Overview
Cables degrade for many reasons including exposure to excessive heat or cold, chemicals, weathering, abrasion, moisture ingression, and UV light. They may fail because of this degradation or as a result of damage during installation, inappropriate selection, or even rodent attack. Failure can lead to short circuits or arcing that could themselves result in safety concerns such as a fire.
Understanding the cause of failure can avoid future problems, extend the life of the asset, improve safety, and avoid costly repairs. However, with many potential causes and with the failure event often obscuring data the causes can be difficult to determine.
We use our experience, extensive testing laboratory capability, and site inspections to gather data about failures and provide a reasoned analysis of the cause of failure.
Why Us?
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Decades of Experience
Forensic analysis is often about identifying the issue, in a fog of data, that’s why experience is so valuable. With our experience, we have done so much that if we haven’t actually seen an identical issue, we will have seen something like it!
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Comprehensive Investigation
Our investigations include location surveys and assessments, a full range of physical, electrical, and chemical tests, and laboratory simulations to ensure we obtain all the information needed for an assessment.
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Secure Handling of Sensitive Data
By using one team, which includes the people undertaking the site investigation, as well as the testing (done in-house), the data and its analysis are easily kept secure.
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Independent and Impartial Analysis
As an entirely independent third party you can rely on us for comprehensive, impartial analysis that will give you the best possible assessment of the cause of failure.
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Well Informed Solutions
We integrate our knowledge of materials, environments, and impacts of voltage stress to undertake cable aging and failure analyses and provide informed results and actionable recommendations.
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All Voltage Classes
With specialized capabilities for cables designed for all voltages we do forensic analysis on anything from 600 V cables to extra high voltage cable and anything in between.
Technical Abilities
Full Cable Lifecycle Services
We combine materials and cable design expertise with lab and field testing, that gives our team unique insights into cable performance and aging. Some of our electrical and physical low, medium and high voltage cable test capabilities include:
- Breakdown Testing
- Dielectric Spectroscopy
- Partial Discharge Including Inception and Extinction Voltage Determination
- Very-Low-Frequency Tangent Delta
- Reflectometry
- Oxidation Induction Time
- Fourier Transform Infrared Spectroscopy
- Microscopic Analysis
- Hot Oil Bath
- Sectioning and Wafering
- Indenter Modulus
- Tensile Testing and Elongation at Break
- Differential Scanning Calorimetry
- Chemical Testing Analysis (Extraction and Chromatography Methods)
- Thermogravimetric Analysis
- Customized Testing is also available
Our Proven Experience
Quality Assurance & Technical Standards
- 10CFR50 Appendix B (2021)
- Quality Assurance Criteria for Nuclear Power Plants and Fuel Reprocessing Plants
- AEIC Standards
- Technical Specifications for Cables
- CSA N285 Series
- General Requirements for Pressure-retaining Systems, Components, and Supports in CANDU Nuclear Power Plants
- CSA Standards
- Safety Standards in Canada for Electrical Appliances, Medical Devices, Machinery, Equipment, etc.
- ICEA Standards
- Cable Standards for Electric Power, Control and Telecommunications Industries
- IEC Standards
- International standards for all electrical, electronic and related technologies
- IEEE Standards
- Standards developed and maintained by Institute of Electrical and Electronics Engineers
- ISO 9001
- Quality Management System
- ISO 17025 (2017)
- Testing & Calibration Laboratories
Key Clients
Projects
Kinectrics possesses superior technical capabilities when it comes to cable knowledge and experience – their ability to contribute to the industry for continuous improvement to testing methodologies is outstanding. Their customer focus and flexibility have always proven to be very useful to meet our needs. Kinectrics test methodology is second to none. Additionally, they possess an overall technical depth to deal with the most difficult cable aging management challenges, regardless of cable class.