Electrical Apparatus March 2022 - HVAC!

A BARKS PUBLICATION

MARCH 2022 / $5

Electrical Apparatus More than Motors

What’s hot in HVAC/R

The AHR Expo Las Vegas

Specifying motors EV battery production Updating a plant’s HVAC/R Pumps and infrastructure Moving to save taxes

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Electric Avenue

20 A new dawn for battery production in the U.S.

At the heart of a plan to manufacture EV batteries is a close public-private partnership

By Carol Brzozowski, EA Contributing Writer

— GM photo

03/22

Contents

A BARKS PUBLICATION VOLUME 75 / NUMBER 03 WWW.BARKS.COM

20

Say It Right

22 ‘What do you mean by that?’

Communicating the service needs of a rotating machine isn’t always easy

By Richard L. Nailen, EA Engineering Editor

Plant Life

26 Updating your plant’s HVAC/R systems

27

— Electrical Apparatus photo by Selena Cotte

New trends in the HVAC/R sector promise to revolutionize the way we heat and cool buildings

By Selena Cotte, EA Managing Editor

Conventions & Trade Shows

27 Conference season is heating up

This year’s AHR expo in Las Vegas was a smashing success, with thousands of attendees and tons of developments in HVAC/R technology

By Selena Cotte, EA Managing Editor

Motors & Generators

31 Specifying the right motor for the job

The fundamentals you need to be familiar with when writing a motor specification With trilingual summary

By Richard L. Nailen, EA Engineering Editor

Energy

31

— Richard Nailen photo

38 Beating the (oil) drums of war

Matters of money and morality are suddenly among the least of a pipeline operator’s concerns

By Charlie Barks, EA Associate Editor

More Than Accounting

40 Can relocating save taxes?

The potential benefits of moving to a low-tax state

By William H. Wiersema, CPA, EA Contributing Editor

Pump It Up

42 The Infrastructure Act: What’s in it for pumps?

More than a trillion dollars is to be spent on U.S. infrastructure, and some of that money will trickle down to pumps

By Kevin Jones, EA Senior Editor

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— Matt Nolt photo

Departments 04 The editor’s comment

Good HVAC/R remains important

05 Let’s solve your problem

Answers to questions about terminology and motor application

06 Plant happenings

ABB expanding Canadian plant and a Mars Wrigley plant closing

07 Letters

Never too young to enjoy EA; delta winding with center tap

08 Business

A strong quarter for HVAC/R wholesale suppliers

07

09 Names & faces 10 New books

William Thompson on practical motor vibration monitoring

11 Training & education

Getting the next generation interested in HVAC/R

12 Associations

— Hannover Messe photo

New faces at Armstrong Fluid Technology, Tecumseh Products

One more time: In-person conventions resume — again

14 Utilities

Utilities go beyond rebates in promoting HVAC/R upgrades

16 Calendar

Upcoming events on maintenance, automation, manufacturing

18 Know your industry

24

— Emerson Electric Co. photo

Electric & Gas Industries Association: on a mission to educate

23 Speaking of . . .

12

Carrier Corp. is buying out a Toshiba ownership stake

24 Product showcase

What’s new in HVAC/R from Emerson, NAVAC, and Armstrong

41 Deaths

Remembering Robert R. Kennedy, an early EIS sales engineer

44 Classified advertising

Your monthly marketplace for equipment, businesses, and more

44 Cy’s Super Service

The electrical service industry’s most prominent curmudgeon

45 EA puzzle

A crossword puzzle based on EA’s January and February issues

47 Moe, Genny & friends

The surreal world of an anthropomorphized motor and generator

48 Direct & current

‘Price-gouging’ by a utility, and hope for hydrogen fuel cells

48 Advertising index

Who’s who—and who’s where—in this issue of Electrical Apparatus

COVER PHOTO: By Selena Cotte, at the AHR Expo 2022, Las Vegas 2 ELECTRICAL APPARATUS | MARCH 2022

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Motors that are as tough as they are reliable. Drives that can withstand the elements. By combining the power of invention with our expertise and desire for a better world, we imagine things that have never been – and make them a reality.

We are Toshiba.

Connecting our solutions to your possibilities.

Toshiba.com/TIC 800-231-1412 @MadeByToshiba Toshiba International Corporation 13131 West Little York Rd. Houston, TX 77041

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The Editor’s Comment

SELENA COTTE WWW.BARKS.COM SCOTTE@BARKS.COM

Good HVAC/R remains important

Coming next month in Electrical Apparatus: Our annual Energy issue EV battery recycling Engineering Editor Richard Nailen looks at the “drop-in” motor

Read Electrical Apparatus online The entire contents of the March EA are available online. Scan the QR code below:

The beauty of electrical work is just how many subfields and varying applications there are within it. One of those subfields is the Heating, Ventilation, Air-Conditioning, and Refrigeration industry, otherwise known as HVAC/R. While we cover news and info related to the sector throughout the year, we typically dedicate our March issue entirely to the subject, hoping to best inform readers about opportunities and innovations within the industry.

We anchor the issue with a piece on last month’s AHR Expo, held in Las Vegas Jan. 31-Feb. 2 (“Conference season is heating up,” page 27). The convention was a hit, with a thousand-plus exhibitors and more than 30,000 attendees coming from across the globe to discuss the industry’s place in a changing world.

Not to mention Covid-19 again, but the pandemic has absolutely revolutionized the industry and the way that building owners and operators think about their HVAC/R systems. While once, air purification wasn’t a high priority, the show proved that many are considering this high on their list of HVAC/R priorities, alongside automation and energy efficiency.

Manufacturing facilities are excellent examples of buildings that can utilize new HVAC/R technology for the safety of their workers, not to mention for the pocketbooks of operators. In this month’s “Plant Life” (page 26), I explore trends and new offerings in this domain, including companies that are hoping to revolutionize the way HVAC/R even works.

Outside of HVAC/R Speaking of updates, Senior Editor Kevin Jones wrote this month about federal infrastructure programs and how pump manufacturers can get in on the action in this month’s “Pump It Up” (“The Infrastructure Act: What’s in it for pumps?,” page 42). The expensive and wide-sweeping law passed last November has opportunities for a number of industrial providers, which Kevin breaks down quite thoroughly in his column.

And for something a bit different: Engineering Editor Richard L. Nailen takes a look at what goes into writing a motor specification (page 31), cataloging what fundamentals must be known if you’re going to take on the task of specifying it, officially.

Or enter the URL directly: https://bitly/3e9C9dX See page 45 for links to upcoming issues that you can bookmark.

Electrical Apparatus 17 N. State St., Suite 1650 Chicago, Illinois 60602 (312) 321-9440; fax (866) 228-7274 E-mail: EAMagazine@barks.com www.barks.com Founded 1948 as Volt/Age Horace B. Barks, Founding Publisher Elsie Dickson, Founding Publisher STAFF Elizabeth Van Ness, Publisher Kevin N. Jones, Senior Editor Richard L. Nailen, Engineering Editor Selena Cotte, Managing Editor Charlie Barks, Associate Editor John Malinowski, Special Correspondent Contributing Editor William H. Wiersema Special Correspondents Jane Powell Campbell Christopher Wachter Staff Artist: Bernie White Cartoonists John D’Acunto Tim Oliphant ElectroMechanical Bench Reference Supplement mailed with the December issue Elizabeth Van Ness, Editor & Publisher ADVERTISING Barbara Wachter, Advertising Manager CIRCULATION Circulation@barks.com Electrical Apparatus (ISSN 0190-1370), Vol. 75, No. 3, is published monthly by Barks Publications, Inc., 17 N. State St., Chicago, Ill. 60602; (312) 321-9440; fax (866) 2287274. www.barks.com. Periodicals postage paid at Chicago, Ill., and at additional mailing offices. Postmaster: Send address changes to Electrical Apparatus, c/o Barks Publications, Inc., 17 N. State St., Suite 1650, Chicago, Ill. 60602. PM #40830553.

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Let’s Solve Your Problem What does ‘commissioning’ involve?

Many people refer to “commissioning” as apparently somehow defining a process of getting a motor ready to start up for the first time either new or maybe after repair. Is there some accepted practice for doing this?

What should it include?

No standard exists that we know of. Install and connect the motor properly in accordance with the manufacturer’s instructions (or get help from a service organization if you have no experience with that). Start the motor; listen for unexpected noises; monitor such conditions as current and temperature if you’re equipped to do so; call in a manufacturer’s representative if you have further questions or concerns.

There’s no cut-and-dried procedure for “commissioning,” which is normally just a fancy way to say “putting in service.”

The nameplate RPM How accurate are the full-load speed values on motor nameplates? I understand some engineers have used these values to calculate load sharing between two motors.

For instance, if a nameplate reads 3585 RPM, how do we know it isn’t closer to 3580, or 3682, for example?

And are such small differences important?

They can be important — if they can be relied upon. However, normal supply voltage variations, as well as load changes caused by pump flow or gas temperature, can easily make differences of a few RPM. It’s risky to rely on small variations when so many different conditions can be responsible.

The meaning of ‘reliability’ Some electrical apparatus is claimed to offer “high reliability.” How is “high reliability” defined, and how does it relate to “mean time between failures”?

The IEEE 100 standards dictionary defines “reliability” as “the probability that a device will function without failure over a specified time period or amount of usage.”

Presumably, the higher the reliability, the lower the likelihood of failure. However, we have no precise definitions of “higher” or “lower.” All we can say is that a “99% probability” of function is theoretically much more desirable than, say, a “50% probability,” or a “75% probability.”

But for any device or system, a once-in-a-lifetime failure could occur on the first occasion of use, or only after many years of service. Statistics tell you what could happen, might happen, or probably happen; only experience tells you what has happened.

“Mean time between failures” is a statistical concept applicable to a large group, but with little meaning for an individual piece of equipment.

How heavy is ‘heavy’?

Is there any standard meaning for “heavy duty” in electrical apparatus descriptions?

The IEEE standards dictionary (Standard 100) offers a definition only for “floodlight.” It includes the term “weatherproof” (meaning “an enclosure for outdoor application

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The IEEE 100 standards dictionary defines ‘reliability’ as ‘the probability that a device will function without failure over a specified time period or amount of usage’ designed to protect against such hazards as rain, snow, or sleet,” with space heaters to “minimize” condensation). For other apparatus, look to the supplier for the features provided, but remember that “duty” involves not just exposure to ambient conditions, but the demands of operation itself.

Another rewind — or not We have an old 250 hp motor driving a conveyor subject to a lot of starts and stops. It’s been rewound a couple of times and now has failed again.

The repair shop we work with says it’s probably not cost-effective to rewind it again. Does any industry standard offer advice on this?

Standards may help, but only if you’re able to compare all detail of this application with what such standards offer. This is a judgment call for you, based on your trust in the service center’s judgment, the relative costs of repair vs. replacement (including any downtime), and a review of the application itself — have the failures occurred because something has been overlooked (such as the details of that “lot of starts and stops”)?

Insulation on core laminations We understand that stator laminations in a-c motors are coated with electrical insulation to block induced current flow and thus reduce core loss.

We’ve seen the statement by one supplier of that coating that it’s applied to both sides of the steel. Is this generally true? Why would it be necessary?

No, it’s not generally true, for these reasons: 1. Insulation on only one side of each lamination will block all current flow through the entire core stack.

2. Adding insulation on the second side of each lamination needlessly reduces the amount of steel in the complete core length, thus increasing the overall core loss.

3. Whatever the insulation coating may be, it costs money. Putting it on both sides of each lamination is therefore needlessly expensive.

‘Boiler room insulation’ Several years ago someone asked about an old rewind spec that referred to “power house insulation.” We have also seen the term “boiler room insulation.” Would that mean the same thing or something different?

These two terms have apparently been used interchangeably, and still crop up sometimes, although neither one is the subject of current standards concerning either the materials or processes involved. A common interpretation used to be that both procedures involved extra varnish treatments, but that was before VPI processing became a popular alternative.

More than just inertia . . .

We’ve seen statements implying that the ability of a motor to start a load depends only upon the load inertia. Doesn’t the accelerating torque required also have to be taken into account?

Yes, and it can be of greater concern than the load inertia alone. That’s especially true when the motor voltage can drop significantly during acceleration, either because of a reduced-voltage starting method or because of voltage drop in the supply circuit.

EA Edited by the EA staff ELECTRICAL APPARATUS | MARCH 2022 5

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Plant Happenings ABB expanding Canadian facility Global technology giant ABB will be investing CA$16 million into its Pointe-Claire, Quebec plant in Canada which manufactures for its Installation Products Division.

The facility expansion will double the production capacity for its plastic injection molded solutions, as well as create at least 60 jobs.

Aerospace supplier in St. Louis closing GKN Aerospace will be shuttering its St. Louis, Mo. facility by the end of next year, claiming the plant has been unable to profit. The company provides parts for Boeing, Lockheed Martin, and others. Almost 1,000 workers are affected by this closure, although the company claims it will work with the local government to provide assistance through the transition.

Explosion at Louisiana chemical plant

Ice Cream Factory opening new facilities

Six people were injured after an explosion at a Lake Charles, La. Westlake Chemical South production facility. An empty ethylene dichloride storage tank ignited one morning in late January, and the fire was extinguished very quickly. The exact cause is unknown but the incident is still under investigation.

The aptly called Ice Cream Factory, based in Eldon, Mo. will be opening a new facility in the state in Lebanon. The company purchased an 86,000 square foot facility and will be creating 130 jobs over the next five years. Ice Cream Factory sells its product to 16 states and will likely ramp up distribution with its increase in production.

Mars Wrigley shutting Chicago factory

Large EV manufacturer begins training

A Chicago Mars Wrigley plant producing candies such as 3 Musketeers and Milky Way will be closing after nearly a century of operation. The facility, once hailed as the most beautiful candy factory in the world, was well known for its unique Spanish-style architecture and surrounding greens. Nearly 300 workers will be laid off over the next two years.

GreenPower Motor Co., a producer of medium- and heavy-duty electric vehicles, has announced a training program alongside BridgeValley Community & Technical College and the Workforce Development Board of Kanawha County, West Virginia, where the company is opening a new factory. Trainees will be considered for employment. — Selena Cotte EA

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Letters Never too young to enjoy EA Editor: I thought you might enjoy the attached picture of my son Skylar and me looking over the newest publication. As you can clearly see, Electrical Apparatus appeals to the young and middle-aged alike.

Thanks for the magazine!

Matt Nolt, owner Nolt’s Electric Motor Service Peach Bottom, Pa.

phase transformers. Attached is a diagram.

Dave Saylor Dave Saylor LLC York, Pa. Your alternative explanation is certainly valid. Just as there’s more than one way to skin a cat, so are there many ways to connect three-phase transformers. Thanks for sending the diagram of the alternative connection (at right). — Editor EA

A

B

C

Protect Large Motors from Bearing Damage with AEGIS PRORings ®

We’re always happy to see evidence of a younger generation taking an interest in the industry. We just hope that what Skylar’s smiling at is something we intended to be funny! — Editor

Delta winding with center tap Editor: The Oct ’21 issue’s article on “Electrical Folklore” contained many amusing stories of incorrectly stated electrical facts.

However, one statement regarding a 480 volt delta reading 240 volts to ground was not bogus.

Although not common, I have seen this several times in my 40+ years of field visits. It occurs when there is a tap in the center of one winding that is tied to ground. Phase connections on either side will read 240 volts to ground, while phase-to-phase reads 480 volts.

This is typically found in smaller manufacturing locations using three single-

This is typically found in smaller manufacturing locations using three single-phase transformers

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Business A strong quarter for HVAC/R wholesale suppliers

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We’ve been hearing for more than a year that several factors are aligning to give a big boost to the sales of HVAC/R equipment and systems. Demand for greater efficiency, Covid-era concerns about the cleanliness of indoor air, and increasing energy prices are combining to give a big boost to HVAC/R wholesale suppliers.

The proof can be seen in the most recent quarterly financial reports of some major HVAC/R suppliers, which have been strong despite the headwinds of a tight labor market, high inflation, and supply-chain snags.

Carrier Global Corp., the multinational home appliances corporation headquartered in Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., announced Feb. 8 that sales for the fourth quarter of 2021, at $5.1 billion, represented a 12% increase over the same quarter the prior year, exceeding expectations. For fiscal year 2021, sales grew 18% over the prior year.

Chairman and CEO Dave Gitlin called the results a “great conclusion” to the year, noting that the company entered 2022 with record backlog levels. Sales were particularly strong in the HVAC/R segment, with sales in the residential and light commercial markets logging 14% organic growth.

Another major HVAC/R supplier logging a strong fourth quarter was Trane Technologies of Dublin, Ireland, which on Feb. 1 reported a “strong close to 2021” as organic revenues grew 11% in spite of supply-chain and other logistical challenges. Like Carrier, Trane reported a record backlog, while “underlying market demand remains healthy.”

Revenues of $3.6 billion at Trane represented a 12% increase over the same period the prior year, while bookings were up 28%, to $4.1 billion. The record backlog of $5.4 billion — an increase of 88% yearover-year — “positions the company well for 2022 and 2023,” the company said.

Sales have been strong despite the headwinds of a tight labor market, high inflation, and supply-chain snags

Looking forward, Trane expects a “dynamic environment” in the near term as the company continues to meet customer demand while ramping up capacity. In the HVAC/R segment, Trane sees “continued underlying demand for innovative, sustainability-focused products and services.”

Another company that’s anticipating strong sales in its future is Johnson Controls International plc of Cork, Ireland, parent company of HVAC/R supplier York International. Johnson Controls saw fourth-quarter sales increase 10% over the fourth quarter of 2020, to $5.9 billion, and says it’s well-positioned for continued strong growth.

Chief financial officer Olivier Leonetti said the company plans to leverage its OpenBlue digital platform “to capitalize on the global trend towards reducing carbon emissions and energy intensity and improving the overall health of indoor environments.”

Johnson Controls’ strong performance comes in spite of a “challenging operating environment” resulting from “persistent supply chain disruptions and labor constraints,” Leonetti said. Added to those challenges have been recent inflationary pressures.

Lenox International, Inc., of Richardson, Tex., the well-known manufacturer of residential and commercial heating and cooling systems, sounded several of the same notes as its peers among HVAC/R suppliers.

Covid-19 and global supply-chain disruptions “continued to have a significant impact on operations in the fourth quarter as expected,” said chairman and CEO Todd Bluedorn, and yet in spite of these challenges, “the team performed extremely well.”

Fourth-quarter revenue at Lenox International rose 6% over the same period the year before to a record $965 million, and full-year revenue was up 15%, to a record $4.2 billion. Revenue in the residential sector was up 12%, but profit was down 5%.

Lenox International took a hit on the commercial side, however, as revenue declined 11% and profit fell 64% — disappointing performance the company attributed to Covid-19 and supply-chain problems.

Still, “market demand remains strong,” Bluedorn said, and the company expects commercial revenue to resume growth this quarter “and profitability to be up by mid-2022 and for the full year.” — Kevin Jones EA

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Names & Faces Armstrong Fluid Technology announced in December that Mike Fischer has been promoted to commercial director, Global Building Business, reporting directly to the CEO, Todd Rief. Fischer joined the Toronto-based company in 2020 as the commercial director for the U.S. and Latin America. He brings with him more than 30 years of experience from his work with Honeywell, Johnson Controls, and Siemens.

Mike Fischer Prior to joining Armstrong, Fischer was vice president of global service sales at Honeywell Building Solutions, where he led a global sales team responsible for selling software and services.

Taking on the role of U.S. commercial director at Armstrong is Chris Markert, who has a 30-year career of global management and sales experience in the HVAC/R industry. His business experience includes senior management positions with Honeywell International and Johnson Controls, where he had responsibility for major business units in North America, Chris Markert Latin America, and the Asia Pacific region.

Markert has also owned and operated an HVAC/R contracting and service company, as well as an internet start-up focused on technology for the HVAC/R industry.

Marius Braun has been named vice president of sales for Ann Arbor-based German Machine Tools of America (GMTA). Braun now supervises the North American sales for GMTA, a distributor of various gear-making and machine tools for automotive and other power transmissions.

Braun has worked in the U.S. since 2017. He was previously a regional sales Marius Braun manager for Hermle and a Tier One key account manager for Magna. For GMTA, Marius will oversee the sales of the gear-making machine lines sold by the company.

Braun “has many related skills that will allow him to make a strong start for us as we enter another busy IMTS year,” said Walter Friedrich, GMTA’s president and CEO, referring to the biennial International Machine Technology Show, next being held in Chicago Sept. 12-17.

Just call him Jay “Tecumseh” Pittas, a leader in the field.

Pittas has been named CEO of Tecumseh Products, the Ann Arbor, Mich., manufacturer of hydrocarbon condensing units that specializes in hermetic reciprocating, rotary, and scroll compressors using refrigerants like propane and isobutane. He replaces previous CEO Doug Murdock, who will be moving to a new position as president of the Americas. Ricardo Maciel also joins Tecumseh as president of EMEA and Asia, the company announced. — Charlie Barks EA

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New Books Practical vibration monitoring Vibration Monitoring of Induction Motors. William T. Thomson. Cambridge University Press, Cambridge CB2 8BS, U.K.; One Liberty Plaza, 20th floor, New York, N.Y. 10006. 281 pages (hardbound). Price £99 (U.K.); $130 (U.S.).

Supplementing the author’s earlier work (with coauthor Ian Culbert) on “Motor Current Signature Analysis,” this book focuses on “Practical Diagnosis of Faults via Industrial Case Studies” involving the use of vibration spectrum analysis to detect the many types of antifriction bearing failure including fatigue, both true and false Brinelling, shaft currents, corrosion, skidding/ slipping, and excessive load.

The text includes 30 industrial case histories, as follows: 1. Fifteen concerning diagnosis of faults in rolling bearings.

2. Five on diagnosis of misalignment or soft foot.

3. Four on magnetic force or vibration problems.

4. Three on sleeve bearing vibration problems.

5. Three on such miscellaneous problems as vertical motor resonance or vibration/noise associated with inverter drives.

Chapter 1 briefly reviews concerns about shaft misalignment and “soft foot” conditions, with five industrial case histories involving use of vibration analysis to detect these problems.

Chapters 2 and 3 outline bearing types and features, followed by an overview of the types and causes of defects that occur. Chapter 4 introduces the use of vibration spectrum analysis to diagnose rolling element bearing faults, leading to industrial case histories making use of that procedure in Chapters 5 through 8.

Chapter 9 offers other case histories involving large sleeve bearing machines. Six chapters provide nine case histories of acoustic noise and vibration, including broken rotor bars, unbalanced supply voltage, and slot combination problems.

Thomson emphasizes that in previous publications vibration monitors are often assumed to be readily mounted on motor bearing housings, whereas “in many cases” that’s impossible for induction motors. In his concluding chapter, he stresses the importance of “successful grease management,” citing “greasing issues” (too much, too little, grease mixing, and poor maintenance planning) as the major cause of rolling element bearing failures that result in half of all motor problems.

He also states that from his review of “numerous books on vibration monitoring . . . there is no evidence of any book which has, as a central theme, the presentation of industrial case histories on vibration monitoring and analysis used to diagnose faults in induction motors.” — Richard Nailen EA

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Training & Education Getting the next generation interested in HVAC/R

Bluon’s app is intended to provide information that will make HVAC/R techs more productive, efficient, and effective

Many industrial sectors are struggling with the workforce question, or more specifically, how they’re going to pass the baton on to a new generation of technicians. The HVAC/R industry is no exception, but there are several initiatives and programs being instituted in the hopes of solving this problem.

Many across Europe and the U.S. are preparing for World Refrigeration Day, observed annually on June 26. This year’s holiday theme will be “Cooling Matters,” as founder Steve Gill announced during a session at this year’s AHR Expo.

“Our objective is to make the public aware of cooling’s essential benefits, period, culminating in the holiday. The program is how cooling impacts daily life, and how technology choices foster environ- available for all genders but girls are prioritized.

Others have also tried to solve workforce issues with mental well-being of future generations,” Gill said at the conference.

The unofficial holiday was instituted in 2019 to address the “significant technological solutions, including HVAC/R support lack of public understanding of cooling’s importance even though issues platform Bluon, which is aiming to attract younger generations (age 20-34) to the field like refrigerant transition, emisthrough its free app that connects sions reduction, and maximizing technicians with distributors. energy efficiency have been adThe app is intended to give them dressed for decades by governinformation that will make them ments due to global policies and productive, efficient, and effective binding international frameworks,” when they arrive at a job site. according to the program’s website.

“We have built the first mobile Young students in particular are app support platform that has at the heart of World Refrigeraachieved deep market penetration tion Day’s educational goals, and and is completely brand agnostic – many programs such as U.K.-based meaning HVAC techs use it for all Stemazing have taken it upon of their jobs, not just for brand X or themselves to promote HVAC/R and brand Y,” said Bluon CEO and chairSTEM in unique programs based on man Peter Capuciati. the day.

“This gives us a tremendous adStemazing is launching the Stemvantage – in that HVAC techs favor azing Inspiration Academy for simplicity and utility – and thereyoung girls in particular, bringing in fore are strongly attracted to the successful women from the HVAC/R Bluon mobile app and its ability to industry to teach seven to nine year help them with virtually all of their old students about HVAC/R topics jobs.” — Selena Cotte EA and more with hands-on activities and experiments over a four week Peter Capuciati, CEO and chairman of Bluon. — Bloun photo

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Associations In-person conventions resume — again After what turns out to have been a tentative return to in-person events last year, several organizations in the electrical and power industries are preparing to present in-person conventions over the coming months.

What follows is a taste of what’s to come.

This isn’t an all-inclusive list of major conventions coming up during the remainder of 2022. See “Calendar,” page 16, for other events, locations, and dates.

“Recharged and ready” is how the Professional Electrical Apparatus Reconditioning League of Oak Brook Terrace, Ill., describes itself as it prepares for this year’s iteration of its annual conference and exhibition.

The event, to be held April 22-23 at the Westin Dallas Stonebriar Golf Resort & Spa in Frisco, Tex., is expected to draw nationwide participation by “professionals concerned with the safety and reliability of reconditioned and remanufactured electrical equipment and apparatus.”

The first day of this year’s conference will be devoted to presentations on implementing PEARL standards, recruiting and retaining employees, and marketing one’s company. The second day will be occupied by a bus tour of North Texas, with presentations by National Switchgear of Lewisville and Circuit Breaker Sales Co. of Gainesville.

Technician Certification exams, Levels 1 and 2, are to be held concurrently with the first day’s conference events. This is an event at which attendees can learn a few new things, make new contacts, and update their certification while they’re at it.

The following month, May 10-12, will see the return of CWIEME Berlin, the coil winding, insulation, and electrical manufacturing conference and exhibit that in recent years has been placing an increasing emphasis on electric vehicles and the electrification of conventional transport — what’s collectively known as “e-mobility.”

As we explained in Electrical Apparatus last month, the event’s ambitious objective is to provide a meeting place where engineers, purchasers, and CEOs can find “the components, raw materials, and process machinery” to produce the next generation of motors, generators, and transformers for applications both commercial and industrial.

As this issue of EA was going to press, more than 600 international suppliers had already committed to exhibiting at the event. They include companies providing products, materials, and services for virtually every facet of electrical manufacturing, from manufacturers of motor and transformer components to providers of test instruments.

Utility-scale renewable energy will take center stage May 16-18 when CleanPower 2022 comes to the Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center in San Antonio, Tex. This is North America’s premier renewable energy event, with more than 7,000 attendees expected, some 350 exhibitors lined up to show their products and services, and about 30 countries represented.

CleanPower brings together the technologies and people making up the diverse renewables sector, which encompasses onshore and offshore wind, solar, storage, and transmission. It also draws upon the segments

The bright and capacious halls and atriums of Deutsche Messe in Hannover, Germany, will be the site of Hannover Messe May 30 through June 2.

— Hannover Messe photo

making up those sectors, including manufacturers, construction firms, owner-operators, utilities, financial firms, and corporate buyers.

Also beginning in May, across the Atlantic, Hannover Messe will take place May 30 through June 2 on the outskirts of Hannover, Germany, with “a new date and even more innovations.” (The event’s dates were revised earlier this year.) Hannover Messe calls itself the “home of industrial pioneers,” a boast that’s not without merit as the city traces its origins as a center of trade and industry back to the Middle Ages.

