Blog
The Case of the Over-Cranked Fan
An aircraft parts manufacturer had an aluminum heat treat oven that wasn’t meeting its surveys. The customer surmised that what the oven needed was more airflow, and they called ACES to make the adjustment.THE CLUES The fan was running 500 rpm, and being…
The Case of the Vandalized Manufacturing Line
One of ACES’ customers closed their factory in Utah and moved all of the equipment to Kansas in order to set up a line manufacturing synthetic twine. The system included a PLC processor and six DC variable speed drives (VSDs) and their attendant DC motors…
The Case of the VFD Swap
THE MYSTERY A company that manufactures polymers and synthetic fibers had an old Control Techniques VFD that needed replacing due to environmental conditions.THE CLUES When the ACES Control Systems Investigator (CSI) arrived on the scene, he discovered that the...
The Case of the Stuck Freezer Elevator
THE MYSTERY A beef production facility had a industrial deep freeze, 20 shelves high, complete with an elevator that delivered boxed beef to each shelf. The pusher that automatically dispensed the boxes onto the shelves for freezing had become stuck in the out...
The Case of the Lost Data Packets
THE MYSTERY An aircraft manufacturer has been using a system-wide data acquisition system (DAQ) designed by ACES about three years ago. Part of the protocol involves measuring metal heat treat batches that sometimes run around the clock. The customer called ACES...
The Case of the Smoking Control Cabinet
THE MYSTERY The ACES CSI (Control System Investigator) was just finishing up a service call at a wastewater plant. He was testing the work he’d done on a controller, which runs a coagulation unit removing heavy metals from water. This is a high-current, low-voltage…
The Case of the Lazy Washing Machine
THE MYSTERY A corrections facility in the area called ACES because one of their industrial washing machines (100 lb. capacity) was down. They called an electrician in to look at it, but he was unable to find the problem. THE CLUES ACES sent a Control Scene…
The Case of the Turco Tank Alarm
THE MYSTERY A manufacturer of aircraft parts was having mystifying issues with their Turco tank. Sometimes the customer could turn on the machine and the burner with no problem — but then 10 minutes later it would randomly shut down and sound an alarm. At other times…
The Case of the Whistling Oven
THE MYSTERY A manufacturer of specialized motors had an oven that was way out of calibration. The mid-sized electric oven, used to cure epoxy for motor windings, was 30º out of range, a huge discrepancy for an oven that’s rated ±2½ºF. THE CLUES The first thing the…
The Case of the Masquerading Oven
THE MYSTERY An ACES customer producing carbon fiber molding for the aircraft industry had a large oven (18′ x 10′ x 10′), which they thought was working just fine — however, they had an opportunity to land a new contract if they could prove their…