Amerisk Engineering Corp
is a national Facilities Auditor covering both management appraisal as well as hard assets condition evaluations. Our staff is comprised of seasoned engineers, test technicians and licensed electricians.
We are experienced in facility management and assets condition audits and have helped many known facilities nationwide, such as Honeywell/Allied Signal, US Navy, Disneyland, Boeing, FedEx, U of A, Coca-Cola, City of Phoenix Water, Ford Motor, TJ Maxx Dist., Duke Power, UPS, SC Edison, Abbott Labs, Intel, Johnson & Johnson, Hyatt, Staples Dist., Morongo Casino, UCLA, Seattle Light & Power, Target, Sprint, Tenet Health, BB&B, Nordstrom, Simon Pties, Marriott, Tyson Foods, Dallas Airport, Mandalay Bay, Macerich, Four Seasons, GE, Ritz-Carlton, Toyota, Treasure Island, and many lesser-known facilities as small as 10,000 SF.
A 3-minute telecon will give you an idea of the benefits AmeRisk Engineering can offer you. Just call us (949) 661-4800 from 0600 to 2100 (PST).
Some of the most valuable technologies in appraising assets condition are: infrared, vibration analysis, ultrasonics, flow meter, primary injectors, Hi-Pots, etc.
INFRARED ELECTRICAL SAFETY INSPECTIONS
“The quality of an infrared inspection can be very elusive to discern. It is highly variable in quality from service to service. The quality of the IR imager is less important than the individual himself, his training and attention to details. He has to pass judgments on electrical as he sees it, while transiting through noisy or dangerous areas and pressed for time. It is really an inspection “on the fly” since he uses mostly visual recognition of thermal patterns and has no access nor time to use an AI-assisted radiometric analytics software to assess any possible anomaly.
Additionally, such “on the go” report provides zero proof that all EDS enclosures were actually even opened. Time pressure and heavy covers end up causing the inspector to simply skip ‘points’ that may cause him to be missing clues of interest. This practice is more common than believed. Providing IR data for all points is the only way to know if an enclosure was even opened nor given enough time for a correct field assessment.
So trust without verification leaves the FM or DoE vulnerable to receiving incomplete and incorrect inspection reports. In the event of a liability litigation such lack of accountability and transparency can easily lose a lawsuit due to the impression made on the trier of facts there was neglect of the due diligence clause.
To combat that, AmeRisk Engineering offers what is standard procedure at all nuclear power facilities where IR data is collected at ALL points. It is then trended to catch worrisome degradation overtime at an earlier stage.
This trending from a baseline may not be necessary for an office building unless it has a large electrical footprint fed from medium voltage (15KV) interrupters or a high human density. This is where electrical engineering experience shines over contractors untrained in thermodynamics whose knowledge is limited to a push button operation of a thermal imager.
Collecting data at all points (1) uncovers 30% more valid defects and (2) ensures that zero “false positives” (including “goldbricking” gaslighting tendencies) are reported for action. A costly consequence of faulty judgment.
Total Infrared Coverage (TIC™️) eclipses standard IR scanning with evaluation done while transiting on site – rather than in the lab on a large screen. This can spell the difference between a cost effective impactful inspection and a price-sensitive compliance-only approach.
Infrared is a narrow section of the EMF or Electro-Magnetic Spectrum. Insurance companies mandated of their insured clients that they get a yearly infrared inspection to be done by an independent third party.
Effective 1/2/2024, NFPA70B-2023 sect. 3.3.5 and NEC mandate: “all infrared electrical inspections must be performed at least every 12 months.”
Insurers did not get into the specifics of the quality of the IR service. In the early days when equipment exceeded $125,000 only the ‘largest’ could afford them. They will even deny coverage or claims if a yearly IR inspection has not been performed. In litigations, opposing lawyers will usually ask for the last five (5) years of infrared inspection reports.
IR infrared ‘imagers’ (they are not cameras per se as they have no chamber) help ‘see’ anomalies in your electrical, electro-mechanical, refractory and building envelopes from a distance without having to contact any live components, including electrical. This makes it an ideally, very safe tool for gaining advance knowledge about what and where in your EDS could cause you problems in the near future.
According to EPRI (Electrical Power Research Institute, Palo Alto, Calif.), the ROI for infrared inspections is at minimum 4:1. You can expect higher returns when we deploy our cost-effective, innovative and proprietary 3RIVIERA sci-infrared radiometric thermology. If an IR inspection saves a building from a fire there is no accounting as to the full value of an infrared thermographic inspection.
For every dollar you spend on Amerisk services, the returns will be a compounded efficiency with savings from interruptions avoidance, or worse, a disaster that affects all building assets and productivity.
Also, consider the savings from lowered energy consumption, savings from lower insurance premium, compliance with OSHA-enforced codes and not the least evidence of compliance with the due diligence general duty clause in litigations. A delicate issue is the potential collusion with repairs. Avoid it.
When Amerisk Engineering deploys its 3RIVIERA, you can rest assured of a thorough investigation based on the ‘as is’ condition. Your decision to repair must be based on your more intimate knowledge of your facility, but Amerisk provides you with detailed info on how to fix the anomalies and in what priority. We do not believe in multiple levels of severity. In business, we consider options for actions as either Now (red alert) or Later (yellow).
LEGAL NOTES:
(1) Owning one’s own IR imager.
if used properly by competent employees, it is always a good idea or else a bad and costly idea if in the wrong hands.
Insurance companies invariably insist on a THIRD PARTY VENDOR so that they have an unbiased idea of the condition of their insured’s electrical. In the event of a fire or explosion (arc flash) followed by a lawsuit, your case for having done proper due diligence is very weak whenever the IR inspection was performed by own employees.
2) Neglect of regular PM, servicing & testing.
If no regular PM, servicing and testing was performed every 3 years on your EDS main enclosures the preponderant evidence that you neglected your duties will also prevail.
With that in mind, AmeRisk Engineering EAGLE™️ NETA-based program comes with a 5 year warranty: ZERO Arc Flash will occur in the 5 years following an EAGLE or you’re covered.
WHY GFI CERTIFICATION?
TEST GFI–EQUIPPED MAIN
BREAKERS/DISCONNECTS ≥ 1000A
MANDATED OR RECOMMENDED BY:
- NEC sect 230-95 (c) & 517-17 (c).
- NAVFAC (sect D50-9003).
- NEMA (5PP section).
- UL City Fire Codes.
- NETA, NFPA 70B ch. 11, 11-4
CERTIFICATION TEST OF GFI-EQUIPPED MAIN BREAKERS/DISCONNECTS
Note: GFI testing as well as PM of EDS must be done while isolated line and load sides. The same applies to power reconnection to all sensitive electronics such as UPS, VFD, PC, etc.
ARC FLASH
RISK ASSESSMENT
OSHA-recommended DANGER label
OSHA ARC FLASH TRAINING
Vibration analysis, ultrasonic, ultra-violet, etc. are all additional techniques and technologies that are strictly NDT (Non-Destructive Testing). We will customize a management review of performance indices and a PM and inspection program for your facility that is cost effective and which offers tangible and measurable results. We can then create an RFP (Request for Proposals) detailing what your property needs are in order to achieve world-class Best Maintenance Practices.
Amerisk Engineering will also help you comply with such OSHA-enforced codes from NFPA70E, and others, regarding ArcFlash Risk Assessment (AFRA) studies along with safety DANGER customized labels to be affixed to all your EDS enclosures. Be assured that no facility is exempt and codes apply equally to institutional, commercial, and industrial facilities great and small.
Vibration Analysis
and more
Some of the Causes We Support:
