DAC Worldwide’s Smart Process Plant Offers Unparalleled Process Control Training
Many different types of manufacturing processes depend upon the carefully-controlled movement of fluids, such as liquids and gases, through a complex system. That’s why process control and instrumentation are vital parts of many major industries, including: power generation; petrochemicals; food processing and bottling; chemical manufacturing; biotechnology; pharmaceuticals; refineries; and more.
For example, a recent IndustryWeek article by Gerry Abbey and Lance Heinen details the “journey to embrace smart manufacturing technology” made by “Texas’s largest pickle manufacturer,” Best Maid Pickles. “Founded in 1926, Best Maid Pickles” sought to improve productivity and efficiency as the organization continued to expand its operations.
The authors note that, “[a]cross the food and beverage industry, the adoption of smart manufacturing technologies, while extremely desirable, has been slowed by concerns around cost, lack of knowledge and lack of skills.” However, with proper research and strategic implementation, these technologies can transform a business.
Best Maid Pickles stands as a perfect example of such transformation. As the authors conclude, “the Best Maid Pickles journey illustrates how embracing smart manufacturing technology can drive efficiency, productivity and profitability…The implementation delivered a significant ROI through reduced costs and increased revenue, empowering Best Maid for sustained growth and success.”
The authors believe that, “[b]y leveraging technology, companies can position themselves for a thriving future in the ever-evolving manufacturing landscape.” The journey will not be without its challenges, however, and those must be anticipated and tackled head-on.
One common challenge when implementing new advanced automation technologies is the need for highly skilled workers to operate, maintain, troubleshoot, and repair these new systems. Whether a company decides to search for new employees with the skills they need or train current employees to equip them with necessary skills, employers must focus on ensuring workers possess the hands-on process control and instrumentation skills they require.
Fortunately, employers don’t have to reinvent the wheel when it comes to effective process control and instrumentation training. Partnering with a training solutions provider with a proven track record can help any manufacturer or educational institution train workers with the hands-on skills they’ll need to hit the ground running in the workplace.
For example, DAC Worldwide offers a wide variety of training systems that teach basic to advanced process control and instrumentation skills. Its newest flagship process control and instrumentation trainer, the Smart Process Plant Training System (603-SP), is a fully-functional, industrial-quality fluid process system that provides hands-on training in the measurement and control of five of the most common process variables: level, pressure, temperature, flow, and pH.
The system groups these process control elements into one complete piping system, which allows it to teach multiple configurations of flow loops, controls, and communications. The system incorporates both new and legacy technologies so that users are prepared for anything they might encounter on the job. These technologies work together to form a 3-level communication architecture:
- Device Level: Smart sensors monitor Level, Flow, Temperature, Pressure, and pH. They are connected via either IO-Link and Ethernet communication or HART communication.
- Control Level: A DCS and various PLCs and PIDs allow for operation and control of the system’s components.
- Enterprise Level: The DCS software provides Supervisory Control with data analytics for monitoring smart production, smart maintenance, etc.
The Smart Process Plant uses a Distributed Control System (DCS) that features Supervisory Control software. This software is Rockwell Automation’s PlantPAx, and it acts as the backbone of the system. It gathers and organizes data and creates dashboards that represent the real-time status of the processes being carried out by the system.
The Smart Process Plant Training System features a wide variety of common, industrial-quality components and instruments to provide learners with a realistic training experience that will build skills that translate easily to the workplace. The Smart Process Plant also includes multiple experiments, which simulate both continuous and batch process control loops that are widely used in many process industries. These experiments include:
- Basic and Advanced Bioreactor Applications
- Clean-In-Place (CIP) Skid Application
- Boiler Drum Level Application
- Wastewater Treatment Application
With these experiments, learners will explore a wide variety of fundamental process control topics, including: temperature, level, flow, pressure, and pH ratio control; agitation; sequence control; continuous control; 3-element control; feed forward/cascade control; and pump lead/lag demand. The Smart Process Plant Training System is only one of DAC Worldwide’s many process control and instrumentation training systems. Visit DAC Worldwide online to learn more about its many other training systems!
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DAC Worldwide Offers Hands-On Electrical Generation Fundamentals Training
Industrial facilities know how important electrical skills are to ensuring that things run smoothly and safely. What many people don’t know, however, is how diverse electrical skills can be. While basic electrical skills, such as wiring a circuit or troubleshooting a transformer, are extremely valuable and quite common, some facilities require specialized advanced electrical skills, such as those relating to power generation and managing multiple power plants on an electrical grid.
For example, one industry that’s currently booming will likely lead to a need for workers with advanced electrical skills related to power generation. Which industry are we talking about? Semiconductor manufacturing!
According to a recent article in The Register, author Tobias Mann notes that “AMD president Victor Peng addressed [at the recent Hot Chips Conference] one of the biggest challenges facing the semiconductor industry as it grapples with growing demand for ever larger AI models: power.”
How big is the challenge facing the semiconductor manufacturing industry? Mann points out that “AI’s seemingly insatiable thirst for power has gained considerable attention over the past year – so much so that some operators have begun setting up shop next to nuclear power plants. And the problem isn’t going to get easier.”
