Ever since they were young, Martin and Ryan liked to tinker with things. Take them apart, and sometimes even put them back together. They’ve come a long way since those early days, but some things never change. Recently, they had the opportunity to fulfill this desire to build.
A client aware of Martin’s technical capabilities asked him to confirm the function of an oil filter which failed and destroyed a 16-cylinder Diesel engine. In order to simulate the failure, Martin designed and built a test apparatus that modelled the engine oil delivery setup. On the surface the rig looks simplistic, but Martin ensured tolerances and pump pressures were correct. Martin was able to confirm that the oil filter was manufactured to specifications and the speculation that the engine failed due to a design fault was erovocably disproven.
Ryan used his building abilities to the benefit of a client as well. A pool heater fire originating in a shed caused substantial house damage. The experts could not agree on the root cause. Ryan proposed a live simulation to identify the cause. Directing a carpenter and performing creative sourcing of an exemplar heater and pump, Ryan constructed a scale model of the loss. He utilized Pario’s 17,000 sq. ft. warehouse equipped with water and a natural gas source for the pool heater function, and successfully re-created the incident. He solved the case and eliminated the continuous cost increases against the file.
About the Authors
Martin Lazarek, P.Eng., is a Professional Engineer with over 35 years of technical experience. His depth of knowledge and expertise in Materials Science and Mechanical Engineering is well known in the industry. Martin joined Pario Engineering & Environmental Sciences in 2010 and was responsible for setting up the Laboratory and obtaining ISO 17025:2005 accreditation. |
Ryan Cocke P.Eng., CFEI, CVFI, CFII is a Mechanical Engineer and an expert in the investigation of vehicle and structure fires to determine their origin and cause and performs forensic investigation and evaluation of building electrical systems, fuel fired appliances, vehicle electrical systems and mechanical systems to determine their root cause of failure. Ryan joined Pario Engineering & Environmental Sciences in 2009 and has investigated hundreds of vehicle fires, structure fires and industrial machinery fires to determine their origin and cause in accordance with NFPA 921, “Guide for Fire & Explosion Investigations.” |
