Toronto Electricians and Electrical Contractors

The electrical distribution infrastructure is the foundation through which power is safely delivered to industrial processes around the globe. This vital power distribution infrastructure operations 24/7 for, in some cases, years at a time without interruption. Behind the scenes plant managers have used time-proven maintenance strategies to avoid unplanned downtime.  Today however, connected technologies and the  Industrial Internet-of-Things  (IIoT) are enabling innovative new  condition-based monitoring services  that continuously monitor asset health and, with the support of an expert-staffed service bureau, deliver advanced notification if any asset exhibits abnormal behavior. Potential problems are then addressed long before there is a safety risk or a costly impact to plant operations. The span of critical electrical distribution assets that now can be continuous...

The Internet of Things (IoT) is opening up opportunities in all sorts of areas, including in facility operations. A case in point is tools for managing smaller buildings. While building management systems (BMSs) have long been available for managing large buildings and critical facilities, IoT technology makes it feasible and cost-effective to bring similar cloud-based functionality to small and medium-sized buildings as well – creating lots of opportunities for the service providers who maintain them. As this previous post explains, it starts with improving the efficiency of building maintenance teams, helping them more easily track and complete scheduled maintenance jobs, as well as issue reports. Smaller buildings can benefit from IoT intelligence But these sorts of cloud-based operation and maintenance tools are also a boon to operations teams whose primary function is to repair various building assets when things go wrong and get them back online as quickly as possible. Tools...

In the previous two posts in this series , we’ve looked at the hidden risks that make managing critical power facilities so challenging. We’ve also seen how trends in digitizing electrical power distribution networks mean you no longer have to ‘work blind’. Connected smart devices sharing data with cloud or facility-based software and mobile apps help shine a bright light on risks while revealing opportunities to improve safety, reliability, efficiency, and compliance. Let’s have a closer look at how digitization helps deliver these benefits and, in turn, delivers a potential massive ROI against the cost of upgrading your infrastructure. Optimizing safety A digitized electrical system can include wireless thermal sensors in strategic locations to continuously sense for abnormal temperature rises. Personnel are alerted to any thermal problem before it results in an electrical fire destroying equipment or injuring people. In hospital operating rooms that depend on isolated power to ...

Until recently, electric utilities were heavily dependent on customers for notifications of an outage. Now, using smart grid solutions and self-healing capabilities, utilities can remotely monitor power equipment to: quickly identify faults shorten the frequency and duration of outages recover faster It is a critical advancement, since even short disruptions can inconvenience customers and cause financial and productivity losses. One of the primary characteristics of a smart grid is its ability to self-heal. Self-healing capabilities minimize blackouts because they allow for continuous self-assessments that inspect, analyze, react to, and automatically respond to problems. This is possible through the widespread deployment of sensors and other intelligent devices and automated controls that check and evaluate the status and condition of the network to identify abnormalities and problems. Using this information, the grid can agilely and accurately isolate network failure and...

Industrial Control System (ICS) operators recognize the need to improve cybersecurity , but many lack the understanding on how to start the process.  End users attend cybersecurity conferences, webinars, or read articles in the trade press and learn about specific cybersecurity topics – like threat detection or defense in depth architectures.  Many are tempted to start to take steps to improve security – but it is critical to first create a plan prior to taking action.  Schneider Electric has issued a white paper designed to provide guidance to operators who are initiating projects to secure industrial control systems. The whitepaper introduces the cybersecurity lifecycle which consists of four phases; Assessment, Implementation, Maintenance, and Auditing.  The white paper focuses on the Assessment Phase, and provides a detailed overview of the steps required to create a security plan.  The Assessment Phase is divided into 4 major steps: Documenting the Syst...

In my last post , I took a look at four IoT-related technologies that have been converging to enable more efficient, reliable and smarter buildings . These include the new IoT architecture, power and building systems integration, mobile platforms, and advanced analytics. Now let’s look at three more related innovations that are helping connect to more opportunities while keeping networks secure. Head to the cloud IoT-based solutions depend on the affordability of cloud-based remote servers, as well as their ability to scale to accommodate dynamic demands. In this way, cloud computing is progressively changing how buildings are managed. As mentioned in my previous post, the cloud can act as a remote services enabler, allowing your facility management team to take advantage of external expertise. This is becoming increasingly common, with a recent study by Navigant showing 26% of firms worldwide planning to continue or begin outsourcing energy management to an external firm. A cloud-...