Great interview with our reps at Cardone Solomon and Associates.  It's an overview of their business practices with regard to power solutions.  We're really proud of all our hardworking reps.  

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SPEC PROCESS ENGINEERING & CONSTRUCTION IS NO STRANGER TO PROVIDING UNIQUE PROJECTS WITH SPOT ON SOLUTIONS.  SUCH WAS THE CASE WHEN THEY WERE BROUGHT IN TO REPLACE A PLANT’S FAILING GENERATOR.                                                                                                                
BACKGROUND  

The beauty business relies on aerosols to deliver products to consumers, but the propellants in many of these are considered highly flammable.  To minimize the risk of combustion, important considerations need to be made in the rooms where the aerosol cans are filled.  Monitoring the rooms for the presence of LEL’s (lower explosive limits) is one such way to determine if a “gas” room is operating at a safe level or not and to trigger corrective measures to return the levels to the desired range.   

THE PROJECT  

The client for this project was having a dangerous problem at one of their factories on the assembly lines used for injecting aerosols into beauty products.  This process was conducted in the facility’s gas rooms, chambers where highly flammable propellants were being injected into beauty product canisters.  All in all, they had 5 assembly lines with 2 gas rooms per line for a total of 10 rooms.  In each of these unmanned rooms, the assembly processed pressurized cans of shaving cream, hair spray, mousses and other beauty products with aerosols.  The rooms are fully automated and canisters would come in on a conveyor filled with product to be pressurized.  To maintain the safety of the room, huge primary and secondary exhaust fans were present and were backed up by a 30kW generator.   

If you would like to add electrical on/off control to your audio, video or lighting installation there are a number of good options.  Here are a dozen reasons to use LynTec RPC panels beyond simple on and off control.

1. Save rack and wall space.  LynTec uses switch-rated motorized breaker panels that combine circuit protection and on/off control in the same enclosure.  A circuit breaker panel is required by code; why not use it for on/off control as well?
2. Reduced installation costs.  No relay panel required means fewer points to wire.  Labor to install a LynTec panel is the same as to wire a standard breaker panel.
3. Internal web server.   This provides set-up, monitoring and control from any web browser with a simple network connection.  No software to buy, install or maintain.  Free mobile apps are also available.
4. Browser GUI (Graphical User Interface).  Our interface is the simplest to set up. No special training or certifications are needed.  Point and click to establish and operate zones across multiple panels.
5. Sequential operation.  User customizable on and off sequencing order and timing (25 ms to 8 min steps) configured from the GUI.
6. Multiple control protocol options.  Interfaces for TCP/IP, DMX512, RS-232 and dry contact closure inputs come standard and ready for operation with your control platform. 
7. Under voltage protection.  In case of power brownout or outage, the system automatically shuts down and restarts selected circuits as programmed when safe.
8. Over voltage protection.  As an option, SurgeX modules can be factory installed for the best electrical protection. One module per circuit for complete protection, added in multiples of four.
9. Emergency Power Off (EPO).  Select individual circuits to switch with an external contact closure for emergency shut off or load shedding applications. 
10. Current Monitoring.  Optional main and branch circuit current monitoring can be built into the panel.  Real time monitoring or easy data exporting is included as is the capability to program alarm notifications.
11. External Device Control.  Optional output boards allows for control of external devices such as UPS outlets and high current contactors.  These outputs can be addressed and operated individually or as part of a sequential zone via the same control interface as the rest of the system.
12. Energy Management Ready.  Between our ability to turn circuits on or off on demand, the built in control interface options and current monitoring, we are ready to be a part of any energy management initiatives.    

IMPORTANT THINGS TO CONSIDER ABOUT REMOTE POWER  & LIGHTING CONTROL FOR LED & OTHER SMART FIXTURES.  

INTERVIEWING ENTERTAINMENT LIGHTING EXPERT, PAUL RABINOVITZ

A lifelong lighting person, Paul Rabinovitz jokes that “being in lighting is not a career, it is a sentence.”   He describes the business as one that gets in your blood and makes you become blind to other opportunities – but in a good way.  “This is a great industry with a great group of people.  I never feel like I’m selling – I’m solving problems,” and indeed he does.  

