Monitoring machinery vibration can use many tools and models, including a hybrid model. Some of the monitoring tools available today include: Portable vibration data collectors and analyzers. Short-term surveillance vibration data collectors and analyzers (which can be installed temporarily). Embedded sensors mounted to equipment which can monitor vibration, temperatures, and other inputs. Permanently mounted accelerometers…
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Balancing rotating machinery is mostly math, with a bit of common sense and experience thrown in. The math is constant, so here are some tips to help with the common sense and experience part. Preparing to balance Inspect before you balance I once balanced a fan by pulling an air filter out of the fan…
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In Part 1 of How Vibration is Measured, we discussed how equipment vibration is measured. An accelerometer mounted to a machine bearing vibrates. This vibration in the accelerometer produces a voltage. The amount of movement of the accelerometer determines the amount of voltage, and the severity. The frequency of the voltage (how many times per…
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Machinery vibration continues is an indispensable tool for knowing the condition of machine components. While analyzing vibration can sometimes be complex, understanding the basics of what a vibration signal is can simplify the process. Taking a vibration measurement on equipment typically requires two components – an accelerometer, and a device, such as a vibration analyzer…
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In Acoem USA’s Reliable Precision Maintenance (RPM) class, we discuss several key points maintenance personnel need to know about lubrication. One of those points is grease compatibility. At a recent class, our students mentioned they only used two kinds of grease. When we asked what they were, they didn’t remember the name. So, one of…
Read MoreThis grainy photo was from my last day at a Weyerhaeuser mill in 1987. I was a 26 year old millwright. If you look closely, you’ll see an IBM computer in the storeroom. We had another one we used for running Palomar Microlog vibration data collection. We had a first generation laser alignment tool, but…
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The idea of maintaining machinery and maintaining the environment may sound like science fiction, or like apples and oranges. However maintaining equipment can have a direct, positive, measurable, and meaningful effect on the planet, the plant, and the people who own and work on them, if executed properly. How? Machinery that is designed properly, and…
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I recently had the pleasure of teaching an alignment class for a Midwest company involved in pipe fabrication and installation. Their primary concern wasn’t so much in precision shaft alignment, but in being able to measure the effect pipe strain has on alignment. Before I arrived, they had told me they had fabricated a rig…
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A colleague and client of ours called, in a bit of a quandary. “Ever seen anything like this?” he asked. I had to answer “No, I have not”. This is a C-face motor. It is typically mounted to a C-face flange, which connects to a vertically oriented pump. But in this case, the C-face motor…
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We get asked a multitude of questions in our training classes, which we appreciate. But a few questions pop up almost every time. Here are some of our most common questions and answers. QUESTION: Sometimes on small machines, I don’t have enough room on the shaft to mount the laser. Can I mount it…
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Like many people worldwide, the ACOEM VibrAlign Training Team is grounded while we wait this virus out. It is the right thing to do-for ourselves, our families, neighbors, co-workers, and nation. However, that doesn’t mean we can’t help YOU! If you have questions about alignment, vibration, or reliability of your equipment, WE CAN HELP! How?…
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By now, if you’ve kept up with the VibrAlign balancing “how-to” blogs, you should see that balancing is mostly just a math problem – counteracting forces. But we haven’t discussed when the balance job is through. When I started balancing fans many years ago, I stopped balancing when: The fan owner said, “that’s much better”,…
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In our last “How To” we talked about the trial run – using a trial weight and location, to calculate the amount and location of a correction weight, which should correct the unbalance. Most modern-day balancing tools do the math for you. Even though these tools calculate the correction weight and location, it is good…
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In our last Balancing How-To, I stated that an initial trial weight is sometimes a guess. Sometimes based on experience, and sometimes on common sense. But if you prefer to be a little more scientific about it, there are ways to calculate a good trial weight. There are a few requirements to calculate a trial…
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Once unbalance is determined, the original unbalance run (amplitude and phase) is measured, and a trial weight size is determined, the next step is where to place the trial weight. If you have no balancing record for this rotor, where to place the weight is little more than a guess. But there are some things…
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If you’re working to maintain machines, Acoem USA wants to help.
We’re committed to providing tools, training, and services that will transform your approach to maintenance and reliability.
