Airborne Ultrasonic Testing for Electrical Systems

Benefits

Airborne Ultrasonic testing for electrical system is a non-contact test that uses ultrasound technology to detect high frequency sounds related to electrical discharges resulting from the ionization of arcing, tracking and corona. Together with thermographic infrared inspections, airborne ultrasonic scanning provides significant insurance against an unscheduled outage, equipment damage or a fire.

Ultrasound technology can be implemented by itself or in conjunction with existing systems such as infrared and vibration analysis for better condition based monitoring results.

Performing an Airborne Ultrasonic Inspection will help you:

Maintain the integrity of your facility’s electrical system
Reduces electrical fire hazards
Provide uninterrupted power to tenants/clients/employees
Detect faulty connections/overloaded circuits
Provide a snapshot in time of the condition of your mechanical systems, motors, bearings, etc.
Preventative or predictive maintenance programs save money by reducing:
- pre-mature equipment failure
- emergency overtime
- overnight shipment of parts
- insurance premiums (many insurance companies give discounts for performing regular infrared inspections)
- loss of revenue due to downtime

Work Process

Ultrasound inspections may be performed on both open access and enclosed electrical equipment at all voltages (low, medium, and high).

Our certified ultrasonic inspectors quickly and non-destructively pinpoint electrical and mechanical problems that can not be seen with the naked eye, such as loose connections, faulty breakers, disconnects, overloaded circuits, imbalanced loads, weak motor windings and bearings, and much more.

Detection and recording of noise problems are completed by the ultrasonic technician.

During the electrical infrared survey, our team will generally inspect the following equipment but can provide inspection and imaging on any electrical or mechanical components according to your specification.

Switch Gear
Transformers
Service Disconnects
Transfer Switches
Bus Runs
Motors / Pumps / Bearings
Lighting / Heating Contactors
Motor Control Centers
Breaker Panels
Starters
UPS Equipment
Chillers and Roof Top HVAC Equipment
VFDs

Deliverables

Martin Technical electrical ultrasonic reports are concise and to the point, making anomaly locations easy to determine and facilitate repairs. Your report will include: A detailed easy-to-read inspection report including:

Complete list of equipment inspected
A written narrative of the survey
Report form for every anomaly detected during the inspection.

A report sheet accompanies each problem which includes:

Pin point digital photograph of the area where the noise was recorded picture
Severity category of problem
Potential cause of the problem
The physical location of the problem

Repairs

After completion of the ultrasonic inspection, Martin Technical or one of our national service partners can repair defects exposed by the airborne ultrasonic inspection creating a safer and more efficient electrical equipment.