Electrical Apparatus
The Magazine of Electrical &
Electronic Application & Maintenance

November 2004 Columns and Departments

Items in columns and departments from the November 2004 issue, Vol. 57, no. 11, © 2004 Barks Publications, Inc. See also  November 2004 Table of Contents and Previous issues 

• Editor's Comment Perspective on current and upcoming issues.  In this issue: 'Happy Hour' celebrates a trade show's recovery at the Electrical Manufacturing Expo ... World-Wide Electric Corp ... watch next month for the EMBR ... by Horace B. Barks, Executive Editor

• 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: Why two current ratings for contractors ... Insulated versus hybrid bearings .. Does in-slot detector location matter ... How to make use of a short-time motor rating ... What's the right voltage for I-R testing ... Voltage detectors can be too sensitive ... Minimum belt pulley sizes may be confusing ... How to support generator end turns? ... Service factor continues to raise questions ... Using the code letter to find locked-rotor current ... Is corona discharge an explosion hazard? ... How is open shaft current defined?  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  - Finding starting power, from Conrad St. Pierre, Electric Power Consultants, LLC, Schenectady, New York ... More on ohmmeters, from Kevin Bergstrom, High Potential Seminars, Loveland, Colorado ... Foot-pounds? Pound-feet?, from Chuck Nelson, Master Electrician, Helm Electric Service, Jordan, Minnesota ... Opposing foreign trade, from John K. Carter, P.E., John K. Carter, Inc., Camarillo, California ... Kind words from Ron Newport, Newport Coluioncs, Inc., Kamloops, British Columbia, Canada, and J. Fernandez, Electric Design, El Paso, Texas.

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

• Business briefs  In this issue: Standard Electric of Wilmington Mass acquires Wellesley Electrical Supply of Needham Heights, Mass. ... Emerson Process Management wins $8million contract to upgrade control systems for Sunflower Electric Power Corp ... Elliot Co. and Wood Group Heavy Industrial Turbines Division in service alliance ... Industrial supplier Innovative Manufacturing Solutions acquires metal stamper Buhrke Industries of Arlington Heights, Ill ... General Cable in manufacturing agreement with CTC Cable Corp ... Minarik Drives observes 50th anniversary ... Molex, Inc., acquires Incep Technologies, Inc.   ...  ...Edited by Kevin Jones

• Financial briefs  In this issue:  A.O. Smith reports sales financials, presents President's Safety Award to Juarez, Mexico plant ... Littelfuse reports profits rise ...    ... Edited by Kevin Jones

• Trade associations,  professional societies and government activities  News of non-profit  government, and other organizations serving the electrical mechanical industries.  This issue: Counterfeit electrical products are on the rise, according to the National Electrical Manufacturers Association ... American Society of Safety Engineers responds to job casualty report from U. S. Department of Labor's Bureau of Labor Statistics ...  EASA planning to drop its U.S. chapters ... National Electrical Manfuacturers Association (NEMA) pushes change in mammography policies ... Hydraulic Institute says "Pump Systems Matter" ... new video from the Education & Research Foundation of the National Association of Electrical Distributors ...  Edited by the EA staff

  Note:  the 2004 EMBR lists contact information for more than 140 associations ... Update or add your listing to the 2005 EMBR.

• Say It Right ... The popular column about language in the workplace  In this issue: What makes a motor starter soft?  Hint: Not all of them operate at reduced voltage ...  by Richard L. Nailen, P.E., EA Engineering Editor

• Trilingual summary For our international readers, each month one featured topic is presented in French, Spanish and German. This month: Dealing with workplace arc hazards  - The greatest risk is injury or death from faulted apparatus (read an online summary in English)  ... by Richard L. Nailen, P.E., E.A. Engineering Editor

• 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.

• Safety and health in the workplace This month - Safety programs for employees with special needs --Accommodations are no longer just about physical disabilities.   By Richard B. Elsberry, EA Contributing Editor

• Names and Faces ... In this issue - Christopher L. Mapes (pictured) of A.O. Smith Corp ... Sam Drummond (pictured)  of K. J. Electric ... Thomas J. Bockius of Ametek Specialty Metal Products ...  Wojciech Wyczalkowski (pictured) of Philadelphia Mixing Solutions ... Richard C. Hepperla (pictured) of the Low Voltage Drives Business Unit of ABB, Inc., U.S. Automation Technology Products Division ... Terry Orf (pictured) and Stephen Ache of PosiCharge / Aero Vironment, Inc ... ...Edited by Sarah E. Wittliff

• Accounting for management  In this issue: Closing the books on 2004   Now is the time to get your financial house in order By William H. Wiersema, CPA, EA Contributing Editor and author of the recently published book, Steps to a Successful Service Shop.

• Calendar Briefs - Upcoming trade shows, symposia, and events, from November 2004 through June  2005... Edited by Sarah E. Wittliff 

• 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: Pressure sensitive adhesives, from The Adhesive and Sealant Council's Education Foundation, www.ascouncil.org/meetings ... Motor application and maintenance, from the Electrical Apparatus Service Association, www.easa.com ...  High-voltage maintenance from Dan Ninedorf - www.corona-tecnology-course.com ...Facitlies professional certification, from the Association for Facilities Engineering, www.afe.org ...  Safety seminars from Behavioral Science Technology - www.bstsolutions.com/leadingwithsafety.htm  ... Drives, controls and hydraulcs, from Bosch Rexroth Technical Training Department, www.boschrexroth-us.com  ...Infrared thermography from the Electrical Apparatus Service Association - www.easa.com ...  . Edited by Sarah E. Wittliff 

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

• EA reader at ease  ... Stories featuring unusual or interesting avocational interests of our readers. In this issue - Tim Hannon, President of Hannon Electric Company, enjoys wild boar hunts in New Zealand.

  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: Junk faxes get a reprieve ... "Reinsourcification" is the word for moving outsourcing back to the U.S. ... A plug in hybrid electric drive train with an internal combustion engine will be in Dodge Sprinter vans early next year ... Electricity consumption to grow ... the government forecasts postal reform ... electrical distributors' sales are growing  ...  by the Editors

• Certification briefs  In this issue: Trans-Coil, Inc. ... Iris Power Engineering ...  Edited by Kevin Jones

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

• Electrical Manager ...A potpourri of news and features, selected and edited for maintenance and service managers.

  "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. 

• Deaths  - Obituaries of industry people.  

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

• Literature Announcements of guides, catalogs, brochures, product specifications and other literature.    In this issue - Industrial switch nameplates, handles and accessories literature from Electroswitch ... Catalog of test and measurement instruments and calibrators from Transcat ... sourcebook of electrical products from Del City ... brochure describing severe duty a-c motors from Baldor Electric Co ... interactive electronic motor, drive and generator catalog, also from Baldor ... electrical safety testing of power tools and electrical equipment booklet from Clare Instruments ...  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.

• Product briefs Photos and announcements of new products ...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.

• Standards briefs  ..  Edited by the Electrical Apparatus staff. 

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

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

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

• Utility Briefs   .. Edited by Kevin Jones

• EMBR update  - changes to the Electromechanical Bench Reference 2004, the annual buyers' guide that readers received with their January 2003 Electrical Apparatus.  Following publication of the directory, corrections and additions appear in subsequent issues of the magazine. 

• 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 

• Question of the month

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