Electrical Apparatus
The Magazine of Electrical &
Electronic Application & Maintenance

September 2003 Columns and Departments

Items in columns and departments from the September 2003 issue, Vol. 56, no. 9, © 2003 Barks Publications, Inc. See also  September 2003 Table of Contents and Previous issues 

• Editor's Comment Perspective on current and upcoming issues.  In this issue 150 reasons to attend EIC/EMCW ... Richard L. Nailen to receive the prestigious Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) 2004 Richard H. Kaufmann Award for contributions to the understanding of electric motor applications ... More photos from the EASA show ... by Horace B. Barks, Editor and Publisher

• Let's Solve Your Problem The longest-running and one of our most popular features, Let's Solve Your Problem answers real questions posed by people in plants and service shops around the U.S. and abroad. Selected Q&A's from this column are available in our popular Let's Solve Your Problem books. This month's problems include: Do metal enclosures cool better than plastic? ... Why do capacitor fuses keep blowing? ... Could the starter be causing low power factor? ... Is discolored rotor a sign of trouble? ... Why the inconsistency in motor starting current? ... Accounting for harmonic losses in transformers ... Wire insulation standards can be confusing ... Edited by the EA staff 

You are invited to send questions to this department. Your identity will be kept confidential, but we ask that you include your name, affiliation, postal (not e-mail) address, and telephone number. If you'd like a pre-publication reply, enclose a stamped envelope and we'll try to respond promptly. We cannot provide personal consultation or supply winding data.

• Letters  In this issue  - Job loss discussed in June EA is not workers' fault, from Robert C. Gibson, Consulting engineer, Aurora, Illinois ... Corona destroying insulation? (June EA Let's Solve Your Problem) from Vicent Green, President, ADWEL International, Ltd., Scarborough, Ontario, Canada ... Not enough questions in "what relay protection" (August EA) from Dan Ninedorf, Ox Creek Energy, Montello, Wisconsin ...

Electrical Apparatus invites letters, 250 words maximum. All letters, including e-mail, must include name, company, title or position, phone number, city, state or province, and country. We may edit your letter for clarity and space.— Editor

• Trade associations,  professional societies and government activities  News of non-profit  government, and other organizations serving the electrical mechanical industries.  This issue:  The Motor & Motion Association's  SMMA 2003 Fall Technical Conference ( www.smma.org ) ... Health award recipients to share best practices ( www.nist.gov ) ...the Refrigeration Service Engineers Society offers training courses  recognized by North American Technician Excellence ( http://www.natex.org/ListRecTrngProv.htm  ) ... EASA honors Denver J. Weigel with its EASA Exceptional Achievement and Service Award ... ISA Expo 2003 ( www.isa.org/isaexpo2003 ) ...Edited by Joseph Hoff 

  Note:  the 2003 EMBR lists contact information for more than 140 associations ... To update or add a listing to the 2004 EMBR, email eamagazine@barks.com 

• Business Briefs Business news and announcements, including facility briefs, financial briefs, certification achievements, and distribution news. In this issue:  Lincoln Electric wins innovation award (pictured at right)... Pittsburgh-based industrial manufacturer Eaton Corp. moves transient voltage surge suppression business acquired from Innovative Technology of Brooksville. Fla., to its Industrial and Commercial Controls Division facility in Calgary, Alberta....Excel Apparatus Services of Charleston, S.C. becomes distributor for St. Louis-based Emerson Motor Technologies. ..Oregon electrical organizations win state grant ...Motor Decisions Matter adds sponsors A.O. Smith Electrical Products Co., Siemens Energy Automation, and TECO-Westinghouse Motor Co....The Washington-based National Association of Manufacturers (NAM) warns of shortage of skilled workers...Ametek Solidstate Controls UPS and battery seminars get underway ( www.solidstatecontrolsinc.com  ) ....General Cable Corp. of Highland Heights, Ky. reports sales increase ...Certification briefs: IPC Resistors, Inc., of Mississauga, Ontario ... A. O. Smith Electrical Products Co. of Tipp City, Ohio...Edited by Kevin Jones, EA Senior Editor