Today, Hannover Messe is one of the most prominent European industrial events of the year. It typically draws somewhere in the range of a quarter of a million visitors and more than 6,000 exhibitors, bringing together core industrial sectors at one location — “from drive engineering, automation, energy, R&D and industrial IT to subcontracting,” as the planners note.

The primary themes of Hannover Messe 2022 will be digitization and sustainability — two themes that crop up regularly in Electrical Apparatus.

Companies from the mechanical engineering, electrical engineering, logistics, energy, and software and IT industries “will be showing how the transformation to digitalized, resource-efficient and climate-neutral production can succeed,” Hannover Messe promises.

Turning from Hannover Messe to the convention of the Electrical Apparatus Service Association is like turning from science lab to old home week.

If the former is about the latest breakthroughs in industrial technology, the latter is about renewing and establishing contacts in a tightly knit network that’s increasingly international, with plenty of presentations about management and marketing to keep attendees up to date with current trends.

This year’s EASA convention is to be held June 26-28 at the America’s Center in St. Louis, the hometown of the association itself. Over the years, the EASA Convention has settled into a familiar pattern of educational sessions on management, marketing, and technology, with many of the presentations given by members and association staff engineers.

As of press time, the full program of this year’s EASA Convention hadn’t been announced yet, but we can probably expect these members and association staffers to be joined by a stable of outside experts who will talk about the state of the industry and the economic outlook for the coming year.

The EASA convention has always had a casual, good-old-boy vibe, but according to at least one attendee, last year’s event verged on the raucous, as people who had been conducting much of their business virtually for the previous year had the chance, finally, to get together in person and bust free. It will be interesting to see, this year, if things have returned to what has always been a lively but more restrained event. — Kevin Jones EA

12 ELECTRICAL APPARATUS | MARCH 2022

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Utilities Utilities go beyond rebates in promoting HVAC/R upgrades The benefits of upgrading HVAC/R equipment have long been understood — and promoted — by electric utilities. Heating and cooling equipment that runs more efficiently is better not only for the environment but also for business and household budgets.

Electric utilities have several ways to nudge customers toward upgrading their HVAC/R equipment, from hooking customers up with certified contractors to offering cut-rate prices on things like smart thermostats.

One tool that has become nearly universal is the rebate.

Typical are the rebates for HVAC/R upgrades offered

by Dominion Energy for customers in South Carolina.

Customers can receive rebates of up to $750 toward the purchase and installation of approved Energy Star air conditioning systems, heat pumps, and heat pump water heaters. In 2020, the program provided about 6,500 rebates to about 6,000 customers.

San Francisco-based Pacific Gas & Electric has long offered incentives to get residential customers to upgrade their HVAC/R and related smart devices, but in January the California utility renewed its push to motivate businesses to do so.

The benefits of HVAC/R upgrades, the utility says, are three-fold: Upgrades can improve the health and comfort of employees and customers, they meet evolving efficiency requirements, and they can reduce consumption of finite natural resources.

PG&E’s three most popular business HVAC/R rebates are those for upgrading variable-frequency drives that regulate fan speeds, the digital economizer controls that monitor HVAC/R components, and the demand control ventilation that senses room occupancy and regulates airflow accordingly.

The utility goes beyond rebates, maintaining a database of contractors familiar with PG&E’s programs and a collection of articles about choosing, contracting, and maintaining HVAC/R systems.

This schematic from a user’s guide to PSE&G’s WorryFree protection plan shows which parts (shaded) of a gas hot water boiler are covered under the utility’s premier plan.

— PSE&G diagram

Like its northern counterpart, Southern California Edison currently goes beyond mere rebates and offers a suite of educational resources about the selection and implementation of HVAC/R systems.

The utility operates two brick-and-mortar Energy Education Centers dedicated to this mission, in Irwindale and Tulare, Calif., but the virtual offerings of the centers have recently gained in prominence and popularity. Some of the online seminars are offered on demand and free of charge; others, at a set time for a fee.

The on-demand HVAC/R programs — intended for HVAC/R installers and servicers who live or work in the Southern California Edison service area — cover such subjects as commercial refrigeration, chillers, and building automation. Other HVAC/R courses, available only at scheduled times, go into greater depth, covering such things as the theory of gas heating, airbalancing, motor theory, and safe practices around carbon monoxide.

Like most utilities, Florida Power & Light Co. offers a menu of rebates for HVAC/R suited to the prevailing climate of its service area. The emphasis,

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not surprisingly for a Florida utility, is air conditioning, for which customers can earn rebates by upgrading through certified contractors.

Florida Power & Light also offers customers a service it calls Energy Select. At its heart is a programmable thermostat that can monitor and control both heat pumps and air conditioners.

Like any smart device, the Energy Select thermostat offers users numerous ways to customize their energy use, but with it comes a complexity some might not consider worth the effort to master; the guide for using the thermostat is 29 pages long.

Smart thermostats have become a standard offering among electric utilities, usually paid for in part with rebates.

Consolidated Edison of New York has a generously stocked online marketplace where customers can order things like LED light bulbs and power strips in addition to thermostats of various levels of sophistication.

The latest product in the ConEd marketplace is a Sensi smart thermostat from Emerson, the Model ST55U, which is said to offer about 23% in savings on HVAC/R energy costs, “with features like geofencing, seven-day flexible scheduling, remote access, and in-app system usage.” With a retail price of $129, the Energy Star-rated thermostat is available to ConEd customers, after rebates, for $79.

Public Service Electric and Gas Co. of Newark, N.J. — better known as PSE&G — offers a similar selection of rebates for HVAC/R upgrades but goes further by offering a comprehensive service contract, not just for heating and cooling but for household appliances as well.

Called the WorryFree protection plan for residential customers, the program provides extended coverage for furnaces, boilers, water heaters, central air conditioning, heat pumps, and kitchen and laundry appliances.

The emphasis of the WorryFree plan is quality of service. The utility promises “one-call scheduling” and fast response times, access to technicians who can explain matters in plain English, and membership in a wholesale pricing program.

All of this comes at a price that appears as an item in the customer’s monthly bill.

If some smart home devices appear designed for people who want to geek out over digital gizmos, the WorryFree plan appears designed for people of the opposite temperament — those who want to make their devices work for them, not the other way around. — Kevin Jones EA

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Calendar Mark your calendar for these upcoming trade shows and conferences.

• March 1-3, 2022 — Supply Chain Planning Live, Virtual. Proquis, www.supplychainplanning.live.

• March 7-11, 2022 — CERAWeek, Hilton AmericasHouston, Houston, Tex. IHS Markit, www.ceraweek.com.

• March 8-10, 2022 — O&M and Safety Conference, Hotel Del Coronado, Coronado, Calif. American Clean Power, www.cleanpower.org/om-and-safety2022.

• March 16-17, 2022 — Plant Engineering & Maintenance Expo, Wisconsin State Fair Park, West Allis, Wis. Plant & Facilities Maintenance Association, www.pfmainc. com.

• March 21-23, 2022 — Pack Expo East, Pennsylvania Convention Center, Philadelphia, Pa. Packaging Machinery Manufacturers Institute, www.packexpoeast.com.

• March 29-30, 2022 — Siting and Environmental Compliance Conference, Kalahari Resort, Round Rock, Tex. American Clean Power, www.cleanpower.org/sitingand-environmental-compliance.

• March 30-31, 2022 — ATMO Virtual Trade Show & Summit, Virtual. SHECCO, www.atmo-vts.com.

• April 4-5, 2022 — Smart Water Systems, Copthorne Tara Hotel, London, U.K. SMi Group, www.smart-watersystems.com.

• April 12-14, 2022 — D&M (Design & Manufacturing) West, Anaheim Convention Center, Anaheim, Calif. Informa Markets, www.dmwest.com.

• April 28-29, 2022 — Intelligent Infrastructure, Fairmont Austin, Austin, Tex. Topio Networks, www.intelligentinfra.com.

• May 10-12, 2022 — CWIEME Berlin, Messe Berlin, Berlin, Germany Hyve, www.berlin.coilwindingexpo.com.

• May 10-12, 2022 — Electrical Wire Processing Technology Expo, Wisconsin Center, Milwaukee, Wis. Wiring Harness Manufacturer’s Association (WHMA) & IPC, www.electricalwireshow.com.

• May 16-18, 2022 — Cleanpower Conference & Exhibition, Henry B. Gonzalez Convention Center, San Antonio, Tex. American Clean Power, www.cleanpower.org.

• May 30-June 2, 2022 — Hannover Messe, Hanover Fairground, Hanover, Germany. Deutsche Messe, www.hannovermesse.de.

• June 6-9, 2022 — Automate, TCF Center, Detroit, Mich. Association for Advancing Automation, www.automateshow.com.

• June 26-28, 2022 — EASA Convention & Solutions Expo, America’s Center Convention Complex, St. Louis, Mo. Electrical Apparatus Service Association, www.easa.com/convention.

• August 23-25, 2022 — The Water Expo, Miami Airport Convention Center, Miami, Fla. Show Winners Corp, www.thewaterexpo.com.

• September 12-17, 2022 — International Manufacturing Technology Show, McCormick Place, Chicago, Ill. AMT - The Association for Manufacturing Technology, www.imts.com.

• September 13-15, 2022 — The Battery Show, co-located with The Electric & Hybrid Vehicle Technology Expo, Suburban Collection Showplace, Novi, Mich. Informa Markets, www.thebatteryshow.com.

• October 8-12, 2022 — Weftec, Ernest N. Morial Convention Center, New Orleans, La. The Water Environment Federation, www.weftec.org.

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Know Your Industry A mission to educate HVAC/R workers Electric & Gas Industries Association Headquarters: 3800 Watt Ave., Suite 105, Sacramento, Calif. 95821 Founded: 1966 Annual dues: Varies by income Phone: (866) 367-3442 E-mail: memberservices@egia.org Website: egia.org Home to Contractor University, the Electric & Gas Industries Association, informally known as EGIA, helps bolster the image of this particular niche of the contracting industry. The association’s linchpin is utilities, with which it works to provide rebate services, distribution contacts, and research.

Contractor University focuses on training not only individuals, but those aiming to gather a crew to start their own contracting business. Online classes, live events, workshops, and a resource library are offered through the program.

An archive of YouTube videos on the group’s “Cracking the Code” channel (simulcast as podcasts) is devoted to information like “The 4k Rule” of repair vs. replacement. EGIA’s Contractor U contends that the replacement value (RV) of a given piece of existing equipment is equal to the equipment age (EA) times the cost of repair (CR) greater than $4,000. The formula presents like this:

EGIA is an organization that champions business savvy in the contracting industry but clearly values the need for a technical foundation in order to best serve that industry’s clientele

need for a technical foundation in order to best serve that industry’s clientele.

The association is a nonprofit organization that describes itself as being “passionately committed” to helping contractors achieve success in their businesses through a variety of education, training, services, tools and other offerings.

With roots dating back to the original gas & electric industry events of the early 1930’s, the association was officially formed by the 1966 merger of the Northern California Electrical Bureau and the Gas Appliance Society of California.

Originally headquartered in San Francisco, EGIA began as a nonprofit membership association with the mission to help promote the sale of energy-efficient appliances for retailers throughout the state of California. By 1980, EGIA served a member base of more than 1,000 California appliance retailers.

Due to rapid organizational growth, EGIA soon moved its headquarters to Sacramento and expanded its focus to include the advancement of the Replacement Value (RV) = Equipment Age (EA) H Cost home-services industry through a nationwide network of contracting busiof Repair (CR) > $4,000 nesses.

Today, with thousands of members nationwide, EGIA is one of the fastRV = EA H CR est growing contractor organizations in the country. The association has 70 employees of its own.

Weldon Long, a New York Times bestselling author One of the most frequently cited concerns among home services compawho is accomplished in the contracting business, con- nies is an inability to find qualified employment candidates. EGIA’s estiducts the regular podcast sessions to supplement the mates indicate that there’s currently a need for 115,000 HVAC/R workers, group’s training. while HVAC/R training and education programs graduate only a small fracLong’s presence reflects EGIA’s emphasis on business, tion of that number each year. As more and more people seek out careermarketing, and management, all of which appear in the oriented employment, the general public stands to benefit by gaining an weekly workshops. Specific topics include a course on increased understanding of the potential for a viable career in the home “Residential Service Agreement Success,” while broad- services trades. er versions are labeled “Market Mastermind 360” and The EGIA Foundation Scholarship Program — an integral pillar of the “Consistency Selling.” organization’s mission — was established “to recognize the excellent and This is an organization that champions business deserving students seeking an HVAC/R technical education,” per the assavvy in the contracting industry but clearly values the sociation’s website. This scholarship provides “essential financial support to aspiring residential HVAC/R, or home performance contracting careers.”

Up to 20 eligible students will be awarded a $2,500 scholarship to pursue an HVAC/R degree or certificate at an accredited community college, technical/vocational school, or approved technical institute during the 2022-2023 academic year. Applicants will be asked to explain what inspired them to choose an HVAC/R technical educaStudents at Contractor University, EGIA’s flagship program, are taught a technical foundation layered tion and their plans upon graduatwith business sense.

— EGIA photo ing.

EA 18 ELECTRICAL APPARATUS | MARCH 2022

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Don’t be dropped!

Renew your subscription to Electrical Apparatus today Subscribers who have not renewed in the last year will be removed from the list.

The U.S. Post Office requires that we mail to active subscribers only. If it’s been a while since you’ve renewed your subscription, we need to hear from you now!

To renew online, go to http://ea-renew.com or log on with the QR code at right.

To renew by mail or fax, send us the mailing label on the front cover of this issue, along with a signed note that you want to continue to receive the magazine.

Fax to 866-228-7274 or mail to: Electrical Apparatus Barks Publications, Inc. 17 N State St Ste 1650 Chicago, IL 60602-3570

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Feature | Electric Avenue

A new dawn for battery production in the U.S.

At the heart of a plan to manufacture EV batteries is a close public-private partnership

By Carol Brzozowski, EA Contributing Writer As consumer demand for electric vehicles ramps up, and with it the need for battery production against the backdrop of supply chain challenges, the U.S. federal government and American companies are answering the call to establish greater domestic battery manufacturing.

