Mark Lamendola

United States

Technical Consulant at EC&M Magazine

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Articles

Fall Protection Basics

3 weeks ago | ecmweb.com | Mark Lamendola

By following a few basics, you can probably raise your fall protection performance score. Fall protection violations typically take top place every year on OSHA’s Top 10 list. While addressing your fall protection program with an eye toward preventing violations is good, it’s even better to take actions that will improve fall protection immediately. For employers, consider these steps:Assess fall protection PPE (harnesses and lanyards) for age. If it’s over 10 years old, replace it.
Paint and Solvent Storage Tips

3 weeks ago | ecmweb.com | Mark Lamendola

It matters how and where you store containers of paints and solvents, whether opened or not. Paints and solvents are essential in maintenance and construction, but they also bring dangers of both flammability and toxicity when stored improperly. Follow these tips to reduce both dangers. First, choose a location in which to place a flammables storage cabinet. Ensure the location is:Well-ventilated. This can be natural ventilation, or you may add a low-flow exhaust to it.
Electrical Troubleshooting Quiz - June 3, 2025

3 weeks ago | ecmweb.com | Mark Lamendola

How should you proceed with this equipment failure epidemic? The plant has been suffering from an equipment failure epidemic. The plant manager fired the plant engineer for letting this happen, then tasked you with fixing the cause of it all. And he told you the cause is poor power quality. He said to buy some power conditioners and engage the services of a power quality consultant if that doesn’t work. How should you proceed?
Five Ways to Prevent Poor Power Quality With Maintenance

3 weeks ago | ecmweb.com | Mark Lamendola

Does your maintenance department address these PQ issues? Many causes of poor power quality are preventable with the right maintenance. Is that maintenance performed at your facility? Does your maintenance department address the issues below? Bonding pathway and connections. Do you have any procedures for checking the bonding system for all of the equipment on a given circuit or in a given area?
Understanding General Requirements of the NEC, Part 7

3 weeks ago | ecmweb.com | Mark Lamendola

Article 110 provides general requirements for all installations. Section 110.12 is the famous “mechanical execution of work” part of the NEC. A recurring criticism of Sec. 110.12 is it’s not specific enough. It starts with “Electrical equipment shall be installed in a professional and skillful manner.” But there’s no explanation of what this means. We go back to the “Use and Application” Section of Article 90 and read the NEC is not intended to be "…an instruction manual for untrained persons” [Sec.
How Working Safely Can Boost Job Efficiency

1 month ago | ecmweb.com | Mark Lamendola

There’s a persistent school of thought that safety is an extra layer imposed on top of work, so minimizing this layer would mean more work gets done in the same amount of time. It’s hard to argue with this logic unless you understand what safe work practices entail. Those practices, when fully understood, consistently and correctly implemented, and integrated into the normal workflow and procedures, increase not only safety but also efficiency and work quality. How can this be?
NFPA 70E: Annex Marks the Spot -Part 14

1 month ago | ecmweb.com | Mark Lamendola

Annex O addresses the responsibilities of the facility owner or party with similar control to perform a risk assessment during the design of electrical systems and electrical installations. It covers employee safety-related design concepts, but not specific design requirements.
Preventing Ladder-Related Citations, Part 2

1 month ago | ecmweb.com | Mark Lamendola

If you open 29CFR 1926 and turn to Subpart X, you will see it starts with 1926.1050. This provides the scope, application, and definitions that apply to stairways and ladders. If your employees are using stairs and/or ladders in the course of construction, alteration, and/or repair, you need to understand and correctly apply 1926.1050 [1926.1050(a)]. This subpart does not cover ladders used with scaffolds; for those, see Subpart L. The definitions start with 1926.1050(b).
Understanding General Requirements of the NEC, Part 6

1 month ago | ecmweb.com | Mark Lamendola

Article 110 provides general requirements for all installations. Circuit protective devices need to clear a fault without extensive damage to the electrical equipment of the circuit. The NEC wants designers and installers to permit this, so Sec. 110.10 requires you to select and coordinate the following:Overcurrent devices. Total impedance. Equipment short-circuit ratings. Other characteristics of the circuit to be protected. This last item on the list seems vague, and the NEC gives no examples.
How Maintenance Can Better Support Production

1 month ago | ecmweb.com | Mark Lamendola

The production department of any manufacturing plant exists to get product out the door, on time, within budget, and made to spec. The maintenance department of any manufacturing plant exists to support the production department in this goal. Maintenance does this by such things as preventing unscheduled downtime and optimizing machine performance. And maintenance does this within its budget. The funding for that budget comes out of the revenue generated by the production department.