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In the United States, we are losing skilled maintenance crafts at an...

In the United States, we are losing skilled maintenance crafts at an alarming rate. In order for a plant to obtain reliability goals, the maintenance organization must be capable of maintaining critical plant equipment at a high level. It is therefore necessary to implement a comprehensive and effective maintenance training...

Large companies typically have an individual or group fully or partially dedicated...

Large companies typically have an individual or group fully or partially dedicated to root cause failure analysis (RCFA). Medium and smaller-sized companies generally don't have enough resources to focus on RCFA, and the maintenance or operations manager is placed in charge. Because of their busy schedules, RCFA is often rushed...

To reduce costs and improve production, most large manufacturing and process companies...

To reduce costs and improve production, most large manufacturing and process companies that have embraced the Lean Enterprise concept have taken an approach of building all of the systems and infrastructure throughout the organization. The result of this traditional approach has been erratic implementation efforts that often stall-out, or are...

Part of developing a plan for improvement is gaining an understanding of...

Part of developing a plan for improvement is gaining an understanding of where you are in your maintenance process. Most plants don't realize how far behind they are in maintenance effectiveness. This paper reviews a chart of plant and maintenance characteristics and habits. You'll develop a clear understanding on how...

You want to grow your reliability program, which means more resources ......

You want to grow your reliability program, which means more resources ... you need to "sell" your program to your manager. The last thing that he wants is to be "sold" on the RCM program (Resource Consuming Monster, as it is sometimes known). However, if you understand what the RULES...

This paper includes a case study that involves a complete turnaround of...

This paper includes a case study that involves a complete turnaround of a mechanical maintenance planning department. The resulting organization consisted of crews working down their entire backlogs, freeing up the work force for other tasks including replacing contract labor and assisting other stations. Planning obviously involves more than computer...

Do you ever worry about Bob retiring and how the place is...

Do you ever worry about Bob retiring and how the place is going keep running? Do you ever ask yourself, How did we do that last time? Do the decision-makers and the implementers in your organization know where to go for good reliable information and experience on all aspects of...

The National Institutes of Health is the Federal focal point for medical...

The National Institutes of Health is the Federal focal point for medical research in the United States. On the main campus in Bethesda, MD, some 20,000 doctors, researchers, and scientists work in over 60 buildings to advance the state of medical knowledge and research. The Building Maintenance Team (BMT) provides...

Gain a more in-depth understanding of two of the most critical oil...

Gain a more in-depth understanding of two of the most critical oil analysis tests for industrial machinery. Get practical explanations of how particle count and viscosity are measured and reported on an oil analysis report, and see side-by-side comparisons of common testing methods and how they compare with test results...

Conditioned-based maintenance (CBM) provides you with the tools necessary to squeeze every...

Conditioned-based maintenance (CBM) provides you with the tools necessary to squeeze every possible hour out of your machinery. It saves you money by matching service intervals to the working environment and real-time machine health. CBM is unique because it involves maintenance that is predictive as well as preventative. Fluid analysis...

Selecting an oil analysis laboratory can be a stressful process. It is...

Selecting an oil analysis laboratory can be a stressful process. It is important to make sure you get the most bang for your buck, as well as ensure that your needs are met. There are several factors to consider when selecting a laboratory including economical, logistical and scientific issues. Once...

In this session you?ll hear about new methods for determining concentrations of...

In this session you?ll hear about new methods for determining concentrations of antioxidants and oxidation in used turbine oil. Research that tracks the decrease of antioxidants and corresponding increase in oxidation products will be presented. By monitoring antioxidant levels, early warnings signs can be identified well before oxidation has occurred....

Time and again, oil analysis has proved to be a useful tool...

Time and again, oil analysis has proved to be a useful tool in preventing and identifying failures that if left, can lead to expensive replacement of parts, additional maintenance costs and loss of revenue. Current oil analysis practices at most remote wind turbine sights has proven to be useful, but...

Oil analysis is well established as a routine tool to optimize maintenance...

Oil analysis is well established as a routine tool to optimize maintenance activities, improve reliability and equipment life, and prevent component failures. However, when equipment is grease-lubricated, the important lubricant analysis piece is usually left out of the mix. New developments are improving sampling techniques and streamlining grease analysis tests...

Modern turbine lubricant specifications require antioxidant packages to meet stringent gas and...

Modern turbine lubricant specifications require antioxidant packages to meet stringent gas and steam turbine working conditions. Monitoring the depletion of the individual antioxidants, by means of trend analysis, is becoming a valuable tool for reliability professionals. Understanding the remaining useful life of industrial lubricants by trending antioxidant health and monitoring...

Microscopic particles are the most harmful form of lubricant contamination. They initiate...

Microscopic particles are the most harmful form of lubricant contamination. They initiate irreversible microscopic damage that causes macroscopic damage, which disables and destroys bearings, gears, valves and other components. Lubricants can be filtered to remove microscopic particles; however, particles can damage equipment before being removed by filtration. The most proficient...

The foaming property of a fluid is one of its basic physical...

The foaming property of a fluid is one of its basic physical properties. Unfortunately, foam can cause serious problems with the life and performance of the fluid and the equipment being protected. Even though foam performance is often a defined specification for a new fluid, it is often ignored on...

Gearbox applications are challenging when attempting to achieve and maintain an aggressive...

Gearbox applications are challenging when attempting to achieve and maintain an aggressive level of lubricant cleanliness. A balance must be maintained between what is financially feasible and what is absolutely best for the machine. This paper discusses these challenges and looks at three case studies where tight lubricant cleanliness levels...

Contamination of hydraulic and lube systems caused by water can lead to...

Contamination of hydraulic and lube systems caused by water can lead to major problems including corrosion, microbial growth, metal fatigue and accelerated oil aging. To diminish these problems two target water levels are recommended: a minimum level avoids free water, and a more stringent yet realistic level minimizes problems due...