The U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) recently announced $209 million in funding for 26 new laboratory projects focusing on electric vehicles, advanced batteries, and connected vehicles.

Citing the integral role advanced lithium-based batteries play in 21st century technologies such as electric vehicles, stationary grid storage, and defense applications, the federal government announcement emphasizes the criticality in securing America’s clean energy future by increasing domestic production.

Photo, above: Ultium Cells, a joint venture of LG Energy Solution and General Motors, recently announced a $2.6 billion investment to build its third battery cell manufacturing plant in the U.S. The facility will be located in Lansing, Mich.

The new battery cell plant is expected to create 1,700 new jobs when the facility is fully operational. The approximately 2.8-million-square-foot facility is scheduled to open in late 2024.

— GM photo

The U.S. relies significantly on importing advanced battery components from abroad, which has exposed the nation to supply chain vulnerabilities that threaten to disrupt the technologies’ availability and cost.

The 26 laboratory projects being funded by the DOE focus on significantly reducing the cost and size of next-generation battery technology and advancing extreme fast charging to allow for batteries to be fully charged in less than 15 minutes.

Additionally, the projects aim to mitigate potential grid impacts of tens of millions of vehicles being charged nationwide and streamline cooperative vehicle-to-vehicle communications and controls that reduce energy use and emissions.

The DOE’s Argonne National Laboratory also has announced the LiBridge, a new public-private partnership to bridge gaps in the domestic lithium battery supply chain. The Li-Bridge will work with the entire National Laboratory complex to accelerate the development of a robust and secure domestic supply chain for lithium-based batteries.

The Argonne National Laboratory will engage with the federal sector through the Federal Consortium for Advanced Batteries, established by DOE to put the U.S. on a path to long-term competitiveness in the global battery value chain.

The National Blueprint for Lithium Batteries, developed by the consortium, will help guide investments to develop a domestic lithiumbattery manufacturing value chain creating equitable clean-energy

20 ELECTRICAL APPARATUS | MARCH 2022

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manufacturing jobs in America while helping to mitigate climate change impacts.

A secure supply chain The blueprint lays out five critical goals and key actions. It is based on a vision for the lithium battery supply chain that by 2030, the U.S. and its partners will establish a secure battery materials and technology supply chain that supports long-term U.S. economic competitiveness and equitable job creation, enables decarbonization, advances social justice, and meets national security requirements.

The five goals of the National Blueprint for Lithium Batteries include securing access to raw and refined materials and discovering alternatives for critical minerals for commercial and defense applications. Another goal is to support the growth of a U.S. materials-processing base able to meet domestic battery manufacturing demand.

The blueprint also aims to stimulate the U.S. electrode, cell, and pack manufacturing sectors and enable U.S. end-of-life reuse and critical materials recycling at scale and a full competitive value chain in the U.S. Additionally, the blueprint seeks to maintain and advance U.S. battery technology leadership by strongly supporting scientific R&D, STEM education, and workforce development.

Less reliance on overseas suppliers In the meantime, several U.S. businesses are ramping up plans to increase battery production in the country without having to rely on the overseas supply chain. In late January, General Motors announced it is accelerating its drive to lead the EV industry with a $7 billion investment in battery and electric vehicle manufacturing in Michigan, retaining 1,000 jobs and creating 4,000 new ones.

As the largest single investment in GM history, the initiative is focused on four Michigan manufacturing sites in an effort to significantly increase battery cell and electric truck manufacturing capacity. Plans call for the construction of a new Ultium Cells battery cell plant in Lansing and the conversion of GM’s assembly plant in Orion Township for production of the Chevrolet Silverado EV and the electric GMC Sierra as the company’s second assembly plant scheduled to build full-size electric pickups.

GM chair and CEO Mary Barra noted the company’s investment in vertically integrated battery production in the U.S. and its North American EV production capacity builds upon consumer response.

The investments move the company closer to becoming the North American EV market leader by 2025 as it ramps up its full-size electric truck pro

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duction capacity to 600,000 trucks. Additionally, GM is investing in its two Lansing-area vehicle assembly plants for near-term product enhancements.

The new Ultium Cells battery cell plant in Lansing is a joint venture between GM and LG Energy Solution that invests $2.6 billion to build Ultium Cells’ third U.S. battery cell manufacturing plant – following two plants being constructed in Ohio and Tennessee – and supply battery cells to Orion Assembly and other GM assembly plants.

The investment is expected to create more than 1,700 new Ultium Cells jobs when the plant is fully operational. Site preparations begin this summer, and battery cell production is scheduled to begin in late 2024.

Vertically integrating battery assembly and converting existing assembly plants are at the core of GM’s strategy for scaling EV production in North America as the company projects it will convert 50% of its North American assembly capacity to EV production by 2030.

Additionally, GM is building a new supply chain through strategic supplier agreements for batteries and EV components, which is expected to be scalable and more resilient, sustainable, and North Americanfocused. The supplier agreements include MP Materials to scale rare earth magnet sourcing and production in the U.S. Another supplier, VAC, will build a new magnet factory in the U.S., and POSCO will build a new North American plant to process Cathode Active Material.

Additional supplier agreements include GE Renewable Energy to serve as a source of rare earth and other materials and Wolfspeed to develop and provide silicon carbide power device solutions.

Controlled Thermal Resources has been enlisted to develop a source of U.S.-based lithium through a closed-loop process with lower carbon emissions when compared to traditional processes.

New North American plant planned In another effort to establish more battery production in the U.S., Lithium Werks announced its plans for the largest North American-based cathode powder and electrode production facility for lithium batteries.

The new facility will produce lithium iron phosphate cathode powders as well as Lithium Werks’ Nanophosphate powder, which was developed by MIT. Finished electrodes for sale and use by lithium-ion battery cell manufacturers also will be produced at the plant. Lithium Werks projects a starting annual production capacity of 4 GWh of cathode powders as well as an equivalent amount of finished electrodes.

The new facility is in response to what a company press release notes as an urgent national need for U.S.-based lithium battery capacity.

It is being designed for fast, scalable, efficient, and low-cost incremental expansion to meet the growing demand for safe, low-cost, and environmentally friendly active materials for electric vehicles, light transportation, and energy storage applications.

The Lithium Werks facility also is being designed to be capable of producing improved energy density performance cathode materials while delivering safe, long-lasting, and high-power materials without cobalt and nickel. The company is expected to announce the site selection soon.

U.S. Secretary of Energy and former Michigan Governor Jennifer M. Granholm noted that “by developing smarter vehicle batteries, we can make these technologies cheaper and more accessible, while positioning America to become a global leader of EV infrastructure production and clean energy jobs.”

EA ELECTRICAL APPARATUS | MARCH 2022 21

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Feature | Say It Right

‘What do you mean by that?’

Communicating the service needs of a rotating machine isn’t always easy

By Richard L. Nailen, EA Engineering Editor Using the right words (and spelling) is important in properly describing performance of any apparatus.

In general, though, the greater trouble lies elsewhere.

When the apparatus condition leads to the need for some kind of servicing, what’s to be done isn’t always clearly defined. Neither the details of the work nor the results to be expected are clear. Applicable standards don’t help.

Consider these widely used examples: “refurbishing,” “rebuilding,” “restoration,” “reconditioning,” and “overhaul.” None has a standardized meaning.

We don’t find definitions for any of these terms in the IEEE Dictionary (Standard 100); in ANSI/EASA AR 100, Recommended Practice for the Repair of Rotating Electrical Apparatus; or in EASA AR 200, Guide for the Repair of Power and Distribution Transformers. (A 1948 EASA “Rebuilding Standards” document for transformers applied only to a complete rewind.)

We’ll find definitions in a dictionary, of course, where to “recondition” means “to restore to good condition, especially by repairing, renovating, or re-

4 New Refurbished

1 4

Condition

3 2 Original First failure Age

Exact variation of operating condition vs. equipment age can’t be predicted; the curves here show only trends. “Refurbishing,” “reconditioning,” etc., might lead to Condition 1 (“like new”); Condition 2 (“as good as it was when it failed”); or Condition 3. A subsequent failure might then occur – either about the time of the original life expectancy (condition 2), or much sooner (condition 3). None of this is exactly predictable. Also possible: Condition 4, when the work done incorporates some improvement over the original condition, could be “better than new,” or perhaps just an “upgrade.”

That can’t be proven in advance.

building.” (What’s meant by “good”?) “Rebuilding” means “to make extensive structural repairs” or “to remodel and make extensive changes.”

(What’s considered “extensive”?) To “refurbish” means “to make clean and bright again; to renovate.” Looking up “renovate,” we see only that it means “to restore to an earlier condition”; no help there.

The National Electrical Code has described “reconditioned” thus: “. . . systems, equipment, apparatus, or components that are restored to operating condition . . . the term is frequently referred to as rebuilt, refurbished, or remanufactured.” (To define a word using other undefined terms is what’s known as a “circular definition,” and is meaningless.)

“Reconditioning” flooded equipment has been dealt with by several publications over many years. However, that material offers complete details for dealing with only a single condition: water damage. NEMA issued a guideline in 2005.

A concern not dealt with by any of that wordage: What’s really meant by “operating condition”? Obvious question: Will the performance of the reconditioned item be the same as before? (Think efficiency for an a-c motor.) And how is that to be verified? A final question of equal importance: What operating life might be expected following the reconditioning work?

In Britain, the AEMT’s Good Practice Guide for induction motor repair refers to “restoring the motor to a reliable operating condition.” (“Reliable” means whatever anyone chooses it to mean.) There’s no mention of restoring either original performance or original life expectancy. In 1995, an Australian standard defined only “reconditioned winding” as one that “has been cleaned, dried, re-bonded, or re-varnished, to improve or restore its condition.” (“Restore” to what?) A 1995 IEC proposal to prepare standards dealing with the rewinding and “refurbishing” of rotating electrical machines was not approved; most participating nations considered it unnecessary.

For rotating machines, most relevant publications deal only with windings. One author has described the object of a motor maintenance program as “to maintain windings in safe operating condition.” Safety is of course important – but neither longevity nor performance is mentioned. And although often the most expensive repair, a winding breakdown is not the most frequent cause of motor failure.

Deterioration in the performance of any piece of apparatus can have many contributing causes, singly or in combination: corrosion, material fatigue, overheating, dielectric stress, contamination. . . . Maintenance tests can warn of their onset, but “how much longer do we have?” can only be a judgment call.

To make that call for whatever service work is offered, or contemplated, reach a clear understanding with vendors as to just what will be done; at what points will negotiation concerning further procedures be in order; and what can be expected after the job is done.

Keep in mind the relationships in the accompanying illustration. Although it may be possible, restoration of the original life expectancy can’t be guaranteed.

EA

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Speaking Of . . .

Carrier Corp. buying a Toshiba stake The major business reorganization of Toshiba (featured in EA’s “Direct & Current” in December 2021) is beginning to crystalize, and it will affect the HVAC/R sector.

Carrier Global Corp., of Palm Beach Gardens, Fla., signed a binding agreement Feb. 6 to acquire Toshiba Corp.’s ownership stake in Toshiba Carrier Corp.

(TCC), a variable refrigerant flow and light commercial HVAC/R joint venture with Carrier. (For the latest on Carrier Global’s recent financial performance, see “Business,” page 8.)

Established in 1999, TCC designs and manufactures variable refrigerant flow (VRF) and light commercial HVAC/R systems utilizing its own proprietary inverter technology, as well as commercial products, compressors, and heat pumps.

VRF can be seen in most of Carrier’s air conditioning and heating units. They’re those signature cube-shaped fixtures you often see on the side of a neighbor’s house but are used for additional, interesting applications.

One of these is the U.S.S. North Carolina BB-55, a famous battleship (pictured) currently under restoration and moored in Wilmington, N.C., which hosts historical tours.

The World War II iteration of the North Carolina, sometimes known as the “showboat” by its tour guides, is best known for its roles in the Guadalcanal and Philippine Sea campaigns.

Carrier air conditioning units on the deck of the U.S.S. North Carolina.

— Carrier photo

Delivering comfortable air to a battleship is “a special kind of challenge,” per Carrier, but VRF installations enabled the ship to transfer conditioned air where it wasn’t available before, opening up rentable space that hadn’t before existed.

The advantages of VRF technology are that it can deliver heating and cooling through systems that are typically all-electric and highly efficient, something consistent with Carrier’s sustainability goals to reduce its customers’ carbon footprint by more than one gigaton by 2030.

In addition to clarifying its restructured businesses, including the new entities of Device Co. and Toshiba/Infrastructure Service Co., Toshiba made a separate announcement regarding the Carrier divestment: “As part of the strategic reorganization process, Toshiba separately announced that it has entered into an agreement to sell its joint venture stake in Toshiba Carrier Corp. to the Carrier Group for approximately 100 billion Japanese Yen [roughly $86 billion].”

The company also mentioned it is “moving forward with divestiture plans for Toshiba Elevator and Building Systems Corp. and Toshiba Lighting & Technology Corp..”

Carrier’s acquisition will include all of TCC’s research & development centers and global manufacturing operations, product pipeline, and the long-term use of, in Carrier’s words, “Toshiba’s deeply respected and iconic brand.” — Charlie Barks EA

It’s All In The Name!

Celebrating 10 Years of Superior Services Stator and Rotor Laminations

SUPERIOR SERVICES LLC FOR YOUR LAMINATION NEEDS Contact Joyce at p:256-352-5750; f:256-352-5710 e:supserllc@aol.com 250 County Road 520 Hanceville, AL 35077

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Product Showcase: Spotlight on HVAC/R The best and newest in tools, instruments, and machines for manufacturing and service

New control system for commercial boilers Fenwal Controls has introduced its new Platform Ignition Module (PIM) boiler system, a combined controller and gas ignition module that can be tailored to OEM specifications. The PIM system is said to enable comprehensive, simultaneous control of ignition, temperature, and fan speed across multiple boilers, and can be combined with a 4.3, 7, or 10 graphical display controller with integrated connectivity. The manufacturer says that the new PIM system is compatible with boilers of any size and features industry-standard Modbus connectivity for seamless communication with existing building management systems.

Scroll compressors for HVAC/R applications Emerson Electric Co. has rolled out a new lineup of two-stage scroll compressors designed for residential and light commercial HVAC/R applications such as heat pumps, split air conditioning, packaged systems, rooftops, and geothermal systems.