Harnessing his vast experience in the industry and matching client and project needs with the right products and solutions Rabinovitz has enjoyed decade’s long success working in an industry that touches so many others.   From corporate clients, to large venue design, stadiums and house of worship, he has watched the lighting industry grow and move from simple analog control to complex data networks. 

HFP Consulting Inc. gets an A+ on the design of another successful project and provides numerous AV / Sound systems with LynTec Power Controls for a Texas High School.

THE PROJECT To meet the educational requirements of children in a growing Texas school district, College Station identified the need for a new high school campus. Earmarked to be the first new educational building for the town since 1967, the three-story, 500,000 square foot, ground up project was a significant investment for the College Station Independent School District and the community that supported its construction.

THE CHALLENGE

Begun in late 2009, the project architect, SHW Architects out of Houston created a stunning design for the educational facility and the project had met significant completion as of July 2012. School doors are expected to open in time for the 2012 school year with a target completion date in August 2012. The project was also directed to meet the requirements to achieve LEED Silver.

WHEN LOOKING FOR EXPERTS IN LIGHTING, THE PERFORMING ARTS, BROADCAST & AV INDUSTRIES LOOK NO FURTHER THAN BARBIZON LIGHTING COMPANY

THE HISTORY

With over 60 years of experience Barbizon Lighting Company has set the standard for providing innovative lighting solutions with top notch results and highly satisfied clients.

From its post World War II roots, and its growth from supplying light bulbs to fully integrated lighting solutions, the company has maintained a simple but powerful dedication to take care of their customers. This service driven philosophy has served Barbizon well, and the company now enjoys both a national and global presence specifying leading products and systems while servicing television, film, theatre, houses of worship and entertainment facilities around the world.

Their latest venture, The New Light Initiative, brings sustainability to the forefront of their services and sheds light on the potential benefits and value of alternative lighting sources.

The Las Vegas community gives a standing ovation for the construction of a new performing arts center and live venue complex designed to bring an arts & cultural complex to Southern Nevada residents

THE PROJECT

The Las Vegas Smith Center is built on a 5-acre former Brownfield. It cost $470 million to build, took 33 months to complete & incorporates inspiration from famous concert halls around the world. The 5-tier main hall boasts over 2,000 seats.

LynTec is now offering current monitoring for RPC series panelboards.  This option provides power and energy data on branch circuits as well as mains and neutrals.  The package includes all hardware and is fully integrated with the RPC controller.  There is no additional software to purchase and there are no additional service fees.  Consider the current monitoring option in your next project to give you an accurate vision of the panels capacity, energy use, and reliability.  

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LynTec now offers remote control for electrical loads greater than 30 amperes.

Driven by customer feedback we now offer load switching capacity in our power control panels beyond that available through motorized breakers. By utilizing popular IEC style contactors, loads as large as 125 amperes can be controlled in the same cabinet and controlled by the same interface used to control smaller motorized breakers. A single pole 20 amp motorized breaker is utilized to power the coil of the contactor. Over current protection is provided by 1, 2 or 3 pole non-motorized breakers also housed in the panel. Loads larger than 125 amps can be controlled by, but fed from a source other than, the LynTec panel.

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Community theatre has long been an important piece of local and regional culture. However, in Auburn, New York it is destined to be even more than that.

THE PROJECT

Considered part of a larger redevelopment and revitalization project, the Schwartz Family Performing Arts Center will be one of four venues in the city that will enable Auburn to become a musical theater Mecca with the potential to draw over 150,000 visitors annually, create jobs and help to revive the city’s economy.

With the participation of several foundations, philanthropists and the financial cooperation of the State of New York & Cayuga Community College, the Schwartz Family Performing Arts Center is scheduled to open in 2013. Located on State Street in downtown Auburn, New York, the performing arts center will feature theatrical productions, concerts, lectures and guest speakers. During the summer months, the center will become a cornerstone of the Finger Lakes Musical Theatre Festival and will feature local productions as well as host traveling Broadway shows.

