Month: August 2018

How Reconditioned Electrical Components Can Save Manufactures Money

If you are a manufacturer of products you know how essential it is for you to keep those operating costs down to make as much profit as possible and to see your business thrive.  One way of reducing your overhead is by purchasing those raw materials at the least expensive rates possible.

Another way of reducing those operational costs is by replacing those worn out electrical parts needed in your manufacturing equipment with quality reconditioned electrical distribution equipment and reconditioned electrical parts. Keep in mind that not all parts that need to be reconditioned have functional problems to begin with, the parts may simply have been leased and when the lease has expired the part may be returned and need to be reconditioned before being issued for sale. Reconditioned electrical parts are of similar quality as new parts, but simply cost a lot less.

As surprising as it may be, purchasing high quality reconditioned electrical parts can save your manufacturing company anywhere from 50% to 75% over purchasing new parts and when quality reconditioned electrical equipment is reconditioned properly they can last if those new parts as well.

Choosing the Right Reconditioning Company

Of course you don’t want to purchase reconditioned electrical distribution equipment from just any company that reconditions these types of parts you want to buy those reconditioned electrical parts from a company that has an excellent record for those parts they sell and you want to make sure that the company has excellent reviews from places such as the Better Business Bureau and Google as well as testimonials on the company’s website.

When purchasing reconditioned electrical parts even from a reputable company here are some things you want to know about the reconditioning process before purchasing those parts.

Here are a few of the questions you want to ask.

1) What type of electrical parts does the company recondition? Does it recondition and sell the types of parts your manufacturing company needs?

2) Does the reconditioning Company completely disassemble the use part and clean all the parts and examine them to ensure that each of the smaller individual parts are in good condition?

3) Is the reconditioned used part then repainted with quality paint to give it that new like look and help to protect the part?

4) Is the reconditioned part tested once it is put back together and does the reconditioned part meet or exceed the Manufacturers UL certification.

5) Does the reconditioned part come with some type of warranty, so you can be assured that the money spent on the used part won’t be wasted?

By purchasing high quality reconditioned electrical components manufactures can save significant amounts of money when replacing those old worn out electrical parts for you manufacturing machinery. If your company is looking to cut operating costs, then buying reconditioned electrical parts for a reputable company may be one way do so.

Learn more about J & P Electrical Company and their vast line of new, surplus, and refurbished industrial electrical components including: circuit breakers, bus ducts, bus plugs, disconnects, fuses, panel switches, tap boxes, and transformers at www.jpelectricalcompany.com.  To contact one of our product reconditioning specialists, call 877.844.5514 today.

 

 

Understanding Your Business’s Breaker Panel

Technology has been growing faster and faster in recent years, and your business seems to need to use it all to keep up with your competition.  All those computers and other technological devices that are helping your business grow are taking up more power and space in your business’s breaker panel, which can lead to trouble after a while.

That means that your breaker panel eventually may not be large enough to handle everything and you may find that your company will go in the dark every so often.  There are a few signs that you should look out for to see if it is time to replace your business’s breaker panel.  One of the most noticeable things that you will see are flickering lights.  While you may think that your light bulbs just need to be changed, the fact is that you may need a new breaker panel installed instead.

Another sign may be that your panel switches keep tripping and shutting things down.  This may not be a big deal the first time that it happens, but after a while, it can affect the productivity of your work.  You should also be able to read what each panel switch is connected to, and if you can’t then it can be difficult to know which panel switches to flip when you need to cut the power to something in your office.

Strange buzzing noises or popping sounds are never a good sign either, and anything like that can quickly cause an electrical fire to start.  You may want to try to ignore many of these signs, in hopes that you can just get by to save money, but we recommend getting these things fixed immediately.

Here at we offer for sale an abundance of reconditioned electrical surplus options.  All our reconditioned breaker panels meet the strictest safety requirements, and if it weren’t for the lower cost, you would have no idea that these units were reconditioned when you look at them.

We can find a new breaker panel that will fit your current and future needs in our reconditioned electrical surplus and install it quickly, so that your business does not experience too much downtime.  Since these breaker panels are ready to go, all we need to do is hook them up and attach everything before turning them on.  This is much cheaper than rewiring and the many other options that some other electrical companies offer.

We know that your time is valuable to your business, and we have found that using reconditioned electrical surplus items can save you that time as well as a lot of money.

Learn more about J & P Electrical Company and their vast line of new, surplus, and refurbished industrial electrical components including: circuit breakers, bus ducts, bus plugs, disconnects, fuses, panel switches, tap boxes, and transformers at www.jpelectricalcompany.com.  To contact one of our product reconditioning specialists, call 877.844.5514 today.

