Blog

Don’t be like a Dog! Don’t just sniff around, find ways to mark your territory and then leave.

January 30, 2014

Some studies have shown that 70% of reliability efforts fail. Some of the main reasons for this are changes in key individuals responsible for the implementation,  support, and management of these efforts. Individuals become frustrated and leave,  are moved into other positions, terminated by management that does not see the value of their efforts, assigned […]

Shaft Alignment: Prove it before you move it

January 28, 2014

Most of us know that accurate shaft alignment will increase the life of machine components such as bearings,  seals, and couplings, and thereby help prolong the life of your equipment. However, performing a shaft alignment can be cumbersome at times, especially aligning multiple machines in a machine train at once. A multi-coupling train is an […]

Monitoring to Determine Actual Alignment Targets

January 23, 2014

A recent customer visit offered us an opportunity to provide dynamic measurement on a large Combustion Gas Turbine Generator package. This machine has a history of excessive vibration following startup and continuing into steady-state operations.  It was suspected that the changes in the alignment condition of this machine were the reason for the excessive vibration. […]

7 common techniques that should be used every day in a vibration analysis program

January 21, 2014

What are some of the most common techniques that should be used every day in a vibration analysis program? Spectrum Analysis Spectrum Analysis is used to help identify the normal operating frequencies of a machine. Additionally,  the defect frequencies and their characteristics can be routinely identified. Waveform Analysis Waveforms are one of the most overlook […]

Shift Happens!

January 16, 2014

Have you ever been notified by operations that a machine is experiencing an issue and asked to quickly help determine the nature of the problem? Does this happen repeatedly on the same machine? Even around the same time of day or week? Have you considered that process changes could be affecting the equipment? Changes in […]

Laser alignment company ‘clear leaders in their industry’ @BICMagazine interviews happy and loyal LUDECA customer

January 14, 2014

As Published by BIC Magazine December 2013 issue “LUDECA’s staff is always cheerful,  friendly, professional, and extremely knowledgeable. Without a doubt, LUDECA provides the greatest service and products.” — A training professional at a fertilizer company For those companies considering laser alignment, LUDECA Inc. is offering the “why” and “who” to help you make an informed […]

Retrofit Monitoring with Big Payoff Results

January 9, 2014

UPTIME • December 2013/January 2014 AES Southland provides power to Southern California from a multitude of power resources. In 1998,  AES Southland acquired the Alamitos natural gas power plant from Southern California Edison. Since that time,  AES has undertaken a number of programs to modernize the generating station and improve the reliability of the Alamitos […]

The Importance of Communication between Analyst and Management

January 7, 2014

Why does so much ‘stuff’ fall between the cracks that exist between data and information. So often we see a highly trained analyst with a tremendous amount of data working with a manager who takes very little information from the data. There is obviously a communication breakdown but who is to blame. Is it the […]

Pre-Alignment Steps for Better Alignments in 2014

January 2, 2014

It is a good idea to complete a few pre-alignment steps prior to conducting any alignment activity.  For instance: Verify a possible misalignment condition by using a condition monitoring technology such as vibration analysis or thermography when possible.  This will help to identify the type of misalignment condition that is present,  and any other conditions […]