According to Mann, Peng has expressed worry about “finding enough power sources and being concerned about the grids and the distribution.” In fact, Mann notes that Peng has “noted that these [AI] models have very quickly gone from requiring hundreds of megawatt hours to train to hundreds of gigawatt hours.”
How do you address such a large-scale challenge? “Peng argues that the semiconductor industry needs to focus more attention on making the infrastructure not only more performant, but more efficient.” Indeed, the burgeoning semiconductor manufacturing industry must bring together all the players necessary to craft large-scale infrastructure solutions that ensure that the electrical grids of tomorrow will be able to support the demands of new technologies.
Addressing fundamental electrical generation challenges will require highly skilled workers who possess advanced electrical skills related to power generation. Hands-on training in electrical generation fundamentals can elevate workers’ skills to the next level.
For example, DAC Worldwide’s Electrical Generation Fundamentals Training System (490-000) represents a true simulator depicting multiple power plants on a grid. The unit basically acts as the control center for a generating station and simulates four separate generating units. The system demonstrates the principles of generator operation and represents the relationships that an operator must master in order to confidently operate generators.
Practice in paralleling machines of various sizes is easily accomplished without tying up the plant simulator. The synchroscope display includes a phase angle display, representing the phase difference between running and incoming.
A graphic representation of how load is shared, by two machines of various sizes, is shown by a house curve. The relationship between real load and reactive load is displayed by meters and by a pictorial diagram of the power triangle on the graphic display. Inductive, resistive, and capacitive loads can be turned on and off reinforcing the effects of reactive load and demonstrating how power factor can be changed.
Users will study topics, such as AC generators, reactive power control, loss of load, and trainer operation. They will also practice hands-on skills, such as correctly performing paralleling operation, generator responses to inductive/resistive/capacitive loads, calculating power factor, and observing a diesel generator autostart and load. The Electrical Generation Fundamentals Training System is only one of DAC Worldwide’s many electrical training systems. Visit DAC Worldwide online to learn more about its many other electrical training systems!
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Data-Driven Maintenance Leads to Continuous Improvement
What’s the most-feared word in the manufacturing sector? While there certainly are a wide variety of candidates, we’d be willing to bet that “downtime” is quite high on the list. No manufacturer likes to hear that critical machinery is down, leading to production delays and potentially expensive repair costs.
When looking for ways to boost productivity and efficiency, many manufacturers analyze downtime statistics to try to figure out what’s causing downtime and how to minimize it. Is a particular machine to blame? Are machines not being maintained in a timely manner? Is equipment not being utilized appropriately?
Unfortunately, too many manufacturers have nothing to analyze other than miscellaneous reports by maintenance managers. That’s why rubber compounding manufacturer Hexpol Compounding America (HCA) recently invested in a computerized maintenance management system (CMMS).
According to a recent IndustryWeek article by Dennis Scimeca, maintenance at HCA was “not a focus at the executive level.” However, after implementation of a CMMS, leadership realized that the CMMS could “lay the groundwork for a new, company-wide total preventative maintenance (TPM) initiative” that “ties directly into…HCA’s corporate strategy plan[, which] includes continuous improvement and lean management goals.”
For example, the CMMS allowed HCA to take “a data-rich approach to boost equipment availability and found continuous improvement opportunities throughout all of its operations.” One focus was on inventory reduction, keeping track of “parts inventories and repairs to determine how shelf-life relates to replacement-part needs.”
The CMMS provided some interesting insights: “O-rings don’t last forever. If you sit on a part for 10 years, if it has rubber seals in it, it’s probably bad. We probably shouldn’t be holding on to that because it’s a cost. If we’re relying on that part to work in 10 years and it fails right away, it did us no good to even hold that part.”
Likewise, “[i]f they sit too long, the bearings in large motors flatten because of the weight. Something as simple as rotating a shaft a quarter turn once a month prevents those motors from becoming write-offs and incurring replacement costs. The CMMS determines the best PM schedules to avoid the motors from failing.”
HCA’s maintenance leaders have been pleased with how the CMMS has helped them use real data to drive changes. According to HCA’s CEO, “We’re only doing the things that we know we can control and that are actually going to give us the benefits we need.” And how do they know it’s working? “[T]he CMMS provides real truth on whether the new policies deliver results or not.”
The data provided by the CMMS has also helped HCA leaders to work more closely together. Quarterly one-on-one meetings with site leaders “make sure larger goals meet the specific needs of individual plants and that everyone has the resources they need…A good example is trying to find maintenance technicians. If we have three openings at a site and not seeming like we’re getting any resumes for interviews I can try to go to HR and figure out what’s going on. What do we need to do to get this done?”
Speaking of maintenance technicians, it’s no surprise that HCA’s multiple locations would still need to hire highly skilled maintenance technicians. The CMMS didn’t reduce the need for ongoing reactive and proactive maintenance. To the contrary, it provided data to support the importance of maintaining equipment on a regular basis to optimize efficiency and productivity.
For companies like HCA, that means hiring new maintenance technicians with the skills they need to succeed, as well as upskilling current maintenance workers to ensure they’re up to the task of tackling the maintenance priorities the CMMS highlights. For many companies, this will mean making investments in things like ongoing training, in addition to new technology, like a CMMS.
