PES spoke with Mark Bakker, Field Application Engineer at Fluke, about the importance of trusted, safe and accurate measurement equipment for solar plants and how new troubleshooting and analysis technology makes it easier to capture the right data at the right time.
PES: Hi Mark, it’s great to welcome you to PES and always good to introduce our readers to new names and ideas in the sector. Perhaps we can begin with a brief introduction to Fluke and what it is that you do?
Mark Bakker: Fluke is a manufacturer of handheld measurement equipment, for the most part, able to measure all kinds of variables inclusive of temperature, current, voltage and vibrations. The multimeter was the start, then Fluke expanded into other applications and now we have a very wide portfolio of test and measurement equipment often used by maintenance teams and research and development laboratories. Some 99% of our test and measurement product portfolio is portable and battery powered.
Our products are known for their rugged design, always with the safety of the user in mind. Fluke is based in Seattle in the USA and has some 2500 employees globally. I am based in our EMEA head office in Eindhoven in the Netherlands, and have been with Fluke now for 10 years working across vibration measurement tools and then in power quality. I work with a team of applications engineers creating and developing training material for internal stakeholders, distributors and for the end users of our equipment.
We are in a unique position. Because we set out all this training, our team is in constant contact with customers, distributors and salespeople and we gather information about the product from all these sources. Combined with our technical backgrounds this makes us product experts. For that reason, we are often invited by salespeople to visit the customer to help them with their challenges, offer solutions, demonstrate the product, explain the benefits, and receive the feedback from the end user.
PES: How do your products and services relate to the world of solar and renewable energy?
MB: We deliver power quality tools for industrial plants, manufacturing facilities and for energy providers. The way in which electrical power is produced is transitioning at a rapid rate. Solar and other renewable energy resources are providing new ways of generating electrical power. To develop, commission and troubleshoot these types of renewable power generation systems you need trusted, safe and accurate measurement equipment.
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