flytosky11/iStock/Thinkstock
blackboard-quiz-thinkstockphotos-460091727.jpg

Electrical Troubleshooting Quiz — March 20, 2018

March 20, 2018
To collect data on unscheduled downtime, leverage the power of your CMMS.

The plant has a “when it rains, it pours” problem with unscheduled downtime. The plant engineer came onboard three months ago and is puzzled because at other plants where he’s worked, the unplanned downtime had an even distribution.

After discussion with the plant electrical engineer, the plant engineer submitted a capital request for a power monitoring system. The idea was to identify root cause power anomalies at the service and all feeders so that mitigation measures would be based on actual data. The request was turned down, so he submitted a new, less ambitious request for a basic system.

What else might he do to get data?

The power monitoring system is probably the best first move. However, it’s far from the only source of data. He needs to leverage the power of the CMMS, and to do that he’ll need to:

  1. Get predictive data into the system. Vibration monitoring, thermography, insulation resistance testing, and other testing provide this.
  2. Use the CMMS to trend PM condition measurements, thus giving them predictive power.
  3. Classify and correlate repair data from each downtime incident. The patterns that this can enable him to see in CMMS reports should reveal where at least a few of the common trouble sources are.
  4. Compare failure dates of equipment with PM dates of that equipment. Is there a correlation?

Voice your opinion!

To join the conversation, and become an exclusive member of EC&M, create an account today!

Sponsored Recommendations

8 Types of Electrical Conduit and Their Uses

Electrical conduit is a tube or raceway used to house and protect electrical wires within a building or structure. From data centers to underground subways to ports and bridges...

A Powerful Duo: Fiberglass conduit and solar applications

Learn how strong, durable fiberglass conduit excelled in an environment with dense cable and helped make a complex burial much simpler for the contractor to help this customer...

Champion Fiberglass® Conduit Protects Cabling For New York's First Offshore Wind Farm

Learn how fiberglass conduit supported a heavy cable load and a buried installation to help this project reach a successful outcome.

How to Calculate Labor Costs

Most important to accurately estimating labor costs is knowing the approximate hours required for project completion. Learn how to calculate electrical labor cost.