For companies looking to set up or improve their maintenance training, a thorough review of current training materials is a great place to start. Do employees have access to hands-on training with actual components they’ll encounter on the job? If not, partnering with established companies to provide industrial-quality training systems that will stand the test of time will help ensure the productivity of the workforce.
For example, DAC Worldwide offers a wide variety of training systems specifically designed to give employees the hands-on experience they need to master essential industrial maintenance skills. Be sure to check out DAC Worldwide’s advanced manufacturing training systems and contact a DAC Worldwide representative to learn how you can improve your training today!
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EPA Incentivizes Oil and Gas Companies to Reduce Methane Emissions
Is it fair that climate change scientists have laid much of the blame for global warming at the feet of the oil and gas industry? Perhaps. A recent EHS Today article notes that the Environmental Protection Agency (“EPA”) states that “[o]ne sector – oil and natural gas – is responsible for almost one-third of warming from greenhouse gases.”
One of those greenhouse gases – methane – has come under greater scrutiny in recent years. In fact, the EPA dedicated nearly 100 actions in 2023 to reducing methane emissions, “including the finalization of an EPA rule that will yield an 80% reduction in methane emissions from covered oil and gas facilities.”
Reducing methane emissions comes with a cost. Not every oil and gas company is the size of Exxon or Chevron. Smaller oil and gas companies faced with a mandate to cut methane pollution may not have the means available to incorporate the latest technologies. Fortunately, help is on the way.
“[T]he EPA and the Department of Energy announced on June 21 that they will fund $850 million worth of projects that can monitor, measure, quantify and reduce these emissions…This funding, which comes from the Inflation Reduction Act, is meant to specifically help small oil and natural gas operators by having them access technology that can reduce emissions. This program is part of an overall…Methane Emissions Reduction Program.”
In a statement, EPA Administrator Michael S. Regan said, “These investments from President Biden’s Investing in America agenda will drive the deployment of available and advanced technologies to better understand where methane emissions are coming from. That will help us more effectively reduce harmful pollution, tackle the climate crisis and create good-paying jobs.”
EHS Today identified four primary objectives of this new funding:
- “Help small operators significantly reduce methane emissions from oil and natural gas operations, using commercially available technology solutions for methane emissions monitoring, measurement, quantification and mitigation.”
- “Accelerate the repair of methane leaks from low-producing wells and the deployment of early-commercial technology solutions to reduce methane emissions from new and existing equipment such as natural gas compressors, gas-fueled engines, associated gas flares, liquids unloading operations, handling of produced water and other equipment leakage.”
- “Improve communities’ access to empirical data and participation in monitoring through multiple installations of monitoring and measurement technologies while establishing collaborative relationships between equipment providers and communities.”
- “Enhance the detection and measurement of methane emissions from oil and gas operations at regional scale, while ensuring nationwide data consistency through the creation of collaborative partnerships. These partnerships will span the country’s oil and gas-producing regions and draw in oil and natural gas owners and operators, universities, environmental justice organizations, community leaders, unions, technology developers, Tribes, state regulatory agencies, non-governmental research organizations, federally funded research and development centers and DOE’s National Laboratories.”
What does this new funding mean for smaller oil and gas companies? They will need to invest money, time, and effort to reduce methane pollution by improving ongoing maintenance in the oil and gas sector. To get the job done correctly, these companies will also need highly skilled workers with hands-on experience with real equipment.
For oil and gas companies looking to improve the skill level of their workers, a thorough review of training systems is a great place to start. Do employees have access to hands-on training with actual components they’ll encounter on the job? If not, partnering with established companies to provide industrial-quality training systems that will stand the test of time will help ensure a competent workforce. Be sure to check out DAC Worldwide’s variety of hands-on oil & gas training systems that feature the real-world components workers will encounter in the field!
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Sustained Demand Boosts Manufacturing Equipment Orders
As consumers, it’s easy to see the effects of a prolonged battle with inflation. It seems like everywhere you go, it costs more these days for the things you need. From grocery stores and restaurants to gasoline and utilities, the consumer dollar just doesn’t stretch as far as it used to.
Are manufacturers experiencing something similar? If you watch the news, it’s pretty much been doom and gloom for some time now, even though many key economic indicators reflect a recovering economy that’s more robust than it’s been since the COVID-19 pandemic.
While it’s true that inflation and high interest rates can affect businesses just like they do consumers, there’s evidence that manufacturers see the light at the end of the tunnel. In fact, it appears that many manufacturers are ready to resume capital investment in the form of new manufacturing equipment orders.
A recent American Machinist article notes that “[a]n uptick in demand from machine shops and OEMs may indicate manufacturers are overlooking the high interest rates that have restrained new orders through the year to-date, recognizing sustained consumer and business demand for finished products.”
The article reports that “U.S. machine shops and other manufacturers increased their demand for capital equipment during May, with new metal-cutting and metal-forming and fabricating machines rising 21.8% from April to $386.7 million for the month. That represents a 6.5% increase in new orders from May 2023.”
“These figures are supplied by AMT – the [Association] for Manufacturing Technology in its U.S. Manufacturing Technology Orders report, a monthly review of new orders for machine tools (i.e., ‘manufacturing technology’), that serves as an indicator of future manufacturing activity because it quantifies machining operations’ investments in preparation for new production programs.”
