Electical Contractor

Recently, I needed to dig up a paper I wrote more than a decade ago for a conference in the United Kingdom. Part of the paper was devoted to expert systems that were beginning to gain momentum as a possible way to solve power quality problems, rather than just provide more data or information.

Much of the renewed focus on energy conservation and going green has been on what to do at home and in the workplace. But how about the places where people go to relax and play—resorts and other vacations spots? Are they becoming more green?

Recently, while serving on a panel session at the Power Quality and Reliability conference, a member of the audience chastised me for “not educating us on what this smart grid stuff is really all about.” It seemed like a reasonable challenge, especially given that I am a member of the Institute of

Most facilities have a hidden source of cash within their walls. People working in the energy-reduction field know that usually at least a 10 percent savings in energy can be achieved with a payback measured in less than two years, and often right in next month’s utility bill.

The word "government" often invokes “regulation” (at least until it was replaced with “bailout”). However, governmental regulation of power quality is basically nil in North America, especially in the United States.

On New Year's Eve, I visited someone in the hospital. I was struck by two things. First, there were patients and staff members in the wards, as, unfortunately, illness doesn’t follow a calendar.

The usual focus in this column is what those squiggly waveforms are called and what causes them. Sometimes the focus is even what gets rid of them.

Several times recently, someone has asked why two different instruments reported the same values for watts (W) and volt-amperes (VA), but they don’t show the same values for volt-ampere-reactive (VAR).

Businesses, especially in the financial community, are increasingly reliant on information. This has sent the demand to process and store digital information skyrocketing, turning the heat up on data centers’ computer resources.