SI Testing Articles
Electrical Testing: Ensuring Safety and Efficiency with SI Testing
Explore the essentials of electrical testing with SI Testing and discover how our expertise and advanced equipment can ensure the safety and efficiency of your electrical systems. Dive into our guide on the types, importance, and applications of electrical testing to...
What is an Arc Flash? Understanding the Risks and Protection Measures
At SI Testing, we prioritize electrical safety and the well-being of your personnel. One of the most critical hazards in electrical systems is the arc flash. But what is an arc flash, and why is it so important to understand and mitigate this risk? In this...
Arc Flash Studies – Why are they Important?
The never ending question of why? It began in childhood, endlessly asking our parents the same question: Why? As an adult, were are reminded of this because children are constantly throwing the same question at us. Fortunately, these many years of training have...
I’ve had an Arc Flash Study, Now What?
Once your study has been completed, ensure arc flash stickers have been placed on all electrical panels and equipment. NFPA 70E states: "Electrical panels and equipment that are likely to require examination, adjustment, servicing, or maintenance while energized shall...
Establish a Solid Preventive Maintenance Plan: Electrical Maintenance (Part 1)
Start 2018 With A Plan Establishing a program for routine electrical maintenance is vital for all property managers. If your building has ever lost power or you have experienced costly damage to equipment, then you may already be familiar with the effects of a...
What is Included in an Electrical Inspection? – Electrical Maintenance (Part 2)
What is Included in an Electrical Inspection? Routine electrical maintenance should be factored into your preventive maintenance and predictive maintenance programs. These electrical inspections should be performed by a qualified electrical testing company or...
Main Reasons Electrical Maintenance is Critical: Electrical Maintenance (Part 3)
Electrical Maintenance is Critical Reliability: In order to maintain the reliability of your electrical system, a strong predictive maintenance program is just as vital as the proper training of your employees. Whether you set up a manual PM program or a Computerized...
Infrared Testing: Your Building’s Annual Physical Check-Up
Admit it, we all hesitate to schedule a check-up with our doctor. Of course, it has nothing to do with them, but it has everything to do with us. You might sit there and go through your regular excuses, “ I don’t have the time… I don’t want to pay my deductible… I...
What’s Included in an Infrared Inspection?
So you’ve scheduled an Infrared Inspection… What should you expect? I know I always feel better about purchasing a service when I know what to expect, or I’m familiar with the stages of work being performed. This isn’t because I have a distrust of other professionals,...
Okay, My Infrared Inspection is Complete, Now What?
So the infrared inspection of your building has been completed, and you have received your infrared report… except it’s just sitting on a shelf with the other reports you’ve compiled from the previous year. I know this stack of reports looks impressive and can make...
Questions From The Field
I have some exciting news! We've launched a YouTube channel! I understand that everyone may not learn or absorb information the same way. Some of us love reading; digging into a chunk of material when we find a quiet moment. But there are others who are short on time,...
Why Regular Electrical Testing is so Important
In 2015, $3.1 billion dollars were lost due to fires in commercial buildings. 7.8% of those fires were caused by electrical malfunction. Over 1,400 injuries resulted from those fires and 80 people lost their lives. Many of those fires were preventable. This is just...
What is an Arc Flash? Understanding the Risks and Protection Measures
At SI Testing, we prioritize electrical safety and the well-being of your personnel. One of the most critical hazards in electrical systems is the arc flash. But what is an arc flash, and why is it so important to understand and mitigate this risk? In this...
Arc Flash Studies – Why are they Important?
The never ending question of why? It began in childhood, endlessly asking our parents the same question: Why? As an adult, were are reminded of this because children are constantly throwing the same question at us. Fortunately, these many years of training have...
I’ve had an Arc Flash Study, Now What?
Once your study has been completed, ensure arc flash stickers have been placed on all electrical panels and equipment. NFPA 70E states: "Electrical panels and equipment that are likely to require examination, adjustment, servicing, or maintenance while energized shall...
Arc Flash Safety in 2018 (Part 1)
“Change is inevitable but personal growth is a choice.” - Bob Proctor Change happens all around us whether we like it or not. Some of the changes that affect us professionally will cause us to have to make a choice whether or not to grow. In some instances, growth is...