In its report, AMT notes that these developments represent “a realization by manufacturers that capital investment is necessary ‘to meet the sustained demand for goods and machinery from consumers and businesses,’ in spite of the ongoing strain of high interest rates that have weighed against new-order activity since January.”
AMT also observed that “[d]emand for manufacturing technology among OEM is notably strong among electrical equipment manufacturers and power-generation and transmission equipment manufacturers. ‘These industries undoubtedly benefit from the government investment authorized by the CHIPS and Infrastructure acts and are therefore less sensitive to interest rates than others.’”
This is good news for electrical power generation and transmission equipment manufacturers. New equipment often means increased capacity, which in turn means new employees. Ensuring that new employees – and current employees – have the hands-on skills they need to succeed in the workplace remains a top priority.
How do companies and schools train the next generation of professionals with the electrical skills they need to succeed in the modern workplace? A thorough review of training systems is a great place to start. Do employees and students have access to hands-on training with actual components they’ll encounter on the job?
If not, partnering with established companies to provide industrial-quality training systems that will stand the test of time will help ensure a competent workforce. Be sure to check out DAC Worldwide’s variety of hands-on electrical training systems that feature the real-world components workers will encounter in the field!
- Published in News
Electrical Safety is no Joke
Did you hear the latest parental advice on how to keep kids from chewing on electrical cords? You ground them until they conduct themselves properly!
OK, we may have started this article with a (terrible, absolutely awful) joke, but we did so to make a point: electrical safety is no joke, especially in the workplace. In fact, bad dad jokes are the only time electrical safety is a laughing matter.
That’s a lesson that a plastic and resin manufacturer with facilities in Georgia and Alabama learned the hard way recently. According to a recent Plant Services article by Alexis Gajewski, “[a]n [Occupational Safety and Health Administration] OSHA investigation has determined that Crown USA Inc. could have prevented the death of a 37-year-old maintenance technician…if they were following required safety rules designed to keep machines from starting up during maintenance.”
Gajewski notes that “[t]he worker was inside an unlocked hooding palletizer, servicing the machine, when they suffered fatal crushing injuries.” OSHA Area Director Jeffery Stawowy said, “Employers must understand federal workplace safety regulations exist to help prevent tragedies like the one that occurred at Crown USA Inc.”
The resulting OSHA investigation revealed “eight serious and six other-than-serious violations. These violations include failing to implement adequate machine guarding, a lack of training on energy control procedures, exposing workers to serious respiratory hazards, and failing to provide proper personal protective equipment (PPE).”
Not only did a maintenance worker needlessly lose their life, but the company also “faces $98,699 in penalties.” Other companies would be wise to learn from Crown USA Inc.’s shortcomings and institute rigorous safety training, including adequate training on energy control procedures.
Manufacturers can always benefit from a regular audit of safety training. The best way to improve a workplace’s safety culture and teach workers to prioritize safety is to implement a quality safety program that teachers workers the knowledge and skills they need to stay safe in the workplace.
As previously mentioned, one of the most basic—and important—areas to focus on is the control of hazardous energy, often known by its more popular moniker “lock-out/tag-out or LOTO.” According to OSHA, “[e]nergy sources including electrical, mechanical, hydraulic, pneumatic, chemical, thermal, or other sources in machines and equipment can be hazardous to workers. During the servicing and maintenance of machines and equipment, the unexpected startup or release of stored energy can result in serious injury or death to workers.”
That’s exactly the lesson that Crown USA Inc. learned too late. Fortunately, “[p]roper lock-out/tag-out practices and procedures safeguard workers from hazardous energy releases.” Teaching workers hands-on LOTO skills will help them to understand how to properly control hazardous energy and maintain a safe work environment.
For companies looking to improve their safety training, partnering with established companies to provide industrial-quality training systems that will stand the test of time will help ensure the continued safety of the workforce.
For example, DAC Worldwide offers a safety training system specifically designed to give employees the hands-on experience they need to master lock-out/tag-out skills. Be sure to check out DAC Worldwide’s Lock-Out/Tag-Out Training System and contact a DAC Worldwide representative to learn how you can improve your training today!
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Will Oil and Gas Workers Get Left Behind?
When you think of oil production, which countries come to mind? If you’re like many people, you may be thinking of countries throughout the Middle East, such as Saudi Arabi, Qatar, and United Arab Emirates. Would you believe, though, that one of the preeminent oil basins in the entire world is located right here in the United States?
In a recent Forbes article by Ian Palmer, the author notes that the Permian basin, which is located in southeast New Mexico and west Texas, “is the king of crude in the U.S.” Responsible for “producing over 6 MMbpd (million barrels per day),” the Permian has made New Mexico “the second highest oil-producing state in the U.S.”
Experts estimate “that crude oil from the Permian will increase 8% this year…leading to record levels of oil production in the U.S. that will approach 14 MMbpd by 2025…the highest oil production in the world.” However, Palmer points out that the oil and gas industry “predicts peak oil production in the 2030s.” After that peak, “[t]he general idea is that fossil energies would decline as renewable energies would increase.”