• Calendar Briefs - Upcoming trade shows, symposia, and events, from September 2003 through September 2004... Edited by Joseph Hoff

• Training Briefs Announcements of workshops, seminars and instructional materials, and our Training Index, listing program topics featured in Training Briefs in the past year.    In this issue: Motor diagnostics and repair from the Electrical Apparatus Service Association  ( www.easa.com ) ... Basics of brushless d-c motors at  the SMMA 2003 Fall Technical Conference ( www.smma.org ) ... Maintenance management from Hayo Consultants of Albuquerque ( www.hayoconsultants.com ) ...UPS system maintenance from Solidstate Controls ( www.solid-statecontrolsinc.com/seminar.html ) ....Standards compliance -  CE Marking from Duquesne University...Workplace safety from Behavioral Science Technology. Inc ( www.bstsolutions.com/leading-withsafety.htm ) ... Motors and drives from Baldor Electric Co ... Motion control from The Motion Institute, Birmingham, Ala. ...Power quality from Solidslate Controls, Inc. ( www.solidstatecontrols.com/seminar.html ) ...   Electrical testing from AVO International Training Institute ... Electrical safety from Cooper Bussman, St. Louis. Mo. ... Call for thermography papers from Snell Infrared  ( www.thermal-solutions.org ) ...  Edited by Joseph Hoff 

Producers of workshops, seminars, and instructional materials are encouraged to mail announcements to Training Briefs Editor, Electrical Apparatus. There is no charge.

• New Books Recently published books, reviewed by our editors.  See also Books for the Plant and Shop from Barks Books, including titles from the editors of Electrical Apparatus, including our latest new book, Let's Solve Your Problem - Volume III.

• Standards briefs  .... In this issue: National Electrical Manufacturers Association publishes a general specification for Premium efficiency electric motors  ... New vibration  guidelines  from ISO ...American National Standards Institute (ANSI) adopts UL intrinsic safety standard... Air Conditioning and Refrigeration Institute offers online  Energy Management Guide (  www.ari.org ) ... Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) publishes revised standards ... the National Fire Protection Association solicits public comment on lightning protection ... Edited by the Electrical Apparatus staff. 

• Names and Faces ... In this issue:  Bill Simpson and Charles  D. Dudgeon of Dolph Co. ... Diane Coté of  Middle Atlantic Products,  Riverdale, N.J. ... Les Parsons of Arlington P/L in South Wales, Australia named chairman of the board of EASA (Electrical Apparatus Service Association) ... John M. Stropki Jr. of Lincoln Electric, Cleveland ... Paul Witt of  Omron Electronics LLC, Schaumburg, Illinois ...  Lawrence M. Wegner of Klein Tools, Chicago ... Edited by Joseph Hoff

• Electrical Manager ...A potpourri of news and features, selected and edited for maintenance and service managers.  In this issue: Make more sales calls, then know what to say ... ESPOT's - selling a company to it's employees ... How much is your workplace really costing? ... Keeping motors in good health...

  "Electrical Manager" is a copyrighted feature of Electrical Apparatus.  Any kind of reproduction, including electronic transmission, without permission of Barks Publications is illegal and is prohibited. 

• Literature Announcements of guides, catalogs, brochures, product specifications and other literature. In this issue ...motors, blowers and accessories catalog from Fasco Motors ... straight-blade receptacles brochure from Cooper Wiring Devices ... VFI transformer brochure from Cooper Power Systems ... Color Code series of plastic and insulated metal staples from Gardner Bender ... educational guides about high resistance grounding from IPC Resistors ...  Edited by the EA staff

  Mail announcements of new products and literature to Editorial Department, Electrical Apparatus (page 2). No faxes, e-mail, electronic submissions (CD-ROM's, etc.) or follow-up calls, please. There is no charge for publication, which does not constitute endorsement, nor can we verify product claims.

• Utility Briefs  .. In this issue:  New partnership between MPR Associates and Innovative Controls Solution for power facility design ... Capston Turbine Corp's microturbine generates electric supply for a new Waldbaum's supermarket on Long Island ...Sempra Energy International receives permit for a proposed liquefied natural gas receiving terminal in Mexico .. Edited by Kevin Jones

• Product briefs Photos and announcements of new products ...In this issue, a compact brushless d-c motor ... brushless d-c kit motors ... high torque two-phase stepping motors ... 4-in-1 totally enclosed replacement motor ... oil burner replacement motor ... front end brakes for stepper and servo motors ... brake control pack ... single axis brushless servo control software ... incremental encoders ... rotary optical encoder with commutation ... resin-bonded cellulose fiber composite sheet .. .pocket-sized infrared thermometer ..  infrared thermometer with a hygro-thermometer ... joy-stick operated hand-held combination alignment/vibration tool... energy reporting and analysis software ... control switch relay ... power distribution bus bar system ... BNC cable connectors ... outlet box covers ... and online diagnostic tools:  Performance curves for standard motors - demo @ www.usmotors.com/mbdemo/motorboss.htm  ... online arc flash calculator @ www.bussmann.com  Edited by the EA Staff.

Mail announcements of new products and literature to Editorial Department, Electrical Apparatus (page 2). No faxes, e-mail, electronic submissions (CD-ROM's, etc.) or follow-up calls, please. There is no charge for publication, which does not constitute endorsement, nor can we verify product claims.

• EA reader at ease  ... Stories featuring unusual or interesting avocational interests of our readers.  In this issue:  Terry Jackson of Darby Electric, "Philosopher of the fairways" and father of/caddie for his daughter, Brandi, who is a promising amateur golfer with professional aspirations.

  Do you know someone working in the electrical aftermarket with a hobby or interest that could be featured in "EA reader at ease"? Tell us who they are, what they do, and how we can contact them to find out more about their special passions. Send your suggestions to Electrical Apparatus, 400 N. Michigan Avenue, Suite 900, Chicago, III. 60611; (312) 321-9440; Fax (312) 321-1288; e-mail eamagazine@barks.com .

• Direct and Current Breaking news of interest to the industry, from The Editors of Electrical Apparatus. In this issue: Factory jobs continued to decline in June ... Hydrogen is called "the ultimate fuel"  .. New U. S. medical patients' rights ... Consumers are becoming more distrustful .. More than 250,000 documents are available from the U. S. Government Printing Office's GPO Access website, www.gpoaccess.gov ... by the Editors

• Accounting for management  This issue: Taking your business global - Exporting your competitive asset - technical expertise  By William H. Wiersema, CPA, EA Contributing Editor and author of the recently published book, Steps to a Successful Service Shop.

• Safety and health in the workplace This month - Fall protection is an all-season job - We don't always pay attention to potential dangers ...   By Richard B. Elsberry, EA Contributing Editor

• Trilingual summary For our international readers, each month one featured topic is presented in French, Spanish and German. This month: "Avoiding unsafe rigging and lifting practices'"

• Classified Advertising Equipment, jobs, businesses, business opportunities and services.

• Cy's Super Service, Motorhead and Generatorhead Comic strips featuring characters from our favorite cartoonists. 

• Say It Right ... The popular column about language in the workplace.   by Richard L. Nailen, P.E., EA Engineering Editor 

• Braintrainers  Puzzles you and your colleagues can solve for fun and, if your answers are correct, for recognition in Electrical Apparatus.  by Lillian Nielsen, Special Correspondent 

• Electripix  Photographs of people, places, equipment and more ..

• Deaths  - Obituaries of industry people. 

• EMBR update  - changes to the Electromechanical Bench Reference 2002, the annual buyers' guide that readers received with their December 2001 Electrical Apparatus.  Following publication of the directory, corrections and additions appear in subsequent issues of the magazine. 

• Web briefs ...  Selected websites for the electromechanical specialist, annotated with details of especially valuable content  ..Edited by the Electrical Apparatus staff. 

• Automation briefs  - the latest in products for electronics and systems applications ... Edited by David P. Tryling 

• Advertising Index  An easy to use reference to the advertisements in Electrical Apparatus magazine.