Global Switchgear Services
Limited are utilising the versatility of thermal imaging to carry out
electrical and mechanical inspections of marine and industrial equipment.
With a wide variety of customers including; commercial and royal navy
shipping; the nuclear, coal, oil, gas and hydro energy industries; pumped
storage; rail and heavy industry such as steel mills, Global can quickly
identify areas of potential concern that if left undetected could cause
damage, fires or be potentially life threatening.
Many industrial fires are caused by faulty
electrical components, which result in costly down time and expensive
recovery in terms of lost production and replacement of equipment. By
detecting heat build-ups or hot spots, thermography provides early
detection of potential electrical fires and allows planned monitoring of
electrical systems and the scheduling of preventative maintenance actions
before serious damage occurs.
A key strength of
thermography is its non-contact, non-invasive function that allows
equipment or processes to be monitored or inspected without being powered
down. Moreover, inspection is rapid and the instantaneous image permits
potential areas of concern to be identified immediately unlike other
condition monitoring and NDT techniques.
Global was founded in 1997 and has gained an excellent
reputation as specialists in switchgear engineering, repairs and
servicing. During the course of visits to their customers, Global quickly
recognised the potential for thermography and its ability to complement
their existing capabilities by the inclusion of electrical and mechanical
inspections into the Company’s range of expertise. Inspections are carried
out by Global’s Level 1 ASNT trained thermographers using the NEC TH7102WV
thermal imaging camera and a full written report is provided to the
customer showing both a visual and thermal image highlighting any problem
areas and making recommendations as appropriate.
The original camera that Global purchased was heavy and
expensive to maintain with only basic operating features. However as
thermal inspections became an established part of the company’s business,
Global invested in a NEC TH7102WV camera, part of the range of thermal
imaging equipment supplied by Metrum.
The TH7100 Series cameras are hand held, weighing only
1.7 kilogrammes and are ergonomically designed to allow the user to
operate the camera, freeze the image, adjust the temperature span and
store images all with one hand.
Images show poor connection on Main Isolator Switch
Other features include
voice annotation and a built in 752 (Horizontal) x 480 (Vertical) pixel
visual camera enabling the user to prepare reports that show both thermal
image and daylight pictures for easy identification. With low light areas
in mind the camera has a 1 lux sensitivity similar to high performance
photographic cameras. The visual camera uses auto exposure and auto focus
to reduce on site operation time and cost for the customer.
Metrum supplies a full
range of thermal imaging cameras, from small, low resolution units,
through fixed installed automation cameras to high resolution systems with
built-in digital imaging facilities. To further support every NEC camera
supplied by Metrum, a full training package covering product information,
basic theory and system operation is provided on-site for all customers,
focusing on the aspects of use that are of major importance to the
customer’s specific requirements. Furthermore, Metrum provides full after
sales care of all products including calibration, service and repair to
the strict quality procedures as laid down in the company’s ISO9001
procedures.