What’s driving these changes? (Pun totally intended.) If you guessed electric vehicles (EV), you’d be partially right. In addition to EVs, the push for renewable energy sources also comes from efforts to address climate change, as well as the fact that fossil fuel supplies are not renewable and will one day have to be replaced with alternatives.
Oil giant British Petroleum estimates “worldwide fossil energy consumption falling steadily from 80% now to 28-55% by 2050. Coal will fall the most, oil will fall, and natural gas may or may not fall.” New Environmental Protection Agency rules aimed at vehicle emissions could spur the transition to EVs, though, which could accelerate the decline in oil production.
This might seem like a problem for a state like New Mexico, but Governor Lujan Grisham has made a “strong commitment to address climate change. The state has mandated 80% of electricity to be provided by renewables by 2040, and greenhouse gas (GHG) emissions to be reduced by 45-50% based on 2005 levels.”
As the transition to renewables gains momentum, many in New Mexico are beginning to ask questions about what is to become of the state’s oil and gas workers. According to a recent article from The Wilderness Society, author Nicole Segnini notes that “the oil and gas industry hugely depends on Latinx and immigrant workers. According to New Mexico’s Bureau of Labor Statistics, Latinos represent 46% of the state’s oil and gas workforce, many of whom are immigrants.”
Segnini acknowledges that “New Mexico, and the U.S. as a whole, must transition to renewable energy. But as they make that change, they need to ensure these workers, who have played such a crucial role in the economy, are not left behind. The state must value their expertise and livelihoods as it navigates the necessary transition to a healthier, more sustainable economy.”
For many Latinos and immigrants in New Mexico, “jobs in or supporting the fossil fuel industry are among the very few available to care for their families.” Unfortunately, it’s also this same group “who bears the brunt of the industry’s challenges and pollution.”
Segnini notes that “[o]il and gas workers in Southeast New Mexico…are not sure if they’ll be replaced, if they’ll have to move or if they’ll even get a fair chance at new clean energy jobs.” In fact, “[m]any fear people from outside the state of New Mexico will get those jobs instead, leaving them without a paycheck—and without easy access to training that could help them transition into safe and quality jobs in renewable energy or other industries.”
For example, Gabriela Rueda, originally from Mexico and living in New Mexico for the last five years, says, “Our community needs funds to improve the workforce, have other developments and training with work equipment.” She and others working in the New Mexico oil and gas industry “all have one thing in common: they understand that the oil and gas industry has many flaws and could end. They just want to be considered when that happens.”
Thanks to the advocacy of Somos Un Pueblo Unido, a New Mexico immigrant and worker rights organization, the most recent New Mexico state legislative session secured “$6 million from the state’s budget for New Mexico’s adult education division to expand integrated education and skills building programs for disengaged and difficult to reach adult workers,” as well as “a $1 million pilot program to provide cash stipends to low-income workers enrolled in adult education and integrated education training program.”
Segnini concludes that “it is crucial the state…provides equitable access to workforce development and adult education programs and invests significantly in supplemental income for workers enrolled in training…Providing support, retraining opportunities and pathways to new employment sectors ensures that these workers are not left behind but rather empowered to thrive in a rapidly evolving energy landscape.”
For New Mexico and any other states navigating the transition from fossil fuels to alternative energy sources, the Amatrol family of companies can help with all your training needs. Oil and gas companies will continue to need skilled workers as oil production continues to increase over the coming decade.
As the renewable energy transition ramps up, companies will still need skilled workers. Many of the skills workers will need will be like those needed to produce traditional fossil fuels, while new skills will also need to be mastered. Amatrol, along with its sister companies, DAC Worldwide and Bayport Technical, offer a wide variety of training tools and systems to teach workers the skills they need to succeed.
For example, both DAC Worldwide and Bayport Technical manufacture oil and gas training tools and systems that teach hands-on technical skills with real industrial equipment they’ll encounter on the job. Here are a couple of samples of the types of training aids these companies produce:
- DAC Worldwide’s Extended Wellhead Assembly Cutaway (295-795E) depicts the complete assembly of components used in creating a wellhead, which are used in oil & gas production operations. The full-size, fully detailed example of a high-pressure wellhead assembly gives learners a first-hand view into a component that is found in oilfield applications worldwide.
- Bayport Technical’s Cooling Tower Working Demonstrator (142-CT2) is a scaled, acrylic replica of a forced draft cooling tower used in oil refineries and petrochemical plants. This working demonstrator allows a full view of how water is filtered through the tower to cool it off and then return it the factory. This tabletop system includes a water basin and distribution system, heater assembly, pump, fan, splash bars, air intake louvers, draft eliminators, and temperature gauges.
When it comes to teaching the skills workers need in the alternative energy sector, Amatrol provides a full array (again, pun totally intended) of solar and wind trainers. Here are a couple of examples of Amatrol’s green technology training systems:
- Amatrol’s Solar PV Troubleshooting Learning System (950-SPT1) teaches a range of solar photovoltaic (PV) operation, maintenance, and troubleshooting skills through a unique combination of eLearning curriculum and hands-on experience with real industrial solar PV components. That’s why Amatrol’s Solar PV Troubleshooting Learning System features a wide variety of industry-standard solar PV equipment to teach relevant hands-on skills, including: a mobile workstation with a combiner box, MPPT charge controller, micro inverter, grid interactive inverter, programmer, and communications gateway and hub.
