Electrical Apparatus
The Magazine of Electrical &
Electronic Application & Maintenance

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December 2006 Columns and Departments

Items in columns and departments from the December 2006 issue, Vol. 59, no. 12, © 2006 Barks Publications, Inc. See also  December 2006 Table of Contents and Previous issues 

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• Editor's Comment Perspective on current and upcoming issues... by Horace B. Barks, Executive Editor 
  In this issue: A year important to review and remember ... Understanding the causes of electrical outages ... Readers react to the gun safety article in the November 2006 EA.

• 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.  Edited by the EA staff 
  In this issue: How to connect ASD cable shields and ground wires ... Conduit box temperature too high for lead cables? ... How close can running speed be to the critical? ... Infrared scan useful for motor terminal box? ... Motor load doesn't affect fault current contribution ... Can lube oil influence efficiency of a motor? ... Arc-resistant enclosures still a flash hazard? ... What constitutes arc flash exposure?

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  Comments and questions from readers of Electrical Apparatus  In this issue - How long before damage? from Robert D. Barnett, P.E., Byrne Engineering, Inc., Burlington, Ontario  ... More on current transformers, from Jim Milam, U.S. Army Corps of Engineers, Mountain Home, Arkansas ....  Welding of spider arms, from Dale Hamil, President, Illinois Electric Works, Granite City, Illinois …Kind words, from John Ranieri, Ranieri Electric Motor Service, Dafter, Michigan and David Brannon, Swanson Industries, Morgantown, West Virginia ....

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 and financial briefs  News of expansions, relocations, annual reports, and more, about companies serving the electrical mechanical industries   In this issue --Baldor buying Reliance for $1.8 billion  ... Second year apprentice Dave Kokehouse wins a Hummer from Cooper Bussman (pictured, right)… Sonepar USA of Philadelphia, a subsidiary of Sonepar Group, has acquired Friedman Electric Supply Co. … Ferraz Shawmut sponsors arc flash research … New sales reps for American Sensor Technologies of Mount Olive, N.J. ...  Edited by Kevin Jones

• Associations,  societies and government activities  News of non-profit  government, and other organizations serving the electrical mechanical industries. Edited by the EA staff
  In this issue  - Electroindustry Business Confidence Index rebounded in October ... Engineering enrollment not keeping up with demand ... Arc flash donations approach $2 million ... www.industrialcareerspathway.com promotes industry employment ... National Association of Electrical Distributors and Manufacturers' Representatives Educational Research Foundation offer Certified Sales Professional training program ... Refrigeration Service Engineers Society elects new officers ... Adhesive and Sealant Council calls for papers for ASC 2007 Spring Convention ... Power Transmission and Distributors Association and Fluid Power Distributors Association will hold joint 2009 conferences...

  Note:  the 2007 EMBR lists contact information for more than 140 associations ... Update or add your listing to the 2009 EMBR.

• Engineering Education    By Josh Hoff
  A glimpse into today's engineering classroom in a quarterly feature which reports on college and university courses relevant to expanding electromechanical activities, as well as pre-college programs.  In this issue - tuition-free school for well-rounded engineers: Franklin W. Olin College of Engineering in Needham, Massachusetts (pictured, right) ... Engineers examine hurricane aftermath ... Is the United States losing its standards competitiveness?

  Engineers in the US number more than two million, and job openings for electrical engineers are expected to increase 21%-35% by 2006.  This trend is inspiring new and diverse engineering education programs across the country, from pre-engineering to nanotechnology. Send information about engineering education programs and events to Electrical Apparatus, 400 N. Michigan Avenue, Suite 900, Chicago, III. 60611; (312) 321-9440; Fax (312) 321-1288; e-mail eamagazine@barks.com

• Standards briefs  updates of standards and related information.  In this issue - Aging nuclear plant motors draw attention ...Preparing product safety information - American National Standards Institute (ANSI)... An updated Blue Book from the Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers (IEEE) ... Hazardous location standards combined - Underwriters Laboratories ... Infrared thermography to be added by National Fire Protection Association (NFPA) ... Switchgear installation standard adopted by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) .. New photovoltaic measurement standards - The International Electrotechnical Commission  ... Edited by the Electrical Apparatus staff. 

• Calendar Briefs - Upcoming trade shows, symposia, and events... Edited by the EA staff
  In this issue - conferences, meetings, conventions and more, from December 2006 through September  2007.. Edited by the EA staff

• EA reader at ease  ... Stories featuring unusual or interesting avocational interests of our readers. In this issue - a look back at those profiled this year ...

  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 .

• Safety and health in the workplace   In this issue - Standees deliver more if they have happy feet... .
  By Richard B. Elsberry, EA Contributing Editor

• Accounting for management  In this issue - Funding growth - The lesson is clear: Lean operations ease growing pains.
  By William H. Wiersema, CPA, EA Contributing Editor and author of Steps to a Successful Service Shop.

• Names and Faces ... News and photos of industry people on the move and in the news.  In this issue  -Mark Winkeler of P.D. George Co., ... Laura Prattico of The Eraser Company (Pictured) ... Russell Baker (pictured), Bob Garand (pictured) and Chris Silva of Columbia Electric Supply, Inc. ... Mark Tibbetts, Joel Saltzman and Francine Meyer of the National Electrical Manufacturers Association ... ...Edited by the EA Staff

• Trilingual summary For our international readers, each month one featured topic is presented in French, Spanish and German. In this issue -Internet questions (and answers) reveal motor misunderstandings -- when open forums become little more than a sharing of ignorance (read an online English summary)

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

• Direct and Current Breaking news of interest to the industry, from The Editors of Electrical Apparatus. In this issue - Demand for industrial controls is being dampened by slower economic growth ... Sales growth for electrical distributors slowed in the third quarter of 2006 ... U. S. Distributors year-to-date sales rose for period ending in September ... Online help wanted ads increased by 5% in October ... Unwanted inventory is piling up in US warehouses ... By the Editors

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

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