While optimized for the commonly used R-410A refrigerant, the new Copeland ZPSK7 compressors are also compatible with low global warming potential (GWP) refrigerants and are said to deliver regulation-ready efficiency to meet the upcoming 2023 regulations. At part-load capacity, the compressors reduce humidity and allow precise temperature control by modulating the capacity, the company says. Available configurations range from 1.5- to 5-ton single-phase models.

Power tube expander from NAVAC Global HVAC/R tools manufacturer NAVAC has unveiled its cordless NTE11L BreakFree power tube expander, which is said to offer efficient and precise expansion for tubes in the 3⁄8 to 11⁄8 range. According to NAVAC, the power tube expander can perform its duties in just 12 seconds with the touch of a single button, and its rechargeable lithium battery allows up to 200 expansions per charge. Other features include an LED flashlight and a battery power indicator.

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Duct sealing system removes leaks Climate technology company Aeroseal has introduced the Home-Seal Connect 4.0 (HSC 4.0) duct sealing system for HVAC/R contractors, duct cleaners, and solar installers. The company says that the new system is easier to use, more rugged, and reduces duct leakage by 90% or more. HSC 4.0 measures the pressure and airflow inside the ducts with the use of a calibrated fan, then injects a fog of nontoxic sealant particles into the pressurized ductwork to seal air leaks as large as 5/8O and as small as a human hair.

New ceiling-mounted air purifiers Santa Fe Indoor Air Quality Solutions has launched two ceiling-mounted high-efficiency particulate air (HEPA) purifiers designed for installations above drop ceilings in schools, medical facilities, and commercial spaces. According to Santa Fe, the purifiers run independently of the HVAC/R system to deliver clean air and don’t interfere with the HVAC/R system’s performance.

Luminaires for ultraviolet disinfection UV Resources has added two new open-style luminaires to its GLO UV-C disinfection upper-room fixture series. Designed to irradiate air spaces with high ceilings (12 feet and higher), GLO 900-OF and GLO 1500-OF can treat areas of 900 and 1,500 square feet, respectively. The new units use a parabolic reflector that optimizes the germicidal ultraviolet output required to inactivate airborne viruses, bacteria, and mold spores. According to the manufacturer, the new fixtures exceed the performance guidelines established for hospital and healthcare applications.

New single-phase pumps from Armstrong Armstrong Fluid Technology has announced a new version of its single-phase Design Envelope pumps for light-duty installations in commercial and residential spaces (200 to 230 volts).

The pumps, available from 1⁄3 to 2 hp, can be installed and operated in vertical piping, and are built to a design standard carried over from commercial pumps for increased reliability.

EA Christopher Wachter ELECTRICAL APPARATUS | MARCH 2022 25

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2/21/2022 10:29:21 AM

Feature | Plant Life

Updating your plant’s HVAC/R systems New trends in the HVAC/R sector promise to revolutionize the way we heat and cool buildings

By Selena Cotte, EA Managing Editor In a manufacturing environment, the temperature can get hot (or too cold, in some specialized facilities) quickly. With so many machines running and workers often having to run around, it’s important to have a functioning and effective HVAC/R system in place.

Many factories already do have their basics covered with a standard air conditioning unit that keeps workers alive and well. However, if you’re in charge of your facility’s building maintenance and interested in upping your game, there are a number of trends in HVAC/R offerings to take advantage of, including sustainable options, more sophisticated air purification systems, and high-tech automated solutions that make control easier than ever.

Cleaner heating and cooling With the HVAC/R industry responsible for more than 10% of global C02 emissions, as well as 45% of total building energy consumption, several companies seek to provide “cleaner” heating and cooling technologies.

Dublin-based Exergyn recently raised $35 million to continue rolling out its sustainable thermal management technology across Europe. The company claims its “efficient, affordable, and emission-free” solutions will eliminate refrigerant gas emissions over the next 30-40 years using its unique solid-state shape memory alloy (called SMA) which contract and relax as they absorb and release heat.

Previously, scientists have discovered that the magnetocaloric effect also worked to heat and cool without refrigerants, but the magneto-thermodynamic phenomenon has been too expensive to implement in many facilities.

Siemens’ J2 Innovations subsidiary is also interested in driving down energy use, and subsequently energy costs, for a variety of smart buildings including factories and OEMs. The company’s FIN Framework is a software framework for smart buildings, smart equipment and IoT applications. It’s used to integrate, control, manage, analyze, visualize, and connect systems.

At this year’s AHR event, J2 Innovations announced that its FIN Framework software for smart buildings, smart equipment, and IoT will now have a compatible Siemens-made hardware platform that customers can use. The X200 Edge Controller (pictured) is a hardware alternative meant for system integrators and OEMs that do not manufacture their own hardware.

— J2 Innovations

“It’s clear that climate change, tighter legislation, increasing energy costs and the demand for sophisticated automation is putting pressure on the entire industry, but together with J2’s software, we can work to make buildings more sustainable,” said Alex Rohweder, company CEO, in a press release late January.

Clearing the air In the aftermath of Covid-19, many companies have turned their attention to more sophisticated air purification techniques and systems.

Even without needing to shell out for a brand-new purification system, many public health and engineering authorities such as ASHRAE agree that increasing the ventilation in a current HVAC/R system will reduce the risk of viral or other air quality problems. This can be achieved by opening outside dampers and increasing air changes per hour.

However, this is not always sufficient, and the system may not be equipped to handle an increased load. Furthermore, many HVAC/R systems can go long periods of time between deep cleans.

A company like Pure Air Control Systems, based in Clearwater, Fla., works with buildings including factories to update HVAC/R systems to be their most efficient, clean selves. Others like PuriFi are offering cutting-edge technology with commercial applications.

PuriFi uses a proprietary cold plasma energy core that divides and charges the molecules in an HVAC/R system’s airflow, generating a highvolume, patented blend of natural, long-life, positive and negative ions with no refrigerants.

Whether you’re looking to reduce your energy costs, your carbon footprint, or your risk for airborne illnesses, there are plenty more solutions on the market that might be right for your plant.

EA

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Conference season is heating up This year’s AHR expo in Las Vegas was a smashing success, with thousands of attendees and tons of developments in HVAC/R technology

By Selena Cotte, EA Managing Editor From Jan. 31-Feb. 2, more than 30,000 people congregated at the Las Vegas Convention Center for the return of the annual AHR Expo. Show organizers held a pared-down virtual event for heating, ventilation, air conditioning, and refrigeration (HVAC/R) professionals last January, but have not convened in person since early 2020, pre-pandemic chaos, in Orlando, Fla. While many have been concerned about the potential for in-person shows, the HVAC/R mega-event was an undeniable success.

“The 2022 AHR Expo surpassed any expectation — our exhibitors, attendees, associations, speakers and everyone involved made this event one of the most special we’ve ever hosted. If you were there, the camaraderie was hard to miss,” said Mark Stevens, AHR show manager, in a press release. “This industry is strong and we are back on track to tackle the challenges before us.”

The show, which is co-sponsored by ASHRAE and AHRI, had more than 1,500 exhibitors over two exhibit areas, even in spite of lastminute cancellations and Covid fear. This included the return of the conference’s unique Podcast Pavilion, featuring a broad swath of

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industry podcasts recording live throughout the show’s run.

While some industries have suffered greatly as a result of the pandemic and its many consequences, those working in the HVAC/R industry have found themselves more vital than ever.

“Our industry has never been more essential,” said ASHRAE President Mick Schwedler in a statement. “The public became aware of what our industry does. We are fully connected as a world, with more people involved in problem-solving.”

This new focus on HVAC/R’s role in air quality and health is not likely to go away any time soon.

“Before Covid-19, there was a trade-off between energy efficiency and human health,” said Roberta MacGillivray, president of the National Air Filtration Association, in a post-show press release. “As we Please turn to next page ELECTRICAL APPARATUS | MARCH 2022 27

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Continued from previous page

solve the pandemic issue, we must continue our focus on how IAQ affects human health and productivity.”

AHR photo spotlight

Education for the masses More than 80 different sessions were offered through the show’s Education Program, led by industry experts across the HVAC/R industry such as association heads, popular podcasters, training advocates, and business leaders.

Topic areas included engineering, contractor-focused sessions, regulations, specialized practices, industry trends, and more. There were also more than 100 product showcases in the New Product and Technology Theater for attendees to learn even more.

Those industry trends include workforce expansion and recruitment, cleaner technologies, how the industry has changed postpandemic, and working through supply chain difficulties.

Exhibitor spotlights The show’s 1,573 exhibitors each had something new and different to offer AHR show-goers.

Infinitum Electric’s booth was packed with visitors, coming at no surprise as it was the winner of last year’s Product of the Year award with its IEq, a high-efficiency silicon carbide VFD. The product works by delivering the latest step-change improvements to motor control efficiency, size, and packaging, enabling OEMs and end users to deploy the technology in more varied environments.

This year the company was promoting its new line of ultra high-efficiency motors purpose-built to support the Canadian HVAC/R market. The motors are smaller, lighter and quieter than traditional offerings, and they also work to make HVAC/R systems more efficient and sustainable.

“In the Canadian market there’s a lack of options for the 535 volt, so in many cases what users are forced to do is use a transformer to step up their voltage and this creates additional losses. It’s not the most efficient solution,” said Bhavnesh Patel, vice president of business development at Infinitum.

Infinitum and many others will be convening again next year at the Georgia World Congress Center for AHR 2023, taking over Atlanta from February 6-8.

EA

Japanese motor manufacturer Nidec had a lot to showcase at this year’s AHR show, including its Neptune variable-speed pool pump motor. The company claims it’s quiet, high performance and energy-saving. It includes a totally enclosed fan cooled (TEFC) motor design to prevent dust and debris from harming electrical components.

Canadian motor company Lafert showed off motors old and new, including its innovative motor and drive in one combination. The two new motors for the HVAC/R market are called the HP Integral and the HP Combi.

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— Electrical Apparatus photos by Selena Cotte and copyright 2022 by Barks Publications, Inc.

A private in-depth presentation on the unique air purifying technologies offered at PuriFi’s booth allowed potential customers to get into the weeds on how the tech works, how it’s been tested, and what applications it could have for the buildings they manage.

Show-goers gathered at the Klein Tools wall of goodies, where the premium hand tool manufacturer showcased a number of its HVAC/R applicable products for sale right on the show floor.

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Among ABB’s many new offerings was the Intelligent Pump Control system, meant for large buildings with a number of units that may require different central controls at different times, depending on peak usage. The system works by automatically switching on (or off) systems of controls depending on real-time usage.

Electric motor newcomer Turntide Technologies launched its customizable fullstack hardware and software solution called Turntide for Strategic Machines.

The solution claims to improve energy efficiency and adds intelligence, controls, and automation to commercial HVAC systems, pumps, and fans.

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AHR photo spotlight continued

Brazilian motor giant WEG showcased its large repertoire of HVAC/R applicable motors and goods, and exhibitors were able to talk in-depth with conference attendees – even fully masked up.

With a fun air-blowing demonstration, Regal Rexnord showed off its Evergreen VS motor with a beach balloon and a continuous stream of air. The motor is designed for use in numerous types of HVAC/R systems, including furnaces, air-handlers, and package units. They can be used with fossil fuels, electric-strip heat, air conditioning, heat pumps, or geothermal units.

While many HVAC/R-related podcasts were recorded at the prominently located and aptly named Podcast Pavilion, some were also recorded on the show floor, including at the chemical manufacturing company Rectorseal’s “Radio Station,” which reported from right where the action was.

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Feature | Motors & Generators

Specifying the right motor for the job The fundamentals you need to be familiar with when writing a motor specification

By Richard L. Nailen, EA Engineering Editor properly allow for all operating conditions in stating the required motor rating.

Why write a motor specification?

Adapted for use in some factory production machinery, this ½ hp motor is “standard” electrically. But special mounting and shaft extension was specified for coordination with the driven equipment. Note that the normal foot-mounting attachment was left in place. All of these details were properly part of the motor specification – a simple matter for this small machine.

— Richard Nailen photo

So you’re going to write a motor spec . . . why is that necessary? The logical answer is that something about the motor you want is “nonstandard.” It’s not in a catalog. Something will probably have to differ from published standards. The limits on application, performance, or dimensions may not all be clear – or they are quite clear but indicate the need for something different that a “standard” product won’t provide, or perhaps you can’t tell from product literature whether it does or not.

Your performance requirements may be outside the norm, involving a duty cycle, high ambient temperature, “frequent” starting, lower-than-normal current during starting, or an unusual environment.

There’s a long list of possibilities, each with its own price tag and possibly a delivery delay.

The basic motor characteristics are horsepower, speed, frequency, and voltage. Each is normally selected by the user to suit the application. We can’t comment on the choices of the first three. Voltage ratings are standardized by NEMA (230, 460, 575, 2300, etc.). However, a user may choose 440 or 480 instead of 460, 2400 instead of 2300, or 4160 instead of 4000. The choice can involve voltage drop in a feeder circuit, or transformer tap settings. The specification writer’s obligation is to

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To get the product best suited to its use, at the lowest cost, is every buyer’s goal. Reaching that goal requires knowing what steps to take, and the possible alternatives. While exceptions certainly exist, these conditions are all too common: 1. The motor buyer isn’t well-versed in motor standards, motor design, or alternatives in motor construction dictated by various application conditions. Today’s electrical engineers are often far more familiar with electronics and control systems than with industrial machinery including motors.

2. The motor seller isn’t fully familiar with operating and maintenance practice in many industries.

3. Terminology normally used in dealing with motor installation and operation often differs between motor designers and users. (A simple example: The standard motor “conduit box” is often called either “terminal box” or “junction box.”)

About those published standards: First, be sure you know what they are, what they do or don’t say, and where/how they are available to the reader of your specification. That final point most often applies to a specification written in one country to apply that country’s standards to motor manufacturing in another country.

To avoid overlooking anything, some U.S. spec writers have included a requirement that apparatus “must conform to all applicable state and local codes, ordinances, and regulations.” But a supplier elsewhere in the U.S. – or in another country — will probably have no idea what all those governing documents may be, what they might require, or even how to obtain them.

