Too often management remembers the unanticipated machine failure of three years ago rather than the dozens of prevented failures that did not occur since that event. The challenge to maintenance and reliability teams is how to keep their successes in the forefront of management’s mind. I have visited a large number of plants and factories [...]
One thing that most field vibration analysts will become aware of is how the directional stiffness of a typical machine will manifest itself in vibration data. The typical horizontal machine train (driver and driven) is fastened down to a very rigid foundation, having little to no freedom of movement in the vertical plane. Although the [...]
Is your equipment considered a slow running speed machine? If so, what speed do you consider slow? Is it 30 RPM? 60 RPM? 100? 200? 600? No matter what you consider slow speed, the two most critical points to consider for slow running equipment are: 1) Does your vibration sensor (accelerometer) have the appropriate frequency [...]
A lot of maintenance employees believe that small machine trains can be precision aligned more quickly and easily than larger machine trains. This is not always the case! Smaller machine trains are usually less rigid. This can cause the alignment to shift as the anchor bolts are tightened. Almost all small machine trains have some [...]
Every vibration analyst relies on accurate data to provide the necessary information to base a report or work order on that will set in motion the activities of the maintenance department. Therefore, the analyst must resist sinking into bad data collection habits. When early detection of a fault or possible problem is important (it usually [...]
It can be argued that lubricants are the lifeblood of equipment. It is extremely difficult to assure equipment reliability when lubrication integrity is not maintained. The key is to keep the lubrication system clean, cool and dry. According to the Arrhenius Rate Rule, every 18-degree (F) increase in oil temperature in operation reduces oil life [...]