In the course of fluid monitoring, it is necessary to know when...

In the course of fluid monitoring, it is necessary to know when fluid contamination can be repaired, or when a system needs to be flushed. Careful evaluation helps determine if the fluid is salvageable, and if not, it is important to know how much fluid will be needed to flush...

In the last five to ten years, there?s been a fundamental shift...

In the last five to ten years, there?s been a fundamental shift in how companies staff their lubrication programs. Driven in part by the retirement of the baby-boomer generation, companies are starting to examine how they can effectively staff a lubrication department to achieve lubrication best practice. From the classic...

For major crime scenes, the amount of resources expended in evidence preservation...

For major crime scenes, the amount of resources expended in evidence preservation is enormous. This is acceptable because there is really no other method available that can reliably produce the required results, and the criminals must be caught. Unfortunately, when an equipment malfunction occurs, many businesses do not conduct such...

Develop a comprehensive Motor Management Program and you are well on your...

Develop a comprehensive Motor Management Program and you are well on your way to reducing 50% of the potential equipment failures incurred at any given industrial or manufacturing operation. This paper will help you better understand the importance of sound motor management practices and how they directly relate to overall...

Misalignment left uncorrected can have damaging effects on machine components. Misalignment will...

Misalignment left uncorrected can have damaging effects on machine components. Misalignment will reduce coupling life, bearing life and overall motor health. It can be a bit confusing when trying to identify misalignment using vibration analysis because the vibration response is often dictated by the mechanical configuration of each machine. Therefore,...

Instruments based on airborne/structure borne ultrasound technology offer many opportunities for plant-wide...

Instruments based on airborne/structure borne ultrasound technology offer many opportunities for plant-wide predictive maintenance/condition monitoring activities ranging from determining lack of lubrication in bearings to locating compressed air leaks. New advances in digital technology and software improve the capability of these portable instruments to trend, analyze and report bearing condition,...

This paper features an actual exercise to create a weekly schedule for...

This paper features an actual exercise to create a weekly schedule for a maintenance crew. It shows what a schedule should look like and why, in addition to the nuts and bolts of how to make it. Author:  R.D. (Doc) Palmer, Richard Palmer & AssociatesSource:  Reliability World 2007 Conference ProceedingsPages:...

This paper addresses the critical role that the maintenance storeroom plays in...

This paper addresses the critical role that the maintenance storeroom plays in supporting overall plant equipment reliability. It will cover the top twenty key areas associated with conducting a storeroom optimization project as well as the typical process of implementing storeroom improvements. Author: Doug Hart, Progressive Maintenance TechnologiesSource: Reliability World...

Free radicals formed by oxidation or spark discharge are frequently at the...

Free radicals formed by oxidation or spark discharge are frequently at the root cause for varnish and deposit formation in turbines. Traditional methods of analyzing used oils such as viscosity measurement, acidity or carbonyl oxidation is usually inadequate to predict eminent field problems. This presentation discusses why different behavior is...

This paper tells the story of maintenance and reliability challenges and how...

This paper tells the story of maintenance and reliability challenges and how effective oil analysis and mobile equipment reliability programs were initiated and sustained in a remote mining area of Western Australia. The author spent fourteen months during 2005 and 2006 performing maintenance and reliability improvement work and living in...

What value is your plant reliability management strategy contributing to your organization?...

What value is your plant reliability management strategy contributing to your organization? How are you communicating that value - both internally and externally? If you're not talking about driving shareholder value and economic value added (EVA), you're missing what reliability truly means for your business and your bottom line. This...

Learn how and why defects on different components of a bearing will...

Learn how and why defects on different components of a bearing will generate vibrations at frequencies determined by the bearings geometry. Author:  Jim Crowe, Crowe Vibration TechnologiesSource:  Reliability World 2007 Conference ProceedingsPages:  6Figures and Illustrations:  19Format:  PDF - Digital Download

Increasingly, managers and engineers, who are responsible for manufacturing and other industrial...

Increasingly, managers and engineers, who are responsible for manufacturing and other industrial pursuits, are incorporating a reliability focus into their strategic and tactical plans and initiatives. This trend is affecting numerous functional areas, including machine/system design and procurement, plant operations and plant maintenance. With its origins in the aviation industry,...

Interpreting an oil analysis report can be a daunting process when one...

Interpreting an oil analysis report can be a daunting process when one is faced with tens, perhaps hundreds, of numbers on the page. Yet by breaking this task up into manageable sections, the task can quite effectively be simplified. This paper breaks the diagnosis process up into twelve steps, covering...

Too often, engineers believe that a quoted micron rating is the absolute...

Too often, engineers believe that a quoted micron rating is the absolute size of the filter pores and that all particles greater than this size will be stopped. This is not the case, and this paper addresses the basic concept of filter ratings and the often quoted Beta Performance values....

The benefits of maintaining clean hydraulic control systems have been well established,...

The benefits of maintaining clean hydraulic control systems have been well established, proven and documented. Yet so many people ignore these proven facts. The end result can be detrimental with shut down of major petrochemical plants or oil and gas platforms. This paper provides real case examples of how critical...

There are various methods for setting target cleanliness levels for hydraulic systems....

There are various methods for setting target cleanliness levels for hydraulic systems. These methods require various inputs and it is difficult to reach consensus on which method to apply. While this is the right approach for critical machines, the method presented during this session is a simplified approach that a...

Portable filtration is an effective method of maintaining oil health in machines...

Portable filtration is an effective method of maintaining oil health in machines that are too small to warrant dedicated filters. While wheeled portable filter units offer a solution, they may also pose a challenge. The weight and size make it difficult to use them at the top of multiple stairways...