OS Engineering Offers Arc Flash & Power Systems Analysis

OS Engineers are power system design, analysis, training, and troubleshooting experts. With decades of collective experience in heavy industrial power system design, the OS team has developed a unique specialty in arc flash analysis, mitigation, and training. OS’ team of Professional Electrical Engineers understands the criticality of arc flash analysis and is truly committed to helping mitigate all risks associated with electrical power distribution systems.

OS Engineering offers the following services for arc flash and power system studies: site inspection and data collection, system model & one-line diagram, system analysis, study report, remedial recommendations, training, and complete documentation and electronic files.

OS Engineering not only generates the data, but helps interpret the results, developing remedial solutions optimized for the facility (if required), and providing requisite training to your employees. The OS approach to system analysis is comprehensive, catering to customer needs, and compliant with regulatory requirements, such as OSHA.

According to OSHA, arc flash burns are one of the top three most common hazards when working with energized electrical equipment. With common causes, such as improperly designed systems or legacy equipment, human error, and equipment failure and/or neglected maintenance, it’s important that you conduct a power system analysis or arc flash study once every five years. If it’s been more than five years since you last conducted a power system analysis or arc flash study, contact OS Engineering today for a free arc flash analysis quote.

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Olsson Electric Completes Modernization Project of McNary Lock and Dam

Olsson Industrial Electric is pleased to announce the on-schedule completion of work to almost completely replace the station service electrical distribution system at the McNary Lock and Dam that began in May 2014. The systems were replaced while maintaining full operational capability of the powerhouse and without any unplanned interruptions.

During the project, Olsson’s team replaced nearly all the existing 4160 V systems with new 13.8 kV systems. Additionally, all 480 V double ended substations, integrated unit switchboards, and motor control centers were replaced. On site construction included over 100,000 labor hours with no loss time injuries.

Construction began with two iso-phase bus taps feeding new 15 kV switchgear assemblies for redundant distribution to new 480 V substations. Twenty critical 4160 V governor oil pumps were rewound to 480 V for compatibility with the new station service distribution.

Since 1986, Olsson Industrial Electric has provided comprehensive electrical construction and engineering solutions to the public and private sectors. For more information about our current and past projects, visit olssonelec.com/client-solutions.

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An In-Depth Look at the Little Goose Transformer Replacement

Olsson Industrial Electric (Olsson) proudly completed a Station Service Transformer Replacement project at the Little Goose Lock and Dam in 2018.

Charged with removing and replacing the two existing station service transformers, T01 and T02, the Olsson Team led both technical design and construction efforts in parallel. OS Engineering, Olsson’s in-house Professional Electrical Engineers, worked closely with the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers (USACE) and Niagara Transformer Corporation (Niagara) to design two new three-phase, oil-filled, Class I station service power transformers rated at 3750 kVA, 13.8 kV high-voltage, 4.16 kV low-voltage, with Class OFWF cooling. Meanwhile, Olsson’s Construction Team worked diligently to plan the removal, replacement, and commissioning of said units so as to maintain continuity of station service power throughout the entire project.

In addition to the new transformers, Olsson replaced several ancillary components to the station service system at the dam. On-load tap changer (OLTC) remote controls, transformer lock-out relays, 15 kV feeder cables, 5 kV feeder cables, new 480 V 30 A motor control center (MCC) buckets, and miscellaneous control wiring were all included in the project’s scope. From technical design to supply, installation, and testing, the Olsson team worked hard to provide the USACE with an exceptional product. Olsson was proud to have logged more than 4,000 man-hours to complete this project on-time without any recordable incidents.

Olsson is proud to partner with the USACE on some of their most critical infrastructure projects.

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Introducing Our New Panel Shop: An Extension of Our Versatile Fabrication Offerings

Olsson Industrial Electric is proud to announce the completion of a recent expansion to our facilities that will allow us to better serve our clients and meet additional customer needs for distribution equipment and prefabricated modular enclosures. This construction project expanded our 2,000-square-foot fabrication space into over 6,500 square feet, increasing our capacity for design builds, custom industrial control panels, switchboards, and modular buildings.

The new panel shop maintains our ability to construct UL 508A industrial control panels and UL698A hazardous area industrial control panels, while increasing our UL 891 switchboard offerings. With an increased lifting capacity of 10 tons and open, under-roof shop space, we are able to fabricate modular enclosures of up to 40 feet, allowing us to accommodate much larger projects.

The new shop also entails improved, up-to-date equipment and increased efficiency. Our processes are streamlined through the ability to load and unload flatbed trucks directly from our fabrication bay. Our capability for performing on-site, full-scale factory acceptance testing has also increased, allowing us to fabricate and fully test modular distribution solutions that can be easily transported, installed, and rapidly commissioned in the field.

This expanded facility supports our mission of meeting our clients’ construction, engineering, and fabrication needs with turnkey solutions, providing a superior level of quality, consistency, and detail. Our team of shop technicians, skilled electricians, and professional engineers work together to efficiently develop optimum solutions for custom projects, custom power distribution, and modular enclosure projects. ​One particular advantage of working with Olsson is that our team of field-experienced Journeyman Electricians and Professional Electrical Engineers see each project through from inception to delivery. We customize each solution so that it is made-to-fit, making installation that much easier​. Partner with us to receive highly customized solutions tailored to the needs of your unique operation.

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Olsson Industrial Electrical Construction: Experts in Project Management

Olsson takes pride in leveraging the latest in cutting-edge technology in order to better serve clients on a day-to-day basis. In 2018, Olsson began utilizing Procore, the industry leader for capital construction project management. 

Procore offers a number of tools that optimize project management operations including online and offline capabilities, detailed reporting, RFI submittals, transmittals, change orders, and progress logs. Another beneficial feature of Procore is the real-time accessibility to project status and project photos. Through this platform, the approval process for drawings and technical plans is streamlined, and clients are able to view published content, information requests, and change orders. This standardization of collaboration within one collective system encourages and increases communication and transparency between Olsson and our clients. 

The Procore system was deployed to the Olsson team through an assortment of iPads, granting immediate access to all information required for project operations while on the job site. Olsson invests in premier industry-leading tools and technology on behalf of our clients to ensure that projects are completed at the highest levels of precision, accuracy, and quality. Utilizing tools such as Procore not only enhances processes for both Olsson and our clients, but it also allows Olsson’s team of experts to engage cohesively with the integrated elements of each project on a consistent basis.

 

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Everything You Need to Know About PLC, HMI & SCADA

Everything You Need to Know About PLC, HMI & SCADA

 

At Olsson Industrial Electric, our team is dedicated to becoming apprised of premier industry technologies in order to equip our clients with the highest quality resources on the market. Our goal is the success of our clients; therefore, we seek out, acquire, and become trained in the tools required for our clients to exceed their objectives and rise above their competition. 

 

We are proud to offer the utmost in SCADA (supervisory control and data acquisition), from the basic PLC (programmable logic controller) to the complete SCADA system. At Olsson, we are uniquely positioned to offer in-house design, fabrication, and installation for every element throughout a SCADA system, from PLCs and HMIs ((human machine interface) to software and communication networks. While our primary partner in system integrations is Rockwell Automation, our UL 508A-certified panel shop and team of licensed engineers ensures that we are equipped at the highest level to build and install any PLC your facility requires. We have extensive experience with projects spanning a vast range of industries and sizes, from lumber mills to citywide water utilities. 

 

We are available to design and offer support for single PLCs, which are comprised of inputs and outputs measuring facility conditions and activating threshold responses. The use of a single PLC, communicating information through a series of simple lights and push buttons, is most ideal for extremely small-scale, single-machine, low-budget projects and rugged environments with variable temperatures. Most facilities are transitioning to the use of a comprehensive SCADA system, which incorporates an HMI and allows each PLC throughout a facility or system to communicate within a localized software program. 

 

Our team is well-versed in programming HMI visualization platforms to synthesize and communicate information in a way that is most conducive to that particular operation and functionality. Through our design strategies, we work to avoid information overload, presenting only the information that is needed, and making that information accessible from as many points as possible. Another advantage to using HMI software is that it is easily adaptable. It is much more convenient to expand functionality through a software program than it is to perform physical PLC changes. HMI systems do require ongoing licensing costs in order to undergo necessary software upgrades—but the benefits of streamlining overall operations vastly outweigh the reasonable costs of HMI maintenance. 

 

A SCADA system encapsulates every PLC and HMI, integrating each element so that the PLCs can be controlled and information can be analyzed through a single, localized platform. A SCADA system may also include radio, cellular, and/or fiber optic communication networks. We are proud to be Premier Integrators for Inductive Automation’s industry-leading Ignition software. While we do utilize additional hardware platforms, we encourage clients to standardize across the company in order to optimize daily operations and maintenance. Our team is seasoned in partnering with industrial clients to standardize SCADA systems according to their particular needs, sometimes in phases to alleviate budgetary concerns. We are proud to have a track record of little-to-no downtime and extremely satisfied customers. Contact us today to find out how we can assist your facility in modernizing, renovating, and upgrading your PLC and SCADA systems to keep up with industry standards.

 

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