NEMA Currents Blog

A Look Back at an Ugly Year

This past year contained some of the most severe economic turmoil since the days of the Great Depression. Even covering only the major events (catastrophes) of 2008 would fill a major city's newspaper, so I'll just provide a synopsis of those things that shaped the past 12 months. A Federal Reserve...

Published Tue, Dec 30 2008 3:31 PM by Lego, Brian

Filed under: Economics

DICOM Makes a Difference

What? It's December 24, 2008 - Christmas Eve, and I just got a present. It's a book, and I can scarcely read a word of it. That's because it's a how-to book on DICOM* written in Japanese. Since I can't read it, there's no point putting in my briefcase to review on the next flight...

Published Wed, Dec 24 2008 11:16 AM by Clark, Howard

Filed under: medical imaging

The Government as Grinch

The punishing impact on business of over-reaching government regulation is always painful to watch - the latest example is especially poignant given the time of year. Several recent stories in the mainstream press are highlighting the immense difficulty and expense suffered by toy manufacturers as they...

Published Tue, Dec 23 2008 3:45 PM by Kohorst, Mark

Have a Merry -- and (Electrically) Safe -- Holiday

As the famous Carpenters' song goes, it's that time of year -- not only "when the world falls in love," but when there's an increased risk of electrical-related problems, from old extension cords fraying and causing electric shocks, to electric space heaters causing fires, to portable...

Published Tue, Dec 23 2008 10:48 AM by golds

Filed under: Electrical Safety

Have a Happy Fake Free Holiday Season

Counterfeiting is not a seasonal crime. Yet the year-end holiday season seems to be a time when cautionary warnings about the dangers of buying counterfeit products are more prevalent. Like reminders to check batteries in a smoke detector when changing to daylight savings time , the holiday season seems...

Published Fri, Dec 19 2008 11:17 AM by Silcox, Clark

Filed under: Anti-Counterfeiting

Green Energy Storage is becoming Red Hot

According to a news release from S&C Electric Company "the concept of energy storage has become a practical reality. Utility companies are now installing energy storage systems on their distribution circuits to gain experience with these new distributed power resources, and determining how best...

Published Fri, Dec 19 2008 10:40 AM by caskeyj

Filed under: Smart Grid, Electrical Grid, Environment, grid

Saved by Zero(ish)?

The Federal Reserve took us into uncharted territory yesterday, cutting the federal funds rate target to a range of zero to 0.25 percent. Interestingly enough, as historical as it was, it didn't really matter whether the FOMC lowered the rate by 50 or 100 basis points since the effective funds rate...

Published Wed, Dec 17 2008 3:54 PM by Lego, Brian

Filed under: Economics

Seeing the Future

Some say they can see the future better at night. Now I have some insight into what they are talking about. As you may know, the U.S. Department of Energy (DOE) is filling the government role in advancing energy-saving solid state lighting (SSL), which uses light emitting diodes (LEDs) to provide illumination...

Published Tue, Dec 16 2008 8:33 PM by updykec

Filed under: Energy Efficiency

Electrical Safety – Ohio Back on Track.

Common sense won the day as the Ohio Board of Building Standards voted for a second time to adopt the 2008 National Electrical Code (NEC) on December 12 th . This cleared up a confused year in which Governor Stickland succumbed to pressure from the Home Builder's Association of Ohio and signed an...

Published Mon, Dec 15 2008 10:40 AM by Winstanley, Gerard

Filed under: Electrical Safety, AFCI, Building Codes, Fire Safety, Tamper Resistant Receptacles

New DOE Chief Should Be Open to Electrical Manufacturer Solutions

President-elect Obama's new energy secretary, Steven Chu , should prove to be someone the electrical industry can work with. The Nobel-Prize winning physicist is a proponent of alternative energy sources and energy efficiency, two areas in which electrical manufacturers can provide valuable expertise...

Published Thu, Dec 11 2008 5:54 PM by golds

Filed under: Energy Efficiency

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