Asked to provide a motor for inclusion in machinery destined for shipment to Australia, one U.S. manufacturer quoted and ordered a standard unit – only to learn later that the motor was subject to both Australian and British standards that the manufacturer had never seen. Once obtained, they were found to Please turn to next page ELECTRICAL APPARATUS | MARCH 2022 31

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SPECIFYING MOTORS continued from previous page

call for unfamiliar components and processes. Obtaining and clarifying all the requirements took months.

Citing published standards is subject to these shortcomings: 1. What you’re using as reference may be out of date; that particular document doesn’t say what you think it does, or your experience leads you to incorrectly interpret some standards provision.

2. Somewhere in a standard you’re citing is a statement or condition that contradicts what your specification says.

3. The terminology used doesn’t apply to your situation.

Which standards apply?

When referring to any standard that is readily available, check first on its applicability. Begin with what’s known to be standard – for example, the requirements of MG 1 from the National Electrical Manufacturers Association. Some large motor specifications have called for motor torques in accordance with “NEMA Design B” – a standard not applicable to machines of that size.

Whenever any major change in those requirements is needed (such as the adoption of motor efficiency regulations in the U.S.), MG 1 is re-published in a new edition. Since 1985, that’s happened 10 times (roughly every two or three years since 2003). The most recent one is dated 2018. Between editions, revisions of various sections of MG 1

have also been published, at least four times. If your specification is to be based on any of the content of MG 1, you need to be sure you correctly refer to the current version of that publication. IEEE and even ANSI standards are also subject to revision from time to time, although far less often. So Step 1 in the spec-writing process is: Work to the latest edition of any publication you name as applicable.

What are the next pitfalls in the specification process?

First: omission. Something necessary gets left out, such as where/how to obtain some referenced document; details of a special test procedure; or the source of some accessory.

Second: contradictions. Specification Page 2 invokes a requirement; Page 5 names a contradictory one. (That’s a common result of the “cut-and-paste” method of creating a specification, by sticking together various passages from existing documents – a process that may appear to save time, but is asking for trouble.) Then there’s the opening statement calling for a motor to “conform to the latest issue of NEMA standards,” only to follow that with

Summing it up: Deutsch . . . Français . . . Español Motorspezifikationen erstellen

Erstellt man eine Spezifikation für den Kauf eines Wechselstrommotors, dann verfolgt man zwei Ziele: die Beschreibung von Konstruktionsoder Leistungsmerkmalen, die in den geltenden Normen nicht eindeutig festgelegt sind, und die Beschreibung der Ausnahmen von Standardmerkmalen, die für eine bestimmte Anwendung nicht geeignet sind.

Den Verfassern einer Motorspezifikation fehlen häufig die Kenntnisse über die angetriebene Maschine, ihren voraussichtlichen Betrieb und die Details ihrer Stromversorgung. Da viele dieser Bedingungen die Motorkonstruktion beeinflussen, muss der Spezifizierer darauf vertrauen, dass der Käufer des Motors diese Informationen liefert.

Wenn die Spezifikation auf dem freien Markt veröffentlicht werden soll, muss der Spezifizierer festlegen, welche Normen zu gelten haben. Die Forderung nach der Einhaltung „aller geltenden Normen“ ist nicht ausreichend.

Bei der Anwendung von Normen muss der Spezifizierer darauf achten, dass Widersprüche vermieden werden.

Sofern keine eindeutige Ausnahme genannt wird, sollte die Spezifikation nicht von den Vorgaben der Norm abweichen.

Die Motoranlaufbelastung ist eine der wichtigsten technischen Anforderungen. Zu vermeiden sind Begriffe wie „Anzahl der Starts pro Stunde“ und „der Anlaufstrom muss dem Minimum innerhalb der verwendeten Standardauslegungsgrenzen entsprechen“. Die Forderung nach „Startzeitkennlinien“ in einer Spezifikation ist sinnlos.

Die in einer Spezifikation verwendete Terminologie muss spezifisch sein. Jeder Leser des Dokuments wird Beschreibungen wie „schwer“, „starr“, „annähernd“, „üblicherweise“, „extrem“, „wahrscheinlich“, „weit über“ und „ähnlich“ unterschiedlich interpretieren.

Die Forderung einer „sicheren Beschleunigungszeit“ hat keine Bedeutung. Anhand der Motor- und Lasteigenschaften und der angelegten Spannung kann die Beschleunigungszeit berechnet werden. Wenn sich dann der Motor zu stark erwärmt oder eine Schutzvorrichtung den Stromkreis öffnet, muss etwas geändert werden.

Der endgültige Entwurf wird dann jedoch ungefährlich sein, unabhängig von der daraus resultierenden Beschleunigungszeit.

Schließlich sollten Sie bei der Spezifizierung von Motortests vorsichtig sein.

Wie werden Sie die Testergebnisse interpretieren? Wie gut kennen Sie die Grenzen der Volllastprüfung?

Rédiger les spécifications du moteur L’objectif de la rédaction d’une spécification d’achat pour un moteur à courant alternatif est double : décrire les caractéristiques de construction ou de performance qui ne sont pas clairement prescrites dans les normes applicables et décrire les exceptions à toutes les caractéristiques standard qui ne sont pas adaptées à une application particulière.

Le rédacteur d’une spécification de moteur manque souvent de connaissances sur la machine entraînée, son fonctionnement prévu et les détails de son alimentation électrique. Sachant que bon nombre de ces conditions affectent la conception du moteur, le fournisseur doit compter sur l’acheteur du moteur pour obtenir l’information.

Lorsque la spécification sera publiée sur le marché libre, un fournisseur doit définir les normes qui s’appliqueront.

Exiger le respect de « toutes les normes applicables » est inadéquat.

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specific motor requirements that contradict or supersede those standards. One specification writer requested a “routine NEMA standard test consisting of the following,” only to list items not part of any routine NEMA test procedure, such as “performance curves,” and an “impedance test” (a term not part of any applicable standard).

Third: non-standard terminology. Example: a “weatherproof” enclosure for an “outdoor” machine.

In MG 1 Part 1, NEMA standards define suitability for outdoor service only as “Weather-protected Type I or Type 2.” Which one? That’s your decision. Similarly, “water-proof” is defined in MG 1 Part 1, but “water-tight” is not. A manufacturer may undertake to build whatever a customer will pay for – but the parties must agree on how requirements are to be met, and the verification testing needed.

Commonly used terms and their meanings The words minimum and maximum are troublesome.

They offer no room for maneuver. However, providing such room presents its own difficulties.

Lors de l’utilisation d’une norme, un fournisseur doit veiller à éviter les contradictions. À moins qu’une exception ne soit clairement indiquée, la spécification ne doit pas différer de ce que dit la norme.

Le service de démarrage du moteur est l’une des exigences de spécification les plus importantes. La terminologie à éviter comprend « le nombre de démarrages par heure » et ​​ « le courant de démarrage doit être le minimum dans les limites de conception standard utilisées ». Demander des « courbes caractéristiques de temps de démarrage » dans une spécification n’a aucun sens.

La terminologie utilisée dans toute spécification doit être spécifique.

Chaque lecteur du document interprétera différemment des descriptions telles que « lourd », « rigide », « approximativement », « communément », « sévère », « extrême », « probable », « largement » et « similaire ».

Demander un « temps d’accélération sécuritaire » n’a aucun sens. Compte tenu des caractéristiques du moteur et de la charge, et de la tension appliquée, le temps d’accélération peut être calculé, et si le chauffage du moteur est excessif ou si un dispositif de protection ouvre le circuit, quelque chose doit être changé. Mais la conception finale sera alors sûre, quel que soit le temps d’accélération conséquent.

Enfin, soyez prudent lorsque vous

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Here’s what was asked for in one specification: “insulation must be adequate to withstand . . . surges well in excess of normal turn-to-turn voltages.” Neither “well in excess” nor “normal” was defined. An industry standard, IEEE 522, describes the use of surge-testing to judge turn insulation capability, but “adequacy” of the turn insulation is the motor manufacturer’s decision.

Here’s a short list of other widely used terms: “heavy,” “rigid,” “mainly,” “commonly,” “often,” “customary,” “ample,” “extreme,” “frequent,” “likely,” “probable,” “similar,” “almost,” “approximately” — each subject to a different interpretation by every reader. Also, specification writers too often use terminology not applicable to motors in general.

Examples: calling for “boiler room” or “dye house” motor insulation, or asking for the BIL (Basic Impulse Level) of motor insulation. An important concern for transformers, subject to impulse tests of their ability to withstand switching surges or lightning strikes, BIL means nothing in motor design.

And avoid reference to “trade size” in describing motor conduit boxes. Finally: Stay away from “or equal.” True equality of one item to another can be expected only if the two are identical.

Whatever “naming” is considered correct, judgment of motor operating condition often suffers from an individual’s concept of quantity or size. We see that in one engineer’s description of “large motor” as

spécifiez les tests moteurs. Comment allez-vous interpréter les résultats des tests ? Dans quelle mesure comprenez-vous les limites des tests à pleine charge ?

Escribir especificaciones del motor El propósito de escribir una especificación de compra para un motor de CA es doble: describir cualquier característica de construcción o rendimiento que no esté claramente prescrita en estándares aplicables y describir las excepciones a cualquier característica estándar que no sea adecuada para una aplicación en particular.

El escritor de una especificación de motor a menudo carece de conocimiento de la máquina accionada, su operación prevista y los detalles de su suministro eléctrico. Debido a que muchas de estas condiciones afectan el diseño del motor, el especificador debe confiar en el comprador del motor para proporcionar la información.

Cuando la especificación se emite al mercado abierto, un especificador debe definir qué estándares se aplicarán.

Exigir un cumplimiento con “todas los estándares aplicables” es inadecuado.

Al usar cualquier estándar, un especificador debe tener cuidado de evitar contradicciones. A menos que se establezca claramente una excepción, la

Please turn to next page

especificación no debe diferir de lo que dice el estándar.

El servicio de arranque del motor es uno de los requisitos de especificación más importantes. La terminología que debe evitarse incluye “número de arranques por hora” y “la corriente de arranque debe ser la mínima dentro de los límites de diseño estándar utilizados”. Exigir “curvas características de tiempo de arranque” en una especificación no tiene sentido.

La terminología utilizada en cualquier especificación debe ser específica.

Cada lector del documento interpretará de manera diferente descripciones como “pesado”, “rígido”, “aproximadamente”, “comúnmente”, “intensivo”, “extremo”, “probable”, “muy superior” y “similar”.

Requerir un “tiempo de aceleración seguro” no tiene sentido. Dadas las características del motor y de la carga y la tensión aplicada, se puede calcular el tiempo de aceleración, y si el calentamiento del motor es excesivo o si un dispositivo de protección abre el circuito, se debe cambiar algo. Pero el diseño final será entonces seguro, sin importar cuál sea el tiempo de aceleración consiguiente.

Finalmente, se debe tener cuidado al especificar pruebas del motor. ¿Cómo interpretará los resultados de la prueba? ¿Qué tan bien comprende las limitaciones de las pruebas de carga completa?

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200 hp

95 50 hp

94

Motor winding temperature

Percent efficiency

100 hp

Motor winding temperature

96

Rated temperature Ambient temperature

Load Figure 1. The smaller the motor, the more likely that its efficiency will be higher at three-quarters load than at full load.

Hence, a cost study based only on the full-load nameplate efficiency will often be misleading. For a realistic assessment of operating cost, a specifier needs to ask for efficiency at the actual load.

SPECIFYING MOTORS continued from previous page

50-100 hp, whereas industry standards classify most machines to be “medium” up through 500 hp.

Horsepower itself also merits a closer look. A user may call for a motor rating higher than the calculated load, or he may instead request a “service factor” margin. In either case, operation at a higher power output than the rated load will usually mean that efficiency will be somewhat lower than at the motor’s nominal rating. To properly account for that,

Percent rated speed

100

75

50

25

0

0

50

100

150

200

Percent rated torque

Figure 3. Specifying a motor to drive an air/gas compressor?

Don’t guess which one of many possible compressor starting conditions apply. No universal standard exists, no matter what its description.

Hours running at rated load

Safe operating time

3/4

Full

3/4

Full

Full

93

3/4

Current

Current Figure 2. Each of these three might be considered a “motor heating curve.” Requesting such a curve in a motor specification is useless without further details.

the user should request the actual-load efficiency value from the motor manufacturer.

One of the most important motor operating characteristics is temperature rise. Some specifications have required a rise at nameplate horsepower – either a standard 80°C, or a lower value to increase winding life. Then the same specification stipulates a maximum temperature rise at a service factor overload – typically 90°C. Standard nameplate marking practices allow one or the other, but not both.

Provisions of a motor specification should not require a reader to guess at their meaning. Some examples: 1. “Maximum efficiency is specified consistent with the economics of frame size.” No efficiency value was specified. That aside, what’s meant by “economics of frame size?” Assigning an economic (cost) value to fractions of an efficiency percentage point is pointless hairsplitting, whether or not “frame size” is involved.

2. “Torques under all conditions, including locked-rotor . . . are to be . . . the maximum obtainable without sacrificing efficiency.” Unfortunately, no direct relationship exists between motor efficiency and the values on a speed-torque curve. A design offering higher accelerating torque at one speed may reduce it at another speed, while having no effect on efficiency.

Motor efficiency has always been a concern for large motors operating for extended periods at full load, as in a utility generating plant. But the “energy crisis” has expanded that concern to the entire range of polyphase machines.

The only motor efficiency of importance, however, is that at the actual load. In many medium motor applications, a designer may choose an “oversize” machine to allow for probable increase to suit a higher load somewhere down the road. Having to replace an inadequate motor a few years hence can be a major expense in several ways. And for

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a wide range of motor sizes, we know that efficiency does not peak at rated load, but between 65% and 75% of that – see Figure 1.

A specification based on published full-load efficiencies isn’t always the way to go. The better choice is often the ¾ load efficiency – which may not be as easy to find. A review of published catalog information found that of 11 major U.S. motor manufacturers, only three included ¾-load efficiency for the range of 50-200 hp in their catalogs.

Many drives involve other performance characteristics that prevent the designer from freely manipulating efficiency alone. As a NEMA publication put it, “Motors which are designed for high full-load efficiency may be totally unsuitable for many applications, such as those involving frequent starting, duty cycle operation, and repetitive shock loading, where motor torque and motor slip . . . are more important. . . .”