The Schwartz Family PAC project kicked off in late 2011 and is currently still under construction. At the time of this writing its shell is being completed and the infrastructure and cabling is underway. The project was awarded to and is under the direction of JMZ Architects, a firm based out of Glens Falls, NY. In building their design team, JMZ turned to Production Technology Consultants Group (PTC Group) to ensure the successful planning and execution of the project’s theater design, audio and video needs.

Audio, video and lighting systems are important in most installations but for Houses of Worship these components can often mean the difference between serving up a sermon that makes an impact and packs a church versus one that leaves parishioners wishing they were somewhere else.

THE PROJECT

Recently, Design2020, a consulting firm specializing in HOW facilities along with WAVE, a systems integration firm, completed a large scale House of Worship exten-sion of the third facility for North Carolina’s Forest Hill Church. This large nondenominational church had grown & required additional space for Sunday worship services. Taking the church to the people, and serving approximately 1800 families in the area, the Ballantyne expansion for the Forest Hill Church was built as a structural extension of the local Morrison YMCA.

With the tremendous options that are available in lighting controls, I am amazed when I review Electrical Engineering drawings (primarily corporate interior projects) by how “old school” the approach is for wiring, circuiting and controlling general office lighting.  Typically ceiling light fixtures are wired, row by row back to the electrical closet where some master “timer switch” turns them on/off.   Have you ever seen a light switch to control general office lighting in a skyscraper?  Hopefully not.  Specialty areas such conference rooms, pantries, bathrooms etc. typically (hopefully) are out fitted by occupancy sensors to turn off lights when not in use.

But let’s talk about the rows and rows of general fluorescent lighting spanning the ceiling print of a typical office floor.  Literally there are hundreds and in larger spaces, thousands of 2x2 and 2x4 lighting fixtures.  When the EE designs the wiring and circuiting, in many instances it’s just systematically looping up one row and down the other and the space is treated as “general office space.”   Unfortunately, this means that these fixtures are laid out with no clear understanding to how the space will be occupied and used in daily operations once occupied.

Lighting sources, controls & distribution, as well as system & fixture “intelligence” is changing rapidly. This paper discusses the ways in which the industry and designers are handling these changes and preparing for the future.

INTRODUCTION

When we think of lighting systems design for live entertainment venues, we think of elaborate lighting systems, dimmers and conventional lighting fixtures. However, a new direction for lighting systems design is moving us away from conventional lighting, the need for dedicated dimmer rooms and the idea of designing lighting systems using just power distribution for control.

WHERE WE ARE TODAY

If we were to look at presently designed and installed live entertainment venues we would find most facilities have their compliment of traditional Lekos, Fresnels, Scoops, PAR, Cyc and Spot Light fixtures – all connected in a dimmer per circuit topology to massive electrical dimmer and relay panels, controlled via ACN and DMX by very simple lighting consoles.Lighting systems have historically required very large amounts of power and generate very large amounts of heat. With the introduction of LED type fixtures being used in theatrical applications – we are beginning to see a starting point to where lighting designs may take us in the future.

THE PROJECT

Located in the 2nd Street district of downtown Austin, the Austin City Limits Stage at theMoody Theater is part of a mixed-use, 31-story tower that includes office space, condos,restaurants, retail space & the W Austin Hotel.

The entertainment Mecca, recentlynamed “Best New Major Concert Venue”by Pollstar Magazine, is the new hometo KLRU-TV’s production, Austin CityLimits. The Moody Theater is a state-of-the-art venue that hosts 60 – 100 concerts per year as well as private events.

Boasting 2 balconies, its flexible space can just as easily accommodate an intimate event for 400 or a large event for 2,700. Complete with a digital HD broadcast production studio, the facility’s goals included delivering exceptional lighting, staging, audio and video experiences.