Arc Flash Safety In 2018 (Part 2 Lockout/Tagout)
There are many instances in life where confusion will be the enemy. This confusion can often stem from an overwhelming amount of choices or even a sequence of steps that may seem unclear or appear to be missing some vital piece of information. Since 1896, the National...
Arc Flash Safety in 2018 (Part 3 – Likelihood of Arc Flash)
Estimate of the Likelihood of Occurrence of an Arc Flash Every electrical job or task we choose to involve ourselves in comes with a certain amount of risk. Our jobs as qualified persons in our respective fields is to be knowledgeable in the operation of the equipment...
Arc Flash Safety in 2018 (Part 4 – Selecting Arc-Rated Clothing)
We’re nearing the end of May, National Electrical Safety Month, and we’re nearly finished breaking down the changes to NFPA 70E, as highlighted by Chris Coache, their senior electrical engineer. The video we have for you this week relates to a table that has been...
Choosing the Right Arc Flash Gloves for the Right Situation
When it comes to arc flash and PPE, one of the more common questions that I am asked deals with gloves. These questions come bundled with a variety of scenarios, but they all seem to stem from a lack of understanding regarding the different categories we deal with...
Know Your Arc Flash Sticker: Incident Energy
One aspect of my job that I really enjoy is having the opportunity to hold training classes that involve a hands-on portion of arc flash safety and awareness. During these on-site trainings is where I typically see a lot of growth in one’s understanding of the...
Know Your Arc Flash Sticker: Restricted Approach
We’ve broken down a lot of information about the Arc Flash Stickers in the last couple of articles, and I don’t want to say that this article will be the last piece of the puzzle, but it is the last boundary we’ll be discussing. My original goal for these articles was...
Electrical Testing: Ensuring Safety and Efficiency with SI Testing
Explore the essentials of electrical testing with SI Testing and discover how our expertise and advanced equipment can ensure the safety and efficiency of your electrical systems. Dive into our guide on the types, importance, and applications of electrical testing to...
Establish a Solid Preventive Maintenance Plan: Electrical Maintenance (Part 1)
Start 2018 With A Plan Establishing a program for routine electrical maintenance is vital for all property managers. If your building has ever lost power or you have experienced costly damage to equipment, then you may already be familiar with the effects of a...
What is Included in an Electrical Inspection? – Electrical Maintenance (Part 2)
What is Included in an Electrical Inspection? Routine electrical maintenance should be factored into your preventive maintenance and predictive maintenance programs. These electrical inspections should be performed by a qualified electrical testing company or...
Main Reasons Electrical Maintenance is Critical: Electrical Maintenance (Part 3)
Electrical Maintenance is Critical Reliability: In order to maintain the reliability of your electrical system, a strong predictive maintenance program is just as vital as the proper training of your employees. Whether you set up a manual PM program or a Computerized...
Infrared Testing: Your Building’s Annual Physical Check-Up
Admit it, we all hesitate to schedule a check-up with our doctor. Of course, it has nothing to do with them, but it has everything to do with us. You might sit there and go through your regular excuses, “ I don’t have the time… I don’t want to pay my deductible… I...
Questions From The Field
I have some exciting news! We've launched a YouTube channel! I understand that everyone may not learn or absorb information the same way. Some of us love reading; digging into a chunk of material when we find a quiet moment. But there are others who are short on time,...
Why Regular Electrical Testing is so Important
In 2015, $3.1 billion dollars were lost due to fires in commercial buildings. 7.8% of those fires were caused by electrical malfunction. Over 1,400 injuries resulted from those fires and 80 people lost their lives. Many of those fires were preventable. This is just...
Managing Electrical Inventory
Some of us tend to put quite a lot of forethought into stocking up on necessities in our homes and offices. Items such as toilet paper, bottled water, trash bags, and things that might normally be overlooked in the grand scheme of things. They don’t weigh as heavily...
Electrical Inventory Made Simple
I received a few questions last week about what a well-stocked electrical inventory should look like. And the answer to that will really depend on your facility and the problems you typically encounter. You’ll need to take into consideration the age of your equipment,...
How Did You Do With Your Maintenance Plan This Year?
At the end of every year, when the big holiday rush begins, I often find myself a little overwhelmed and reminiscent. There are several reasons that lead to being at either end of that spectrum, and neither one is necessarily a good or bad thing. Emotions can be...
Smart Options For Your Leftover Budget
One of the toughest parts about the end of something, is what to do with the leftovers. If you’re finishing a project, then the leftovers might be cleaning up or disposing of materials. If you’re wrapping up a multimedia presentation, how do you go about archiving...
How Do You Handle Problems?
A great way to measure how you performed this year is to take a look back at what went wrong along the way. Were there many emergencies? What failed and how did you handle that situation? Were you prepared? What could you have changed that would have resolved the...
Understanding Your Emergency System
Nobody likes to be in the dark. Losing power can be a huge inconvenience to normal operations and lead to frustration in staff and tenants. And when it comes to critical systems in hospitals or data centers, every second counts. In the event that your building loses...
Required Maintenance for Your Emergency Power Supply System
Your facility’s emergency power should be a finely timed and practiced performance of the many cooperative pieces of equipment. You may not appreciate the speed at which your system is able to restore power, or the duration that it can sustain your building’s...
Common ATS Problems
We’ve discussed a few different aspects of Emergency Power Supply Systems in these past weeks (here and here), and hopefully I’ve managed to either refresh some important concepts for you or even given you some direction for further research. What we haven’t covered...
When Does the Age of Your ATS Become a Problem?
How confident are you in the reliability of your Emergency Power Supply System? Has your facility been blessed with one of the few transfer switches deserving of a nickname? If “Old Faithful” or “Built Like a Tank” doesn’t ring a bell, then you may need to consider...
Circuit Breakers: Don’t Neglect the Little Things
In discussing the importance of Emergency Power Supply Systems and the proper application of maintenance in these systems, it would be a huge oversight if I didn’t touch on circuit breakers. Though they may not seem like the most exciting part of your EPSS, breakers...
Are You Missing Something During Generator Maintenance?
We’ve received a lot of great feedback over these past few weeks talking about Emergency Power Supply Systems. From very early on, one of our goals as a company was to reach professionals in our industry and reinforce good habits in the trade so that we may all...
Where To Focus Your Training: ATS Testing
Over the course of my career, I’ve had the pleasure of leading many training seminars on different aspects of electrical testing and maintenance. Working towards creating teaching moments with my peers for employees and students who are hungry for information has...
Infrared Testing: Your Building’s Annual Physical Check-Up
Admit it, we all hesitate to schedule a check-up with our doctor. Of course, it has nothing to do with them, but it has everything to do with us. You might sit there and go through your regular excuses, “ I don’t have the time… I don’t want to pay my deductible… I...
What’s Included in an Infrared Inspection?
So you’ve scheduled an Infrared Inspection… What should you expect? I know I always feel better about purchasing a service when I know what to expect, or I’m familiar with the stages of work being performed. This isn’t because I have a distrust of other professionals,...
Okay, My Infrared Inspection is Complete, Now What?
So the infrared inspection of your building has been completed, and you have received your infrared report… except it’s just sitting on a shelf with the other reports you’ve compiled from the previous year. I know this stack of reports looks impressive and can make...
What is Infrared?
I’ve written a bit about infrared inspections already, what you should expect from the service, and what happens once your study is finished. You know that infrared is an inexpensive way to diagnose your property and get a better look at your electrical system’s...
Does Temperature Really Matter?
Well, it all depends on the subject matter. When it comes to cooking, temperature plays a significant factor on the timing, look, taste, and overall presentation of the dish. Imagine you and your family are out to a nice steak dinner, and everyone orders according to...
There’s an Easier Way to Find Hidden Water Damage
For many of us, the idea of infrared testing and inspections is primarily attributed to electrical testing. But if your brain doesn’t automatically associate these two fields with one another, you may already be ahead of the curve. In addition to being able to detect...
The 5-Point Infrared Inspection
During an infrared inspection, the instruments we use allow us to see problems that our eyes cannot. But that doesn't mean we should rely solely on the technology we use to reach our conclusions. If you're a trained technician with decades of field experience, your...
Standards For PPE
We’ve reached the end of National Electrical Safety Month, and today we’ll be digging into the last video of the five-part series on 70E changes in 2018. If you haven’t read any of the other SI Articles on these videos, or haven’t watched the videos themselves, please...
Who Is Responsible for My PPE?
We discuss electrical safety a lot here, but we do receive the occasional question of “What do I need?” and “How do I get it?” when it comes to Personal Protective Equipment. I’d love to give you a huge list of awesome gear I’ve used over the years and lead you down...