upgrade under resource limitations, budgeting, and tight schedule constraints and the impact of the changes on the incident energy levels and future maintenance safety is set aside. The start of the Fall season is a good time to revisit these changes and plan appropriately to ensure the safety of plant workers moving forward.

So, with Fall upon us, step back, breathe in the crisp Fall air and for a moment as you take a breath, review your accomplishments from the hazy, hot summer months and think about your next steps. Need help? Reach out to a qualified professional! We’re always happy to help!

Kevin J Matthews, PE, PMP earned his BSEE from Penn State University and an MBA in Technology Management from the University of Phoenix. He is currently licensed as a Professional Engineer in PA, NJ, and DE. In his 40+ years post graduate career he has worked in construction, plant and facilities operations, project management, engineering and technology management, and in the field as a Plant Engineer, Facilities Engineer, Project Manager, Engineering Manager, Chief Engineer, Senior Engineer, and Senior Engineering Service Manager in the service, construction, facilities, and critical environment management field.