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"P-touch systems are a flexible
tool that makes my job easier and keeps the inspectors and my customers happy. Everybody
wins." |
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BILL FIALKOWSKI
Owner and operator Carey Electric Company, Inc.
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Fast Facts
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Client: |
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Carey Electric Company |
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Industry: |
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Electrical Contractor |
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Situation: |
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Labeling for Electrical Requirements |
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Solution: |
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PT-2300 P-touch® electronic
labeling systems |
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Carey Electric
Company
Carey Electric, located just outside the Chicago area in Mundelein, Illinois, provides
electrical contracting services exclusively for printing companies - whether they're
roll-paper printers, commercial offset shops, insta-print businesses, or companies
that specialize in printing on plastic. In the high-tech printing industry, large
and often complex computerized systems have, for the most part, replaced outmoded
camera work and cut-and-paste techniques. In today's global market, these modern
machines primarily come from overseas. Electrical requirements vary from country
to country, so printing systems can have a wide range of power requirements anywhere
from 200 to 575 volts. That's where Carey Electric comes in - they specialize in
getting foreign and U.S. electrical systems to play nice together so that everything
works safely and can pass on the first inspection. |
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SURPRISINGLY VERSATILE DEVICE CREATES CUSTOM LABELS AND EASES INSPECTION PROCESS
Ask any industrial contractor, and he'll tell you that the job's just not done until
it passes final inspection. Bill Fialkowski, owner and operator of Carey Electric
Company, Inc., sums it up succinctly: "I work for my customers, but I answer
to the building inspectors. What they want, they get." Just about every job
that Fialkowski and his crew of electricians handle requires a building permit,
and the work must meet and pass the municipal building codes, from both electrical
and fire inspectors. |
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Electrical, fire, and federal codes
(NEC, NFPA, and OSHA) clearly state that electrical equipment - from basic outlets
and switches to junction boxes, power poles, and those behemoth printing presses
- must be marked and labeled with voltage, amperage, each element's feeder circuit,
and any other pertinent electrical information, including safety notices. Anyone
from a print shop employee to a firefighter in a crisis should be able to glance
at a label and quickly determine the power feeder source for any particular component
and which breaker or switch will shut it down. "Bottom line," says Fialkowski,
"it's the contractor's job to meet code. If we don't mark equipment properly,
we leave ourselves open for a big problem down the line if something goes wrong."
For years, electricians at Carey Electric simply wrote directly onto panel boards
or switches with magic markers or used pre-made electrical
labels. However, most methods have proven inadequate. Fialkowski says, "Today’s
professional inspectors will no longer tolerate pencil or
magic marker writing when it comes to such important information on electrical equipment.
Additionally, I couldn’t get any labels that let me
properly identify the European or Asian voltages. And it’s just too easy for
a roll of labels to get lost or trashed on a job site.” He wanted a
better solution. |
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Using P-touch labelers not only saves
Fialkowski time, it helps him minimize power disruptions for his customers which
keeps everyone happy. Many of his customers upgrade to new equipment and call the
Carey Electric crew to install it. If the new machine's power requirements call
for a 200-volt feeder, and the building's power source is 240 volts, the job requires
installing a step-down transformer to accommodate the lower voltage. If the disconnect
switch (which is mechanically locked when in the "ON" position) isn't properly labeled
with the incoming voltage and the amperage, the electrician won't know exactly what
size feeders are inside and will have to shut down the power to open up the box.
Shutting down the box disrupts the power and the customer loses the use of any equipment
running off that circuit.
Fialkowski acknowledges that in his industry, as in others, time is money. "Poorly
marked jobs cause stress and cost me more in time spent tracing and re-labeling
circuits than if it's done up front. When I bid a job, I can't charge a customer
after the job is completed for a two-or three-hour call-back just to make up labels
when we should have labeled the work up front. I want it done right the first time."
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Bill Fialkowski appreciates the P-touch
labeler's ability to facilitate the inspection process. He says that both the building
and fire inspectors like the labels because they increase safety by eliminating
confusion - the information is clear and easy-to-read. "The fire guys need to know
where the equipment's being fed from and how to shut it off. When it comes right
down to it, good labeling speaks to the quality of a contractor's work," he says.
"P-touch systems are a flexible tool that makes my job easier and keeps the inspectors
and my customers happy. Everybody wins."
Note: None of the information in this document may be relied upon by anybody for
purposes of complying with legal requirements or improving safety. All electrical
requirements must be evaluated independently. |
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