Finally, as a NEMA representative stated during a NEMA summit meeting in Europe, “energy-saving from higher motor efficiency has clearly reached the limit of practicality” for medium motors, with higher efficiencies tending to provide “lower starting torque or higher base speeds, making the overall system run less efficiently.”

3. Some other items that have been requested in motor specifications but have no meaning to a motor designer: “Starting time characteristic curves” and “motor impedance.”

When control or supply circuit conditions dictate the need to reduce locked-rotor (and accelerating) current from whatever would normally apply, consider the designer’s options. Reduced magnetic field strength, and variation in rotor bar/slot shapes and rotor cage material, are the normal possibilities. Each such variation affects not only locked-rotor current but also torque, rated speed, temperature rise, efficiency, and cost. The final choice must be a compromise, which the specifier should expect.

Basic structure of a comprehensive motor specification 1. Nature of the application; power supply conditions.

2. Rating data, load characteristics 3. Pertinent standards identified 4. Environment/enclosure 5. Accessories 6. Coordination with other equipment 7. Any dimensional restrictions 8. Drawings and data to be submitted 9. Test and shipment requirements Price, delivery, and shipping information are also important, although they’re not always the motor designer’s province. — RLN

capability can also vary widely. The motor specifier should not assume that a “closed valve” start always means reduced pump torque; while true for a centrifugal pump, it does not apply to an axial-flow or mixed-flow pump. (See Figure 4.) And bear in mind that standard motor torques are quite different throughout the motor size/speed range. (See Figure 5.)

In some centrifugal pump applications, the discharge valve will be opened before the pump reaches full speed; again, the specification must make that Please turn to next page

Inaccurate language

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100 c

a

b 75 Percent rated speed

Although “too many words” is a legitimate criticism of some specifications, too few can be even more troublesome. One large motor specification called for the manufacturer to furnish “heating curves.” That tells a designer nothing. Figure 2 illustrates three entirely different plots that might each be called “heating curves” relating motor load, time, and temperature, but involving widely different relationships.

We can’t say whether any of these might be meant by “heating curves,” or if the term is supposed to mean something else.

Motor starting capability is an important item in many specifications. Wording that has caused trouble is the statement that all motors be designed for “across-the-line starting.” Designers take that to mean “full-voltage” starting, defined as application of motor nameplate voltage throughout acceleration.

However, this ignores the inevitability of some voltage drop in the motor supply circuit during starting. The motor purchaser cannot know what that will be until the motor has been designed; the motor designer cannot know what it will be even then, lacking any knowledge of supply circuit conditions.

The inevitable result in one case: after design of a number of different motors was complete, and data forwarded to the purchaser, only then was it discovered that voltage drop on the circuit would render several of the motors unable to start their loads. Each had to be redesigned.

Don’t assume that any “standard” speed-torque requirement applies when starting a gas compressor of any size or speed. There are too many variables. (See Figure 3.) For pumps, the motor acceleration

50

25

0 0

50

100

150

Percent rated load Figure 4. A specifier cannot assume the required starting torque for a pump simply on being told that the discharge valve will be “closed.” Centrifugal and axial flow pumps behave quite differently under that condition. Here, curve (a) applies to either type with the valve open; curve (b) to a centrifugal pump with the discharge closed; curve (c) to an axial flow pump with discharge closed.

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SPECIFYING MOTORS continued from previous page

300 Breakdown

Percent full-load torque

250

Considerations about starting

Locked-rotor

200 Pullup 150

100

50

Figure 5. NEMA standard torque requirements vary widely depending upon motor size and speed. (Values shown for 4-pole motors larger than 1 hp.)

100

Percent speed

75

50

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0

0

50

clear. An even more difficult application is the “screw pump,” requiring much higher accelerating torque at low speed.

Regardless of the driven load, a specifier should not rely on either sales literature or technical papers to define the shape of a motor speed-torque curve, upon which to base an assumption of the safety of acceleration. Such “typical” curves vary much too widely – see Figure 6.

100 150 200 Percent torque

250

Figure 6. Be careful in assuming a “typical” motor speedtorque curve when specifying motor starting requirements (especially at reduced voltage). These are some of the many “typical” curves published over the last 25 years in technical papers and books. Standards give minimum values for locked-rotor, pull-up, and breakdown torques, but do not define curve shapes or the speeds at which breakdown and pull-up may occur.

Manufacturers’ literature sometimes claims starting capability in terms of some number of allowable starts before failure. Any such claim usually rests on an assumption (seldom stated) of how often those starts occur. Obviously, the high motor temperature reached during one or two starts must be allowed to decrease somewhat before further starts are allowable.

Furthermore, what occurs between one start and the next is rarely described and can have an important effect. A motor may be stopped immediately following the first start, cooling only slightly before the next start. Or it may be allowed to run either loaded or unloaded for some time before being stopped and restarted. Many combinations are possible, each producing its own heating/cooling cycle. The motor manufacturer rarely knows any of that, and the published standards offer no criteria. Without all these details, an “allowable starts” requirement (such as in Figure 7) cannot be met with any certainty.

Whatever frequency of starts is acceptable to all parties involved, no specification should request a value for “allowable starts per hour” for any medium or large motor. Such a number must be assumed applicable to every one of each day’s 24 hours, year-round (even though a theoretical value such as 0.2 might make sense mathematically). In any case, a specification should not call for a “safe accelerating time.”

Given the motor voltage, the load inertia, and the load speed-torque curve, the actual – and the only – acceleration time will result. It may or may not be “safe.” The design required to start a high inertia load at a reduced voltage may necessitate an oversize machine, a high-resistance rotor, or a higher locked-rotor current. The result can be reduced efficiency. A change in one performance characteristic rarely leaves others unaffected.

The standard capability for “large” motors (in MG 1 Part 20) is “two starts in succession, coasting to rest between starts, with the motor initially at ambient temperature,” or only one start if the motor is “initially up to its rated load temperature.”

A problem with this is that “coasting to rest” can take an hour for a power plant draft fan, but no more than a few minutes for a crusher drive. That standard goes on to “recommend” no additional starts pending “thorough investigation of all conditions affecting operation” and examination “for evidence of excessive heating.”

Because most large motor starts cause more overheating in the rotor than in the stator, such “evidence” may be hard to find. NEMA standards for motors below the “large” sizes make no provision for starting frequency. A specification requirement for “frequent starting” is meaningless.

A related problem: In a “duty cycle” drive, the motor is subject to a periodically varying load, typically interspersed with periods either running without load or stopped. Be careful with use of the term idle, which can be used to mean either of those last two conditions. A motor that is not running dissipates internal heat far more slowly than when running either loaded or unloaded.

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Specification writers tend to request product capabilities in the expectation that a supplier will provide for extreme conditions without spelling out just what those might be. For example, the term severe duty could be interpreted as meaning a harsh environment (hot, wet, dirty); periodic overload; difficult acceleration; or any combination outside the boundaries of the “unusual service conditions” described in NEMA MG 1 Part 14 (which doesn’t define “severe” – that’s the specification writer’s responsibility).

One large Midwestern utility had no procedure in place for specifying either new or replacement motors for its several generating plants.

Eventually an experienced motor designer was added to the staff, and created a 42-page Specification Preparation Guide to remedy that deficiency. Its contents included basic requirements (see table) including seven pages of checklists to guide the specification writer.

Be careful in specifying – and evaluating – final motor tests. Would you believe a reported “94.38% efficiency” to be more accurate than either “94.3%” or “94.4%”? Are you more confident of results when you can witness the testing, and if so why?

Summing up: Base your spec on the Three C’s of Clarity, Completeness, and Conciseness. And avoid these other Three C’s: Complexity, Contradiction, and Confusion. Heed this utility engineer’s advice for any specifier: “Special specifications . . . can only obstruct changes in the standards . . . he should not tell the designer how to build his motor . . . if he wants a motor built the way manufacturer B builds it he should not buy it from manufacturer A, C, or D.” EA

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500 hp

30

Years life

Some final thoughts

40 100 hp

50 hp 10 hp

20

10

0

10

50 100 Starts per day

500

1000

Figure 7. One publication offered this guideline relating motor starting frequency to motor life expectancy. It’s an oversimplification at best, involving too many variables – such as the nature of the connected load and its torque demand, and how closely spaced the starts may be. It tells only that the smaller a motor, the longer it will tolerate some larger number of starts.

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Feature | Energy

Beating the (oil) drums of war Matters of money and morality are suddenly among the least of a pipeline operator’s concerns

By Charlie Barks, EA Associate Editor

The final “above-water tie-in” is welded on the Nord Stream pipeline in September 2021.

— Nord Stream photo (Axel Schmidt)

Editor’s note: Recent months saw the most serious escalation of tensions in Eastern Europe since the Warsaw Pact’s invasion of Czechoslovakia in 1968. Russia’s threat to invade Ukraine was a rapidly evolving situation — one that a monthly magazine like EA isn’t equipped to report minute-by-minute or even dayby-day. But as EA Associate Editor Charlie Barks learned from talking with a representative of a company operating a key oil pipeline, serious long-term questions about the vulnerability of Europe’s oil supply must be addressed.

Oil and gas companies in the U.S. constantly argue with environmentalists and indigenous people groups over the construction of pipelines. From these debates, stances on money and morality often appear at loggerheads and take on the appearance of a life-or-death situation.

When compared to the Nord Stream 2 pipeline, a 767mile twin pipeline spanning the Baltic Sea, it’s not.

Consider the current geopolitical situation in Eastern Europe. Military conflict, war matériel, and actual lives were at stake last month as Russia massed troops on the Ukrainian border and the NATO collective of nations prepared a response.

A U.S. state department spokesman stated that the Nord Stream 2 pipeline “will not move forward” if Russia attacks.

The controversial energy project is designed to double gas flow and runs from Russia direct to Germany under the Baltic Sea. In speaking with representatives from the Nord Stream endeavor, Electrical Apparatus was able to glean considerable information about how workers and construction could be affected.

“The operation of the pipeline is subject to a certification of the operator from the German regulator, a process that is currently ongoing,” said Steffen Hartmann, senior communications and public affairs specialist for Nord Stream AG, noting that main offshore construction was completed in September 2021. “Both lines of the twin pipeline system are now filled with gas, and the technical conditions for operating the Nord Stream 2 pipeline are met.”

Sticking with specifics In such a tenuous situation, project developers prefer to keep the focus on technical specifics. Understandably, those involved with the pipeline are in no position to speculate about potential effects on the workforce and the energy supply.

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A look at the Nord Stream natural gas landfall facilities in Germany, one of two ends of the pipeline.

— Nord Stream photo (Axel Schmidt)

Facilities at the Russian end of the pipeline.

— Nord Stream photo (Axel Schmidt)

Nord Stream 2 AG, as the project developer, says it has emQuestions remain. Are Nord Stream 2 workers concerned ployed around 200 people throughout the course of the projabout the White House’s statement that it would shut down ect to date. However, Hartmann points out that “constructhe pipeline if Russia does indeed invade Ukraine? Is there tion of this project involved hundreds of companies from any concern that this stance was not officially confirmed by all over Europe in planning, engineering, manufacturing of German Chancellor Scholz in the same press conference? components and offshore construction.”

The implications of a conflict in Eastern Europe on the Politics aside, the Nord Stream project is an extraordinary continent’s energy balance would likely be severe. Still, as feat of engineering. Each line comprises around 100,000 ina developer of a commercial investment, Nord Stream 2 AG dividual pipes. In September 2021, the sections of the secsaid that it cannot1 comment or sancond Nord Stream pipeline laid from the German shore and electrical-appratus_9x_Layout 9/13/2021 on 2:05political PM Pagedebates 1 tions threats. For German civilians, a wry outlook remains.

Danish waters were connected in a so-called above-water As one German said: “If Putin cuts off our gas, I may have to tie-in. The opposing pipe strings were lifted from the seabed move back to Chicago.”

EA by a barge and the pipe ends were cut and fitted together.

The welding to connect the two lines took place on a platform located above the water on the side of the vessel. Then the connected pipeline was lowered to the seabed as one HIGH VOLTAGE CONTROL, continuous string. It’s an assembly that requires technical TEST & MEASUREMENT DEVICES skill and meticulous planning.

HV Power Class 208V to 300kV “We do not have an exact number of how many people High Voltage HV Relay Voltmeter Calibration Lab To 300kV did work on the project at any one time,” says Hartmann, To 450kV 800A To providing a scope of the magnitude of the project. One way 100kV HV Multimeter & to partially gauge the workforce impact is through the ecoHV Voltage Divider nomic impact performed by Michael Kruse, of the Arthur D. HV Megmeter HV Vacuum Little management consulting firm. Kruse noted that: Contactor & Circuit “The overall results of the assessment show that the total ISO/IEC 17025:2017 To 1,200kV Breaker DC Hipot to 50kV Accredited economic benefit created as of December 2018 for the EuDC to 10MHz ropean Union, which is receiving 58% of total investments, 10V to 1,200,000V • MicroAmps to 1,700,000 Amps PK Pulse • DC to 10MHz is over €9,900 million. This has created 57,450 full-time We Specialize in Custom HV Design! equivalents and added €4,740 million in GDP. Since we conDESIGN, MANUFACTURE, TEST & CALIBRATE: ducted the first economic impact analysis, the committed • HV RELAYS and spent funds have increased by 82%. The impact on the • HV PROBES • HV VOLTAGE DIVIDERS European Union in terms of both financial output and FTEs • HV AC & DC HIPOTS created has increased accordingly.”

ISO/IEC 17025:2017 • HV POWER CLASS VOLTMETERS CALIBRATION CERT #2746.01 Regarding the financial, environmental, and geopolitical • HV SWITCHES ISO 9001:2015 incentives for completing the project in the first place, the • HV CIRCUIT BREAKERS QMS CERTIFIED • HV VACUUM CONTACTORS Nord Stream spokesman added that the pipeline “is being • HV CALIBRATION - A2LA ACCREDITED built as a response to long-term import needs of the Euro• LAB, INDUSTRIAL & MILITARY APPLICATIONS pean market.”