- Amatrol’s Turbine Electric Hub Troubleshooting Learning System (950-TEH1) teaches learners adaptive skills for wind turbine operation, adjustment, and troubleshooting in a wide variety of situations. Turbine Electric Hub Troubleshooting training system allows learners to develop and practice component, subsystem, and system level skills. It is fully functional like a utility-scale turbine electric hub. Turbine Electric Hub Troubleshooting includes Amatrol’s unique electronic fault insertion system, which allows instructors to electronically create realistic hub problems and then track the learner’s progress in solving the problem.
Reach out to an expert training consultant with Amatrol today to get started on the path to training the next generation of workers!
- Published in News
Resurgence of Manufacturing Spotlights Need for Training
It’s no secret that the COVID-19 pandemic took a toll on manufacturing in America. Alongside nearly every other industry, manufacturing faced major challenges in 2020 and the years that followed, particularly with regard to supply chain problems.
Fortunately, the tide appears to be turning. In a recent Bloomberg article, authors Enda Curran and Katia Dmitrieva report that “[a]ssembly lines around the world are starting to hum again, marking a turn in a years-long manufacturing slump.” That’s good news here and abroad.
According to Curran and Dmitrieva, “[t]he nascent industrial recovery is led by the world’s two biggest economies. Chinese manufacturing has made a strong start to the year, boosting the economic outlook, and US factory activity unexpectedly expanded last month for the first time since September 2022, buoyed by rising new orders and a jump in production.”
Factory activity isn’t the only key indicator reflecting an uptick in American Manufacturing. The authors note that “JPMorgan/S&P Global’s manufacturing index notched a second month above expansionary territory in March and sits at the highest level since July 2022. If sustained, that’ll help catalyze a broader and stronger economic recovery that’s already spreading beyond the US.”
The recovery could be a bumpy ride. However, the authors believe there is reason for optimism: “While it’s still early days…the activity nonetheless marks a departure from the slowdown that took hold globally as consumer demand pivoted to spending more on services such as travel and dining out instead of buying more goods as pandemic-era restrictions ended.”
As American manufacturing ramps up during this period of recovery, manufacturers will still be faced with a labor pool that continues to have fewer highly skilled workers than employers need. Where will the workers come from? Until educational institutions expand the pipeline of skilled workers, manufacturers will have to pick up some of the slack of training workers with the skills they need to succeed.
Of course, not every manufacturer is prepared to train workers with the knowledge and hands-on skills they need to make an immediate impact in the workplace. Fortunately, employers don’t have to be training experts to launch an effective training program.
The experts at DAC Worldwide can help any manufacturer quickly and efficiently implement a training program that targets the specific skills workers need to be productive. For example, a thorough review of training systems is a great place to start. Do employees have access to hands-on training with actual components they’ll encounter on the job?
If not, partnering with established companies to provide industrial-quality training systems that will stand the test of time will help ensure a competent workforce. Be sure to check out DAC Worldwide’s variety of hands-on focused skills training systems that feature the real-world components workers will encounter in the field!
- Published in News
Foundational Electrical Skills Remain Essential in the Modern Industrial Workplace
Do you remember the good old days of the COVID-19 pandemic? Me neither. Empty store shelves devoid of your favorite products. Supply chain disruptions affecting every aspect of your modern life. No, those were not fun times.
Anyone shopping for a new or used vehicle during the pandemic probably remembers the lack of vehicle supply leading to huge price increases. In some cases, thousands of new vehicles sat in parking lots waiting for one tiny, but critical component—usually a semiconductor or “computer chip”—before they could be shipped to dealers for sale.
The fact that our auto industry relied almost exclusively on foreign suppliers for such key components did not go unnoticed by the federal government. In a recent IndustryWeek article, author Sarah Shinton notes that “[i]n 2022, the White House signed the CHIPS and Science Act into law, a bipartisan effort to increase domestic advanced semiconductor manufacturing. The legislation made a historic $52 billion investment in American semiconductor research, manufacturing and workforce development.”
Is your area one of those lucky enough to have acquired a new semiconductor manufacturing facility? If so, you may not have heard a lot about it yet. Shinton points out that “new projects are facing construction delays and permitting issues.”
More problematic, however, is the fact that there’s a larger issue looming: “the country might be unable to generate enough electricity to power new fabrication plants, leaving billions of dollars in federal funds stranded and one of its most critical supply chains vulnerable.”
Shinton notes that “[w]hile manufacturing semiconductors has always been energy-intensive, the process is becoming even more so as chips are developed to be smaller and more powerful. The most advanced semiconductors require extreme ultraviolet (EUV) lithography machines, which use ultraviolet light produced by rapid-fired lasers to burn fine details on silicon wafers.”
Unfortunately, “these machines consume 10 times as much power as earlier generations of equipment.” How much power is that? A lot. Shinton points out that “the Taiwan Semiconductor Manufacturing Company (TSMC), the world’s leading semiconductor manufacturer,…now consumes more electricity than some U.S. states.”
This presents a huge problem for future chip fabrication plants in the U.S. According to Shinton, “semiconductor manufacturing creates large pockets of demand in the areas where fabrication plants are located. A rapid increase in load presents challenges for grid operators who maintain the delicate balance between electricity supply and demand, preventing curtailments or worse, blackouts.”
