Reliable Plant • October 2010

Vibration analysis is mostly a learned skill. It is based 70 percent on experience and 30 percent on classroom training and self-study. It takes years to become a confident and competent vibration analyst. When the analysis is wrong, the recommendations for repair also will be incorrect. No vibration analyst wants to make the wrong call. In this business, credibility is gained in small steps and lost in large chunks. A vibration sensor placed on a bearing housing and connected to a vibration analyzer provides time, frequency, and amplitude information in the form of a waveform and a spectrum. This data is the foundation for vibration analysis. It contains the signatures of nearly all mechanical and electrical defects present on the machine. The vibration analysis process involves determining the vibration severity, identifying frequencies and patterns, associating the peaks and patterns with mechanical or electrical components, forming conclusions, and, if necessary, making recommendations for repair. Everybody involved in vibration analysis knows that analyzing vibration is not easy or automated. Have you ever wondered why?

Find a few reasons…