Infrared thermography inspection

Infrared thermography is the science of capturing and analysing thermal information from machinery using infrared cameras to identify fire hazards and other risks. This is a fast, accurate, and non-destructive process.

The basis of an infrared thermography inspection is that every object with a temperature above absolute zero emits infrared radiation that is invisible to the human eye but can be detected by specialised sensors and cameras. Infrared thermography cameras capture this emitted radiation and convert it into a thermogram, or visual image, representing the temperature distribution across the object’s surface. The amount of infrared radiation emitted by an object increases as its temperature increases. By measuring these emissions across a surface, it is possible to form a thermal map of that surface and identify any areas of concern.

Infrared thermography inspections and thermographic scanning/testing are best carried out by a certified Thermographic Consultant with a state-of-the-art camera and other predictive instrumentation (i.e. airborne ultrasound) to show a piece of equipment’s progression toward failure. Global Risk Consultants (GRC) provides infrared thermography testing to help risk managers and company leaders better understand fire and many potential failure risks in electrical, mechanical equipment, production machinery and within many other applications.

Electrical problems that are not identified and repaired at an early stage may cause untimely shutdowns, resulting in property losses, lost production, increased operating costs, dissatisfied customers, and lost profits. Infrared thermographic inspections are an important preventative measure to avoid such issues.

Implementing an infrared thermographic imaging programme can achieve overall cost savings. In fact, our programme can deliver savings many times greater than the amount required for development and implementation.

Global Risk Consultants (GRC) uses the latest techniques and top-quality cameras to provide you with comprehensive reports, severity and impact ratings, ultrasonic testing, arc-flash analysis, thermographic imaging analysis and immediate delivery of findings.

Clients have consistently vouched for the knowledge and first-rate service of our infrared thermography engineers. In a recent survey, 77% of GRC infrared thermography clients described their experience as “better than expected” and 40% said it was “much better than expected.”

GRC pioneered unbundled loss control — independent risk assessments not tied to insurance. We offer expertise that is always independent and never bundled to underwriting.

You will own your data instead of insurance companies owning it. That empowers you to take on more risk if you desire, helps you shop for appropriate insurance coverage, and negotiate premiums with confidence.

Our infrared thermography testing includes:

Comprehensive reports – Our engineers utilise infrared and airborne ultrasound technology for electrical testing. IR inspections can detect abnormal or unexpected thermal patterns that may cause equipment failure (i.e. “invisible” threats). Our formal comprehensive reports not only locate problems with extreme precision but also recommend cost-effective solutions.

Severity and impact ratings – We provide severity and impact ratings for each finding in an infrared thermography inspection. Our reports include a summary of findings, equipment inventory listing, and business impact analysis. All findings and metrics are made available in our online data management system GRC Connect.

Ultrasonic testing – Ultrasonic testing is an additional tool enabling us to identify critical loss exposures such as internal and external tracking/arcing problems in high voltage equipment that are not detectable when using infrared imaging.

Thermographic imaging analysis – Thermographic imaging analysis is used to diagnose problem areas and determine their impact and severity. It also enables us to pinpoint abnormal temperatures and resolve variances and deficiencies.

Immediate delivery of findings – You can access comprehensive on-site reports through our online client data management system GRC Connect. These reports include a quantifiable operational cost-saving action plan as well as severity and impact ratings for each finding.

Our process is as follows:

    1. Consultations with business owners – We diagnose problem areas and determine their severity in electrical systems and mechanical applications.

    2. Visual examination – We address variations and deficiencies by identifying sources of non-uniformity of temperature within process applications.

    3. Airborne ultrasound inspection – Supplementary to Infrared Thermography, Airborne Ultrasound Inspections detect potential acoustic emissions which cannot always be detected thermally.

    4. Comprehensive reports and critical sharing of anomalies – We inform businesses through reports and critical sharing of anomalies requiring attention to allow for swift remediate action to be taken.

    5. Notification of severity and impact ratings – We notify businesses of the severity and impact ratings for each finding, with the summary of findings, equipment inventory listing, trending and business impact.

    6. Personnel training – We train in-house thermographic consultants to ensure they’re familiar with the knowledge required to identify anomalies and technological advances in infrared.