The phasing out of coal-fired power plants in favor of alternative sources, such as natural gas, solar, and wind, could also be problematic. “The vast amount of electricity needed to onshore this new manufacturing comes at a time when America’s power grid is increasingly unreliable as the country undergoes rapid changes…many regulators are raising alarms that power plants are being retired faster than they are replaced, leaving the country at risk of electricity shortages.”
Moreover, “[t]hese mass retirements are also happening while electricity demand nationwide is increasing from data center growth, expansions in manufacturing and intensifying weather conditions…Over the past year, the five-year load growth forecast nearly doubled, jumping from 2.6% to 4.7%…Without expanding the high-capacity transmission system, our grid will struggle to meet this demand.”
What do these problems mean for the future workforce? Not only will dozens of semiconductor manufacturing facilities need highly skilled workers for their plants, but the industries supporting these new ventures will need thousands of workers with fundamental electrical skills as public utilities work together with industry to ensure a stable electrical grid for the future.
How do companies and schools train the next generation of professionals with the electrical skills they need to succeed in the modern workplace? A thorough review of training systems is a great place to start. Do employees and students have access to hands-on training with actual components they’ll encounter on the job?
If not, partnering with established companies to provide industrial-quality training systems that will stand the test of time will help ensure a competent workforce. Be sure to check out DAC Worldwide’s variety of hands-on electrical training systems that feature the real-world components workers will encounter in the field!
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Electrical Safety Training Sets the Stage for a Secure Workplace
My neighbor asked me to install a new electrical outlet in his master bathroom. He was eventually shocked to learn that I’m not a licensed electrician! OK, that’s an old—and terrible—joke, but it does underscore the importance of safety when it comes to working with electrical current.
In the modern industrial workplace, there are a whole host of skills that workers need to know. No matter how highly skilled a worker might be, however, nothing will matter if the fundamental basics of safety aren’t mastered.
When it comes to safety, one of the most important skills that workers must learn is how to work safely with electricity. According to a FacilitiesNet article by Ashley Beebe, “[w]hen working with electrical distribution systems and components, frontline maintenance technicians and engineers often face the potential for serious injury or death from electrocution or arc flashes, but knowledge of safety tips, procedures, codes and regulations can help technicians and engineers lessen the risk and potential for serious injury or death.”
That’s why, “[a]ccording to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA), employees must not work near an electric current, any equipment, or a part they may come in contact with while on the job, unless it has been de-energized. If an electric current has not been de-energized, employees must be protected by isolation, insulation, warning signs or other methods.”
In safety training, the control of hazardous energy is often known by its more popular moniker “lock-out/tag-out or LOTO.” According to OSHA, “[p]roper lock-out/tag-out practices and procedures safeguard workers from hazardous energy releases.” Teaching workers hands-on LOTO skills will help them to understand how to properly control hazardous energy and maintain a safe work environment.
For companies looking to improve their safety training, a thorough review of current training materials is a great place to start. Do employees have access to hands-on training with actual components they’ll encounter on the job? If not, partnering with established companies to provide industrial-quality training systems that will stand the test of time will help ensure the continued safety of the workforce.
For example, DAC Worldwide offers a safety training system specifically designed to give employees the hands-on experience they need to master lock-out/tag-out skills. Be sure to check out DAC Worldwide’s Lock-Out/Tag-Out Training System and contact a DAC Worldwide representative to learn how you can improve your training today!
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Learn Essential Motor Control Skills with DAC Worldwide’s Hands-On Training Systems
Industrial machinery requires a wide variety of different types of motors to function efficiently and effectively. Whether they’re powering a compressor, pump, fan, or conveyor, three-phase induction motors keep operations at industrial facilities moving steadily.
Many induction motors require significant power given their heavy-duty applications. Moreover, they draw a high electrical current upon start-up. In fact, start-up current can sometimes be as much as 5-6 times what they draw at normal operating speed. This is why they require a special device called a motor starter.
If industrial motors relied solely on circuit breakers or fuses, those would trip or blow every time the motor started. That’s obviously unacceptable in an industrial setting. Instead, specialty motor starters start and stop induction motors using manual or automatic switches. They also protect motor circuits from excessive heat caused by overloads during normal operations.
Motor starters consist of two primary parts: (1) an electromagnetically operated set of contacts (called a contactor) starts and stops the motor by beginning or ending the flow of electrical current; and (2) an overload relay that protects the motor from drawing too much current and overheating.
Likewise, motor starters usually consist of two circuits: (1) a power circuit that transmits the primary voltage to the motor via the starter contacts and overload relay; and (2) a control circuit that manages the contactor coil that creates the electromagnetic field that operates the power contacts.
Because there are so many different types of industrial applications that require induction motors, there are likewise a wide variety of different types of motor starters. One common type is the reversing magnetic motor starter. Reversing starters, as their name implies, are specifically designed to efficiently reverse shaft rotation of a three-phase induction motor.
Reversing starters work by interchanging two contactors supplying electrical current to the motor, as well as having both a forward and a reverse starter. To ensure that only one of the starters can be engaged at any particular time, reversing starters feature both mechanical and electrical interlocks for enhanced safety.