What to Consider for Transformer Replacement with Quick Return to Service

When it comes to power transformer replacement, a few tips can ensure a quick return to service while also reducing future costs and downtime.

When power transformers fail, the effects on plant operations can be debilitating. The production gets interrupted; everything grinds to a halt, and the effects on the bottom line can be immediate and devastating. This can put a lot of pressure on those in charge of getting operations back up to full-speed.

To make matters worse, since power transformers rarely go down, it is not uncommon for those in charge of purchasing a replacement unit to have little to no experience in the process. In addition, to someone who doesn’t purchase many transformers or know much about their design, it may seem as though transformers are more of a commodity item, and hence, can be sourced out to the lowest bid. However, there are a number of considerations that can have long term impacts.

“Quality doesn’t always increase the initial purchase price, but it can greatly reduce long-term costs in a number of important ways,” advised Alan Ober, chief engineer at Electric Service Company (ELSCO), an expert with over 40 years of experience in the design and manufacturing of transformers.

Selecting the proper transformer design and construction can actually make a huge difference by extending operating life, reducing overall costs and decreasing the need for future maintenance. The following considerations can help avoid common pitfalls in the sourcing and installation of transformers.

Selecting the Right Transformer

To maximize the return on investment on what is arguably the heart of any industrial plant it is important to understand some of the basics. Starting from the top, power transformers are required to step-down the higher voltages delivered by the electric utility company.

For indoor applications, dry-type transformers are by far the most common due in part to the fact that they are air-cooled, so they pose lower risk of problematic leakage, environmental issues and fire. Since they can safely be used inside a facility, dry-type units can be placed right next to the equipment they are powering which can further reduce costs.

In addition, a plant can save additional operational costs by selecting a new unit over a refurbished option. This is due to the higher efficiencies standards enacted by the Department of Energy in 2010 and then further tightened in 2016 on all new transformers.

Evaluate Winding Design

The way in which the coils are wound around the core of a dry-type transformer greatly affects its robustness and ability to survive “impulses” that can occur from phenomena such as switching surges and lightning strikes.

Two of the most common transformer designs today feature either circular (round-wound) or rectangular windings.

While many transformer manufacturers still offer rectangular windings, because they are less expensive to build, they can develop problematic air traps, hot spots and other problems.

The round coil design, on the other hand, provides significant ongoing operational and cost-saving advantages. Round-wound transformers stay cooler, run quieter, and present less risk of short circuit when coupled with a sheet wound secondary.

Consider the Material

In addition to the design, the material used for the windings and insulation can greatly affect performance and prevent disastrous emergencies from occurring during the unit’s operating life.

For transformer windings, the most common materials used are copper and aluminum. While copper does have a higher upfront cost, it more than makes up for that by outperforming and outlasting aluminum.

The selection of proper insulation also plays a major part in ensuring transformer reliability. Temperatures can reach 200 degrees C in a dry-type transformer on a daily basis; hence skimping on insulation can lead to disastrous consequences.

Therefore, higher-quality insulation, such as DuPont Nomex flame resistant meta-aramid insulation, should strongly be considered. This is the same insulation used in the safety gear worn by race car drivers, fire departments, military applications, as well as in numerous electrical applications.

Investigate a “Drop-in” Solution

Finally, a factor that is often overlooked: The removal of the old transformer and installation of the new one can be time-consuming and costly if not properly addressed beforehand. This is particularly important when there are existing enclosures with dimensional/clearance constraints.

Throughout his career, Ober has seen a number of situations where it has taken riggers days to complete the removal of transformers, and then several more days for the new unit to be installed and hooked up to the switchgear and bus work. Custom bus work for dry-type units may be part of the solution.

“The transformer manufacturer should be consulted and needs to be capable of slightly modifying the transformer – either new or remanufactured – so that it can be ‘dropped-in’ or mated with the existing transformer infrastructure, meeting UL, IEEE standards plus all required clearances, within a few hours,” said Ober.

He added that consulting suppliers on a user’s specific application, present and anticipated power supply needs, and getting an informed evaluation of the options available, can lead to the effective selection of a transformer that will pay substantial dividends in performance and greatly reduce the total cost of ownership.

Author: Ed Sullivan is a Los Angeles-based freelance writer with more than 30 years of expertise in the power generation and distribution industry. 

Original Source: http://hconews.com/2018/02/21/transformer-replacement/