HIGH VOLTAGE CALIBRATION CAPABILITIES: • UP TO 450kV PEAK 60Hz One major incentive listed by Nord Stream AG is “improv• UP TO 400kV DC ing the supply security and reliability, and providing gas unm s LIGHTNING IMPULSE • UP TO 400kV 1.2x50m der sensible economic conditions.” Environmental impact is R O S S E N G I N E E R I N G C O R P O R AT I O N also cited as motivation: “The gas is needed, among others, 540 Westchester Drive, Campbell, CA 95008 | Ph: 408-377-4621 to replace coal in power generation in Europe, which will info@rossengineeringcorp.com | www.rossengineeringcorp.com save emissions.” ®

ELECTRICAL APPARATUS | MARCH 2022 39

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Feature | More Than Accounting

Can relocating save taxes?

The potential benefits of moving to a low-tax state

By William H. Wiersema, CPA, EA Contributing Editor With the trend toward remote work, people are less geographically bound, giving rise to new possibilities. The states of Florida, Nevada, and Texas, for example, not only offer more temperate climates than northern cities but also do not tax incomes of their residents. The potential benefits of moving vary by type of income, whether payroll, investment, or business.

To terminate residency in a high-tax state, a taxpayer must first document being away from that state for 183 days, more than half the year.

But as Charles Swenson et al. point out in State and Local Taxation, taxpayers need to do more: “There is no uniform definition of a resident.

Many factors are involved . . . such as presence in a jurisdiction . . . the intent to return to a state when the taxpayer is physically outside the state . . . where your close family members spend their time [or] if you maintain ties to the state such as driver’s license, voter registration, doctors and dentists, club memberships, financial accounts, or real property investments.” Those relocating should understand the specific requirements of their former and new states.

Work from a new home Working remotely can save taxes, replacing a high tax rate with zero. The employer registers and incurs payroll taxes in the employee’s new home state. The employee files a tax return only if required. The same goes for investment income.

However, states may change their laws. As stated in the October 2021 U.S. News, “For now, many of those remote workers can save on taxes by relocating to low-tax states. But the taxation of remote workers is still a new and developing issue as states become more aggressive in their taxation of nonresident workers based on employer location.”

A handful of states, including New York, already continue to tax the employer’s location unless the employer requires the move. Many commentators have spoken out. According to Jared Walczak of The Tax Foundation, “So-called ‘convenience rules’ and similar income sourcing rules not only obligate workers to pay tax to jurisdictions where they did not work, but in many cases, they also strip them of eligibility for tax credits designed to avoid double taxation when someone lives in one state and works in another.” In contrast, when commuting between states, an employee’s resident state provides a credit.

Manage business taxes As with employees, owners of pass-through businesses, such as S corporations and limited liability companies, may benefit from living in zero-tax states. However, state tax liabilities arise where the business operates, including sales, payroll, and property. Owners must file taxes both where the income is earned and in their resident state but credit the double-tax on the resident tax return. But an owner residing in New York with business income from Florida will incur the total rate of New

York tax without a credit. Accordingly, owners may benefit by becoming residents of a lower-tax state if they have business income coming from those states.

When exiting from a business, if the owner sells ownership interests rather than assets, normally only the resident state imposes the tax. A true resident of Florida might avoid state taxation. However, keep in mind that most buyers prefer asset transactions both to limit the liabilities assumed and to enjoy tax benefits of a step-up.

Moving corporate headquarters may provide opportunities. For example, non-business income is sourced to the state of corporate domicile, not apportioned. Additionally, for those states having “throwback” rules, taxable sales may change. Throwback rules tax shipments where they originated when not taxed in the destination state. Finally, other differences might include service revenues subject to states that consider cost of performance in determining taxes. In addition to individual taxes, planning should consider state entity-level taxes on pass-through entities.

Look ahead As state tax rules evolve, readers should consult with their tax advisors. Since the landmark Supreme Court Wayfair decision in 2018, a business’s physical location has become less of a factor in determining where it owes taxes. The decision supports economic nexus, meaning how much revenue a company derives within a state, regardless of the company’s location.

While the decision expands states’ ability to tax out-of-state businesses, federal law continues to limit taxes on income. However, states can use other measures like net worth, gross margin, modified gross receipts, personal property, or other bases. For example, the states of Ohio and Washington impose taxes based on sales triggered by economic nexus.

State taxes became particularly onerous under the 2017 U.S. tax law that capped the itemized deduction for them at $10,000, which effectively eliminated the federal tax benefit to owners of pass-through entities. However, most states have adopted an election recently approved by the IRS whereby the entity itself pays the owner taxes due, allowing for a full deduction outside the itemized deduction limit.

EA

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Deaths Robert R. Kennedy, early EIS sales engineer Robert R. Kennedy, a friend of the industry who supported Electrical Apparatus magazine and the Electrical Apparatus Service Association, has died at the age of 84.

An electrical engineer, Mr. Kennedy was widely known and highly respected among electrical manufacturers, utility companies, and his peers and clients.

“Bob was one of the original eleven or so EIS sales engineers working for the Schoens, who owned EIS,” said Kevin M. Sheehy, a former colleague, referring to Lloyd, Charles, and Brooks Schoen.

Sheehy added that Mr. Kennedy was known to many repair shops, utility companies, and OEMs in the southeastern U.S., as that was his sales territory at EIS for many years.

Mr. Kennedy ultimately left EIS to develop his own company “covering the USA for selling equipment to the electrical industry,” said Sheehy. He remained connected to EIS in a consulting capacity.

Upon closing his business, Mr. Kennedy was hired by Sheehy (the CEO of Von Roll at the time) as an executive for Von Roll. In that role, he was responsible for the company’s North American client base, marketing and selling the composite materials that Von Roll manufactures.

Mr. Kennedy eventually finished his career as a marketing and sales engineer for EHV Weidmann, covering the U.S. for machined and fabricated parts business before retiring.

“Bob was detailed, meticulous in his work, and known for his kind personality, smile, and laughter,” Sheehy told EA. He is survived by his wife, Ann, his children, and the many friends he made over his lifetime.

EA

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Feature | Pump It Up

The Infrastructure Act: What’s in it for pumps?

More than a trillion dollars is to be spent on U.S. infrastructure, and some of that money will trickle down to pumps

By Kevin Jones, EA Senior Editor

— pch.vector / freepik illustration

The Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act, signed into law by the President this past Nov. 15, is one of the most expensive and sweeping pieces of federal legislation to muscle its way through the U.S. Congress in recent history. It directs more than a trillion dollars towards the improvement of the infrastructure we use to engage in all sorts of commerce, from public transportation to broadband internet.

Originally conceived as an “infrastructure package” that would have steered some $700 billion primarily towards roadways and rail, the legislation eventually ballooned to include improvements to the nation’s electric grid, water treatment and distribution systems, and cyber security. The final version of the Act carries a price tag of about $1.2 trillion.

Of that total, some $55 billion has been allocated to drinking water, wastewater, and storm water infrastructure funding. The replacement of pumps and pumping systems will inevitably be a component of these water infrastructure improvements, although it’s impossible to say how much.

So, what’s in it for pump manufacturers, installers, and servicers?

The Act is broadly divided into these sections: surface transportation; mass transit; energy; water (including drinking water and wastewater); broadband; and “other,” a category that includes things as diverse as Indian water rights settlement, recycling practices, and cyber security.

What’s of interest to us here are the sections of the Act that address the movement and treatment of water — applications for which pumping systems will be needed and the money to pay for them will be allocated. The Act contains few references to pumps, but it does describe in detail the sorts of water projects for which funding is being allocated, which can provide a general sense of how much money is being spent, where, and on what.

Large projects covered Consider a few examples.

Under a section on Hydropower, the Act says that “no later than Sept.

30, 2023,” there will be an agreement to provide financial assistance for “an eligible entity” to develop, as a demonstration project, “a pumped storage hydropower project to facilitate the long-duration storage of intermittent renewable electricity.” Matching funds are also to be made available.

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The Act amends the Energy Policy Act of 2005 to raise an appropriation for “hydroelectric efficiency improvement incentives” to $75 million for fiscal year 2022. The Act also covers certain pumps used to transport oil or water in or through “federal land and Indian land,” with exclusions defined by the National Environmental Policy Act of 1969.

The Act provides for substantial improvements to the John W. Keys III Pump Generating Plant, a hydropower plant in Washington State that contains 12 pumps that lift water from the Columbia River to a canal that provides irrigation water to more than 670,000 acres in the Columbia Basin Project. A total of $100 million has been appropriated for this project.

More broadly, the Act earmarks $50 million each fiscal year through 2026 for eligible entities to “carry out projects that improve the operational sustainability” of such assets as “drinking water sources, wells, storage, valves, treatment systems, distribution lines, hydrants, pumps, controls, and other essential infrastructure.”

Not everything in the Infrastructure Act is new.

Folded into it is the Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure Act of 2021, a bill to amend the Safe Drinking Water Act and the Federal Water Pollution Control Act that originated in and was passed by the Senate in April 2021.

Now part of the larger Infrastructure Act, the Drinking Water and Wastewater Infrastructure section is to provide $35 million for each of fiscal years 2022 through 2026 to evaluate and respond to the needs of community water and wastewater systems.

The Act in plain English Like any federal legislation, the Infrastructure Investment and Jobs Act was not written with the convenience of the layperson in mind. Much of the text is devoted to definitions, and the hierarchical structure of the text can make it difficult to determine which section refers to which category.

To help understand what the Act says and does, the Administration has produced a guidebook that’s available online as a PDF. You can find and download it by searching for “Bipartisan Infrastructure Law Guidebook.”

In structure, the guidebook mirrors the Act itself.

It explains the provisions of the Act section by section, from bridges and airports to energy and broadband internet. Water falls under the category of “Climate, Energy, and the Environment,” and some 39 pages are devoted to the subject.

The nation’s primary water challenges, the guidebook says, are to replace lead pipes, fix water main breaks, repair or replace failing wastewater management systems, and reverse contamination of water by perfluoroalkyl and polyfluoroalkyl, which are in

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dustrial chemicals that often show up in drinking water. Funding for these projects is to be funneled through state agencies.

As the American Water Works Association explains, “Congress has directed that most Infrastructure Act funding for water projects will be channeled through state revolving loan fund (SRF) programs for drinking water and wastewater. SRFs are administered jointly by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency and state, tribal, and territorial agencies.”

Exactly how the money is to flow through these state and federal agencies is briefly described in the sidebar below.

It’s important to note that the funding being provided by the Infrastructure Act comes in addition to funding already available through the federal government for similar purposes. Administered by the Environmental Protection Agency, the Dept. of the Interior, the Dept. of Health and Human Services, and the Dept. of Commerce, this preexisting funding addresses a number of water needs and in some cases is quite substantial.

While something called the “Soil Moisture and Snowpack Pilot Program” has been allotted “only” $1 million, a total of $15 billion dollars has been earmarked for “Drinking Water State Revolving Fund Lead Service Lines Replacement,” and the “Drinking Water State Revolving Fund” has been allotted $11.7 billion.

Finding a contact in your state So, what’s the first step in getting a piece of the water infrastructure action?

As noted above, the Infrastructure Act money is to be distributed through state revolving loan funds. Which department or office will coordinate these funds varies from state to state. Ohio, for example, will distribute funds through the Ohio Environmental Protection Agency. In California — which historically has faced greater challenges in collecting and distributing fresh water — the funding will be handled through a state water board.

The American Water Works Association has assembled a useful directory of state agencies handling disbursement of federal water infrastructure funding. The directory even provides the names and e-mail addresses of individuals overseeing the process for each state. You can find the directory by going to www.awwa.org and searching for “U.S. Infrastructure & Jobs Act.” EA

Follow the Infrastructure Act money flow

How will money earmarked for improvements to the nation’s water systems be distributed? The guidebook issued by the federal Administration summarizes the process this way: “The majority of the water funding will move through the State Revolving Fund programs. Water utilities, non-profits, drinking water providers, and other potential recipients should begin to work with local stakeholders and state program contacts to identify potential projects, with a focus on prioritizing projects serving disadvantaged communities. The Environmental Protection Agency and other agencies will provide technical assistance to help these disadvantaged communities overcome barriers to receiving loans and grants for water improvements.

“Potential recipients of the lead service line funding are also encouraged to accelerate the development and use of lead service-line inventories, which can help guide the design of replacement projects eligible for these funds. Additional national program guidance will be issued soon to state water primacy agencies.” — A Guidebook to the Bipartisan Infrastructure Law. ELECTRICAL APPARATUS | MARCH 2022 43

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MARCH 2022

UTILITY LEFT FEELING SALTY. Salt River Project, the primary utility service provider in the Phoenix metro area, took a hit in the latest episode of “greenwashing” this week. The company was found guilty of a price-gouging scheme by a federal appeals court for practices dating back to 2015 or earlier, in which “it adopted a rate increase for its non-solar customers of only about 3.9%. After adopting the new pricing scheme, SRP undertook a $1.7 million advertising campaign to promote its increased rates for solar customers.”

CANADA TRUCKER PROTESTS. As we were going to press, the “Freedom Convoy” of Canadian and American truckers in Ottawa, Ontario, were seeing an increase in police response and arrests.

Demonstrators continued to gather in protest against government mandates for Covid-19 vaccines and masks, as well as restrictions on certain businesses, blocking off streets in the Parliament Hill Semi trucks block off streets in Ottawa in protest of Coarea of Ottawa since arriving vid-19 mask and vaccine mandates.

— The Council on Foreign Relations Jan. 29. The city’s mayor declared a state of emergency Feb. 6; its police chief resigned Feb. 15; and a secured area was established Feb. 17 to ensure that “designated places” are protected. Offshoots of the movement have produced far-reaching effects from Detroit to Los Angeles.

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THE HARD CELL. Hydrogen fuel-cell technology is proving to be more than just a niche idea. General Motors reinforced this notion recently when it announced new commercial applications of its hydrogen fuel-cell platform, called “Hydrotec.” This line of fuel cell generators could ultimately replace gas- and diesel-burning generators with fewer emissions at worksites, buildings, movie sets, data centers, outdoor concerts and festivals, and military installations. — Charlie Barks Have the digital “Direct & Current” delivered each week, at no charge, to your e-mail in-box. Scan the code at right or sign up now at http://tinyurl.com/ea-enews.

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