Top 5 Plant Engineering articles, May 12-18

Articles about Schneider Electric accelerating its transformation, safety in a 5S system, contract maintenance strategies, electric motor power measurement, and safety automation were Plant Engineering's most-clicked articles from last week, May 12-18. Were you out last week? Miss something? You can catch up here.

By Jessica DuBois-Maahs, CFE Media May 19, 2014
1. Schneider Electric accelerates its transformation

Oil and gas, data center markets are core growth areas, says new North American CEO Laurent Vernerey

2. Safety: Is it the Sixth ‘S’ in a 5S system?

Make safety an integral part of your productivity improvement plan. As plants work toward meeting financial goals and maintaining compliance with safety regulations, it’s often thought that productivity is compromised. Safety doesn’t have to compromise productivity. On the contrary, safety and productivity complement each other

3. Contract maintenance: 5 ways to keep things humming in a cost-effective model

With manpower in high demand, fewer highly qualified personnel are available in the labor pool. More and more operators recognize the value of a resident maintenance program, offering guaranteed uptime, guaranteed staffing, and limitless access to OEM engineers and support staff.

4. Electric motor power measurement and analysis

Energy is one of the highest cost items in a plant or facility, and motors often consume the lion’s share of plant power, so making sure motors are operating optimally is vital. Accurate power measurements can help to reduce energy consumption, as measurement is always the first step toward better performance and can also help extend the life of a motor.

5. Safety automation isn’t automatic

Applying safety is a lot like an Olympic event. It looks like it should be simple to add a few safety devices, but it can be overwhelming when you dive straight into it. What standards to use, performance levels, applying it correctly, vendor selection, all of the complaints from people who don’t want it. It looks like it is just easier to give up. 

The list was developed using CFE Media’s web analytics for stories viewed on plantengineering.com, May 12-18, for articles published within the last two months.

– Jessica DuBois-Maahs, associate content manager, CFE Media, jdmaahs@cfemedia.com.