CDA’s Power Quality CD-ROM has been updated and expanded. The articles and videos provide a basic understanding of power quality issues and solutions for both existing and new construction.
Modestly titled “Power Quality, Version 2.0,” the new PQ CD-ROM from the Copper Development Association has a lot to brag about. It is a well-organized, content-rich learning aide, providing an inside track to expert-level insight on many aspects of power quality. This CD-ROM was produced for those involved with building planning, design and operation. It’s also appropriate for students, apprentices, engineers and electricians as well as building owners, managers or occupants.
Especially when self-taught from textbooks without expert guidance, PQ can be an intimidating, highly technical subject – loaded with complex engineering mathematics. Until now, it has been difficult to obtain a well-rounded familiarity with PQ problems and solutions. While this CD-ROM is not a substitute for formal coursework and on-the-job training, it can provide practical guidance. It answers such vital questions as:
How does PQ affect the bottom line?
What areas of PQ are most important?
What happens when best practices are ignored?
“PQ version 2” presents many interviews with noted experts, along with text. The video clips are well organized by subject and level of complexity. The top-level divisions are introduction, basics, and recommended practices. The CD-ROM requires a recent model computer to take advantage of the audio and video content. The introductory segments will provide you with an overview of the CD-ROM and soon you will see how effortless it is to move from one subject to the next. You will quickly move to basics and then to the specific recommendations. Along the way, you will benefit from expert opinions about what works and what doesn’t. (For a quick lesson on what doesn’t work, watch the video clip titled “Value Engineering.”)
Under “Basics,” topics covered are general wiring practice, grounding, harmonics, lightning and transients, power conditioning and surge protection. Video clips feature industry experts who explain why these topics matter. It doesn’t end there though. Under “Recommended Practices,” you will encounter the basic topics again, but this time they are covered with greater depth. The video clips cover a vast range of topics, with experts sharing their hard-won knowledge in simple language. You can find a video clip on just about any aspect topic on PQ that you may have questions about. It is like inviting a dozen PQ experts to your office for personal consultations, but doesn’t cost you anything except for the time that you yourself invest in this learning experience.
Video clips as well as printable text are also available for case studies of real world applications, outlining what the problem was, how it was fixed and what the benefits were. In addition, the “Power Quality, version 2.0” CD-ROM from CDA is loaded with articles about PQ, which can also be readily printed out for reading at your leisure and for future reference. It also includes a bibliography of references for further reading and contact information for a number of PQ-related organizations.
The first copy is free to U.S. addresses. Call toll-free, 888-480-4276. For non-U.S. orders, or for more information on power quality, visit: www.copper.org/pq,