Industrial maintenance technicians must be familiar with all sorts of induction motors and their motor starters. Hands-on training in electrical maintenance can elevate your technicians’ skills to the next level.
For example, if you want to ensure your maintenance technicians have the skills to work with reversing magnetic motor starters, DAC Worldwide’s 3-Phase Motor Control Training System with Magnetic Starter (423-000) offers comprehensive training in the operational principles, wiring, fault troubleshooting, and application of industrial three-phase, reversing magnetic motor starters.
The 3-Phase Motor Control Training System with Magnetic Starter is self-contained, allowing for individual study by a single student or a small student group. While often used independently, the training aid can be integrated with other optional products relating to programmable controllers, pilot devices, and motor-driven mechanical systems.
This electrical trainer includes a variety of industry-standard components, including: a three-phase induction motor; reversing magnetic motor starter with auxiliary contacts, mechanical and electrical interlocks, and overload relay; on-board wiring devices including Hand-Off-Auto (HOA) control station, manual control station, and automatic timer; color-coded, shielded banana-jack receptacles for all motor leads, supply connections, and control components; circuit breaker with lock-out/tag-out; keyed power switch; pilot light and emergency stop switch; and four instructor fault switches to create common component faults for troubleshooting instruction.
The 3-Phase Motor Control Training System with Magnetic Starter is only one of DAC Worldwide’s many electrical training systems. Visit DAC Worldwide online to learn more about other electrical training systems, such as the Three-Phase, Squirrel Cage Rotor, AC Motor Training System; 1-Phase Motor Control Training System with Manual Starter; DC Permanent Magnet Motor Control Training System; and many more!
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DAC Worldwide Offers AC Motor Training in a Compact, Convenient System
Today’s industrial facilities feature a wide array of different types of machines, from simple pumps to complex automated robots. One of the most common machines you’ll find in any industrial setting is the electric motor.
Simple, versatile, and available in many different configurations, electric motors carry the burden of converting electrical energy into mechanical energy. At the most basic level, electric motors can be distinguished based upon their power source: direct current (DC) or alternating current (AC).
For industrial use, the most common type of electric motor is the AC induction motor (also known as an asynchronous motor). The name “induction” is used because electrical current is induced in the rotor rather than supplied externally. The popularity of the AC induction motor stems from its simplicity, relatively low cost, and excellent reliability in a wide range of applications.
Induction motors can be further divided into two primary types: single-phase and three-phase, depending upon the type of electricity used to power them. The most-used electric motor throughout industry is arguably the three-phase squirrel cage induction motor.
Squirrel cage motors rely upon electromagnetic induction to create motion by converting electrical current into rotational energy. AC current travels through the stator, the stationary portion of the motor that consists of the housing and a series of windings (usually copper). The three-phase AC power energizes the windings, creating a rotating electromagnetic field.
The rotating part of the motor, known as the rotor, sits inside the stator. It contains a squirrel cage and bearings mounted to a stainless-steel shaft. The squirrel cage consists of circular end caps with rotor bars covered with steel laminations between them. The electromagnetic field generated by the stator fluctuates around the rotor, inducing opposing magnetic fields in the lamination-covered rotor bars, creating rotational motion.
The “squirrel cage” terminology comes from the fact that the rotor’s shape resembles a squirrel cage. If you haven’t seen many caged squirrels, then this may still cause some confusion. Apparently, long ago, squirrels were frequently kept as pets and would get exercise on a spinning wheel in their enclosure. Perhaps a more modern term for this type of rotor would be “hamster wheel” instead of “squirrel cage,” but we don’t expect the three-phase hamster wheel induction motor to catch on anytime soon.
Why is the three-phase squirrel cage induction motor so popular? It has quite a few advantages, including relatively low cost, ease of installation, high efficiency, low maintenance, and durability. These advantages are the reason that experts estimate that as many as 70% of industrial machines are driven by these motors today.
These popular induction motors can be found in just about every industrial setting you can imagine. Of course, they’re particularly useful in applications that require a low maintenance, constant-speed, low-torque motor that’s also self-starting, such as: machine tools (CNC and lathes); generators; fans and blowers; industrial drives; and centrifugal pumps.
It’s critical for any modern industrial maintenance technician to be thoroughly familiar with three-phase squirrel cage induction motors. How can educators and employers ensure that their workers possess the skills they need? DAC Worldwide offers a wide variety of electrical training systems specifically designed to give employees the hands-on experience they need to master different types of electrical motors, transformers, and more!
For example, DAC Worldwide’s Three-Phase, Squirrel Cage Rotor, AC Motor Training System (412-000) provides hands-on experience with a squirrel cage induction motor. Learners can use this training device to practice motor wiring by using banana jack receptacles on the control enclosure’s front panel face, study the motor’s construction, practice industrial motor maintenance skills by using fault insertion switches for hands-on troubleshooting training, and practice lock-out/tag-out (LOTO) procedures by using the system’s master circuit breaker.
DAC Worldwide’s training systems feature heavy-duty construction with real industrial equipment. Be sure to check out DAC Worldwide’s Electrical & Electronics Training Systems and contact a DAC Worldwide representative to learn how you can improve your training today!
- Published in News