A new year reminds us it is time for an annual review of our test measurement alarm setpoints. We should annually review the setpoints to make sure they are not too conservative resulting in nuisance alarms, or too liberal resulting in missed indications leading to unexpected failures. Following are items for thought:
- Electric motor windings and insulation technology do change, so it is critical to check in with your equipment vendors during this review to identify any default setpoint changes they recommend and to learn of any new tests or alarms that have been added through software updates.
- Be careful not to allow a more conservative setpoint established by your equipment vendor to overwrite a local setpoint developed from experience with on-site analytics and historical knowledge.
- Pay close attention to any application or system changes that would demand a new baseline and possibly a new alarm setpoint. Many alarms are based on a comparison to baseline so once the baseline is completed it is important to establish these alarm setpoints.
- Although your equipment vendors should be keeping you abreast of industry standard changes, it is a good idea to check in with the high-profile industry standards for any changes affecting your industry. For the electrical reliability industry IEEE, EASA, and NEMA are examples of high-profile industry standards that your electrical reliability team should be aware of.
For the next few tips, we will do our part as a vendor by reviewing the history of the electrical reliability industry standards starting with the NEMA MG-1 Motors and Generators.
