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Expert Testimony
 ETS
has been providing expert testimony for more than a quarter of a century.
The primary focus has been in the area of air pollution control. Clients
have called on ETS for its expertise in the areas of particulate and
gaseous control technology, system design and operation, cost and
performance. ETS is known for both the quality of the work performed and
the cost effectiveness of the execution. Most often the cases have been
successfully settled out of court based on the technical underpinnings
provided by ETS. References backing up this statement are available upon
request.
A list of example cases is provided below, and these are
followed with a few detailed examples. In addition to these specific
cases, ETS has experience, through its testing, training and
troubleshooting contracts, with all of the major industrial applications
of air pollution control systems. The firm has a quality reputation with
both industry and government.
Expert Testimony:
Example Cases
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Federal vs. State
Timing and cost to install turnkey air pollution control system on state facilities.
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APC Equipment Supplier vs. Municipality
Performance guarantees and operation of gaseous emission control system.
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Fabric Filter Baghouse Manufacturer vs. Electric Utility
Bag life guarantee.
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Municipality vs. Public Citizenry
Environmental impact of municipal incinerator with state-of-the-art air pollution control system for gaseous and particulate control.
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USA OEM vs. Foreign Buyer
Performance guarantee of electrostatic precipitator.
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Manufacturing Plant vs. Local Citizens
Plant emissions damaging local property.
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End User vs. Baghouse Manufacturer
Equipment warranty and bag life. Expert Testimony:
Five
Case Details
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Electric Utility Bag Life Guarantee
ETS was retained by a leading manufacturer of air pollution control systems to determine the technical reason for filter bags
not achieving the multi-year bag life guarantee. ETS was able to determine that the baghouse was operated outside the
guarantee's operational parameter range. This, in addition to other ETS O&M findings, allowed the client to win this case.
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MSW Incinerator Emission Control Performance
ETS was retained to evaluate problems with a large MSW incineration plant's emission control system. The initial
step was a site visitation to determine original equipment design and current operation performance. A report was issued documenting
the existing problems and establishing an evaluation plan to confirm the cause of the problems and define solutions. An ETS
troubleshooting team subsequently implemented the plan and verified the source of the problems using ETS's own patented baghouse
performance instrumentation. A modified mode of operation was suggested to temporarily relieve existing problems (including
intermittent emissions), and long-term solutions were recommended. ETS was requested to determine if the unit met the original
specifications of the manufacturer, and the cost impacts of any necessary changes. The plant elected to enter legal arbitration with
the original equipment vendor, and ETS supplied expert testimony during the litigation process.
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Steel Manufacturer - Electric Arc Furnace/Baghouse
ETS was retained as an expert witness by a major steel manufacturer for problem assessment and testimony. The client was operating
a pulse jet baghouse for control of particulate emissions from an electric arc furnace. The system was designed to handle 100,000
ACFM, but due to excessive pressure drop could handle no more than 80,000 ACFM. ETS researched this problem including
conducting a detailed data inspection and review, an engineering evaluation with economic analyses, and issuance of a report
discussing the problem assessment and solutions to the problem.
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Comprehensive Air Pollution Control System Capability Assessment
ETS was retained to provide technical back-up and rebuttal testimony, and to develop exhibits for the proposed air pollution control hardware
at a large MSW installation. The overall objective of this case was to thoroughly investigate state-of-art APC
technology for MSW incineration, along with associated economics and regulation in other states, to "determine a reasonable and rationally
consistent set of minimum emission standards and monitoring requirements for these types of facilities." The Department of
Environmental Regulation was seeking reasonable assurance that the operation of such MSW systems would not cause more air environmental
problems than the solid waste problems they were attempting to solve. ETS supplied expert consulting and testimony for this case. The client
was very pleased with this service, which led to an increase in this activity at ETS.
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MSW Air Pollution Control
ETS was retained by an MSW incinerator operator to provide expert testimony for litigation between the operator and the and the air
pollution control equipment vendor. An ETS principal provided expert expert testimony on several occasions, which focused mainly
on the areas of system design volumes and temperatures; the reasonableness of existing baghouse inlet temperature; individual component
and total system pressure drops; vendor's standard bag attachment design; and surge condition limitations and bag life.
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