Thermography Of Electrical Panels

Using thermal imaging cameras we can help you to inspect electrical systems in your premises.

Thermography of electrical panels.

Some insurance companies require thermography to be done as part of their insurance requirements. 70b is the recommended practice for electrical equipment maintenance while 70e is the standard that covers electrical safety in the workplace. Firstly in most countries thermography is not a legal requirement however there are other reasons that it should be done. Thermography is a method of inspecting electrical and mechanical equipment by obtaining heat distribution pictures this inspection method is based on the fact that most components in a system show an increase in temperature when malfunctioning.

In a typical manufacturing plant infrared thermography inspections did on electrical systems such as electrical switchboards high voltage distribution equipment motors corresponding controllers transformers and other control panels. At the electrical panels infrared thermography is used to perform preventive maintenance inspections broadly the following can be observed loose connections terminations oxidation at the cable termination points dust deposition at terminations defective lug crimping overloaded or imbalanced circuits. Infrared electrical inspections find hot spots caused by defects in connections and components. Statistics reveal that electrical equipment damage and lost connections cause 25 30 of all failures to switchboards switches circuit breakers and cables.

Infrared thermography is used to find areas of excess heat caused by increased resistance so that problems can be corrected before a component fails causing damage to the component creating safety hazards and productivity loss. Infrared thermography is a test that can be utilised to identify unbalanced loads poor connections deteriorated insulation or any other issues in energized electrical panels or components without dismantling the components. The two nfpa documents that have changed the face of infrared thermography over the last few decades are nfpa 70b and nfpa 70e. Businesses with high electrical demands should have a thermographic scan performed at least annually on critical systems such as circuit panels switchgears and transformers.

This type of fault is easy to detect using infrared cameras. Based on the scan results a schedule to rescan should be based on the types of equipment power consumption and age of the electrical systems. Electrical thermography serves this purpose and helps you to detect any electric problem before it arises. Electrical thermography can diagnose faults in electrical systems.