We are well on our way into 2025. Things are looking up and will be fast and furious as companies start picking up production. Because industries are still dealing with the supply chain issues of the past, it is even more important that companies take care of their most important assets, their electric motors. Lots of companies still “run to failure” or just pay attention to vibration and forget the other side of the coin, the electrical side.

Happy New Year from The Snell Group!  2024 was filled with improvements including our new Electric Motor Testing (EMT) certification program and increased field service offerings.  Expect even more advancements in 2025. 

Les systèmes de lubrification et hydrauliques sont parmi les meilleurs sujets d’inspection en thermographie. Grâce à un imageur infrarouge, il est possible de détecter plusieurs anomalies potentielles :

 Le mauvais écoulement d’un fluide de lubrification

Les vannes défectueuses ou mal positionnées peuvent entraîner une circulation du fluide dans la mauvaise direction. Les conduits ou les tuyaux qui dégagent de la chaleur signalent un débit de fluide. Pour analyser cette situation, comparez une image infrarouge du système au schéma qui y correspond.

Figure 1: A drawing displaying rotor bowing or sag (above) 

As the sun works its way across the skies, the shadows it casts can become long and influential. This is especially true on walls where a soffit or overhang can shade the upper part of a wall but not the lower. This is obvious to anyone looking at the exterior (right image), although even there you may see, thermally, the time lag of the moving shadow (see the shades of blue at the red line in the image on the left).

As the season starts to change towards fall companies have lots on their plates. Winter is coming and there is a lot to do to get ready. As companies gear up for the changing season, it’s typical for companies in the fall to send their employees out for last minute training. Companies are also ramping up inspections getting ready for “shutdown season” as we like to call it. We, here at The Snell Group, are ready to help you out no matter what your company’s situation is.

It’s not too often we get to help out the local homeowner but I got the chance to this week. Finding in-floor heat tubes is very important if you are going to be cutting up the floor. The homeowner has some water / moisture issues that started 2 years ago. The house was built in 2007. Water started showing up in the downstairs bathroom and some other areas. A Contractor told him he needed to spend $45,000+ to put in drain tile system inside the house, hence why we were called in for our services.

In the world of 2024 I cannot wrap my head around the AI that is evolving very fast. People are trying to figure out how it can help them run their companies, their lives and everyday task. I see it as an evil for the most part it takes away your ability to be a self-thinker and is only as good as the people behind it, which I don’t trust. However, I don’t want to throw the baby out with the bathwater because I also think there can be some good that comes from it. It can help companies with training, safety and other human behaviors for the workplace.

Implementing a motor testing program is no easy undertaking.  Implementing anything new can be extremely difficult.  Many questions need answered, many minds need to come together, and numerous obstacles must be overcome.

How do we get this off the ground? Who do we need “Buy-In” from?

Buy-in (as a verb or noun) signifies the commitment of interested or affected parties to a decision to 'buy-in' to the decision, that is, to agree to give it support, often by having been involved in its formulation