20.02.08
High mast tower inspection company finds international partner
MastCheck Inc, a Columbus-based technology innovation company, recently entered the international market of high mast tower inspection with the signing of British company CU Phosco Lighting Ltd. as their exclusive agent for the United Kingdom.
CU Phosco Lighting are the leading high mast manufacture, installation and maintenance company in the UK and have signed an agreement to utilize and promote the MastCheck™ inspection system as an addition to the unique services they currently offer customers.
CU Phosco Lighting signed a three year agreement for the exclusive use of the MastCheck™ inspection system in the UK with a commitment to negotiate continuous renewals. “They understand the immediate payback of using the MastCheck™ system and believe it provides a technology base from which to grow their inspection capabilities,” DallePezze said. “They indicated interest in further developing the technology for such inspection tasks as internal tower surface and wire rope inspections.”
The MastCheck™ inspection system consists of three wireless, high resolution, digital cameras on brackets allowing for quick attachment to the lowered luminary ring which holds the light fixtures on the high mast towers. As the ring ascends the mast, the ground-based computer displays images of all sides of the mast using the proprietary MastCheck recording software. The software allows the operator to pan, tilt, and zoom each camera to focus on a suspicious spot while automatically capturing and storing images for later evaluation by engineers.
Bob Gaskell, CU Phosco Lighting’s contracts director, says: “We are happy to add MastCheck™ inspection technology to further expand our capabilities and to keep us competitive.” CU Phosco Lighting Ltd. is the leading manufacturer in the UK for high mast lighting and CCTV towers. They manufacture all parts of the system including the steel towers, winch mechanisms, and lighting fixtures, making them unique in this competitive industry. The company’s turnkey approach of manufacturing, installation, and field support is one of a kind.
The agreement partnering our operations in the UK seems natural given the two companies’ respective business focus,” says Peter DallePezze, MastCheck™ president and chief executive officer. MastCheck™ provides a proprietary system for inspecting high mast towers to help monitor their structural integrity, similar to that type of inspection required for bridges. CU Phosco Lighting Ltd. manufactures, installs, maintains, and inspects high mast towers throughout the UK and other parts of the world.
Cost effective
By eliminating the need for multiple lane closures for mobile elevating work platforms, the MastCheck inspection system is the most economical way to obtain a detailed mast inspection. CU Lighting personnel can operate the MastCheck system to acquire images in the field in less than 45 minutes per mast.
Historical archive
The MastCheck inspection system can track high mast poles to watch the growth of potential problems. The historical image archive allows failure modes to be tracked and can lead to creation of predictive-failure models. The system eliminates human subjectivity because multiple people can examine potential trouble spots to determine the need for further action.
Inspection/visualization
This includes vertical seam welds and slip joints at heights of 20m to 60m above ground. Small cracks and breakthrough corrosion simply cannot be identified consistently by an inspector on the ground even when using magnification.
Asset management and archive data
High mast lighting towers represent a significant investment and, when operating as designed, provide great benefit to the safety of highways, ports, airports and sports stadia.
However, formal management and tracking of these assets are required to ensure the towers’ longevity and proper operation. A well-designed asset management program provides efficient operation today while allowing owners to budget the capital needed to replace towers in a planned and orderly manner. MastCheck. Inc. has developed a complete asset management programme that lowers the total cost of ownership, extends the longevity of poles and improves the quality of lighting.
The asset management database includes:
• Inventory and GIS mapping of each structure
• Detailed, routine inspections of the towers
• Key maintenance activities
Improve safety
Their preventive maintenance programme provides the steps to achieve 90-95% lights-on to help reduce traffic accidents. By incorporating their staged re-lamping programme, reduced light levels (due to aging lamps) are minimized. The MastCheck inspection system produces the information required to significantly reduce the risk of pole failure. Accidents can be avoided with the implementation of their thorough inspection programme.
MastCheck offers this facility with no safety concerns to operatives and can be inspected by others thereafter inspection for peace of mind or consultation.
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