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alignment and balancing

Soft Foot Tutorial
Asset Condition Management

Soft Foot Tutorial

A 44 minute Recorded Webinar Playback on Demand by Alan Luedeking, LUDECA Inc.

This presentation is an in-depth treatment of the subject of soft foot, or machine frame distortion, in directly coupled rotating machines. The presenter will cover how to measure soft foot with different methods and discuss the pros and cons of each. He will also discuss how to diagnose and correct soft foot conditions, and will then take your questions concerning these topics.


Watch this tutorial to learn:

  • What is soft foot? 
  • What types of soft foot are there and why is this important? 
  • How do I measure soft foot correctly? 
  • How do I diagnose the soft foot condition I measured? 
  • How do I fix a soft foot?

Unique, New Laser Alignment Kit For Industry

Pinpoint Laser SystemsÒ is introducing the new Pinpoint Proline Alignment Kit - a visual laser system for checking and measuring straightness, flatness, squareness, parallelism, leveling and many other tasks.  This kit combines the features of a transit, an infinitely long straightedge and laser alignment system all in one compact, portable, versatile product.  Precision laser alignment for production, maintenance, and plant engineering projects, both large and small, has never been so easy.

Asset Condition Management

The Impact of Washers on Shaft Alignment

Often, maintenance departments invest in good quality Bolts and Nuts (Grade 8), but neglect to do the same with flat washers. The importance of a good washer cannot be overstated. If you use

Ludeca Announces New Alignment | Vibration | Balancing Blog

LUDECA, INC., a leading provider of laser alignment and condition monitoring solutions, has launched a blog for maintenance and reliability professionals dedicated to helping companies learn and understand predictive and preventive maintenance technologies such as Laser Alignment, Vibration Analysis and Balancing. The blog’s main purpose will be to guide companies on how to effectively integrate predictive maintenance into their maintenance and asset management strategies.

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Unique, New Laser Alignment Kit For Industry

Pinpoint Laser SystemsÒ is introducing the new Pinpoint Proline Alignment Kit - a visual laser system for checking and measuring straightness, flatness, squareness, parallelism, leveling and many other tasks.  This kit combines the features of a transit, an infinitely long straightedge and laser alignment system all in one compact, portable, versatile product.  Precision laser alignment for production, maintenance, and plant engineering projects, both large and small, has never been so easy.

Alignment Supplies, Inc. Announces New Easy-Laser Wireless Shaft Alignment System

Greg Knitz, President of Alignment Supplies, Inc., announced today the launch of the newest Easy-Laser product - the E710.  The E710 continues on the development path of the Easy-Laser E-Series products, which all offer next-generation features like wireless Bluetooth operation, crisp, color graphics, and Endurio Power Management for infinite operating time.  “This is a breakthrough step for Easy-Laser and ASI,” said Mr. Knitz, noting that “our biggest innovation with the E710 is making a next-generation system that is truly affordable.”  The E710 is aggressively priced to beat all competitors, and showcases several technical innovations as well.

Asset Condition Management

Balancing Efforts Sometimes Fail Because….

The main reason balancing efforts sometimes fail is because the problem is simply not due to unbalance. Balancing fixes only one problem: unbalance. Vibration from misalignment, eccentricity and other problems may be reduced in just one direction, but not by balancing.

Simply stated -- To succeed at balancing, fix

...

Asset Condition Management

Laser Alignment and Repeatability

All laser shaft alignment systems should be able to take two sets of readings on well-built machines and find agreement at the coupling within 0.5 mils offset and 0.1 mils/inch angularity. It is ...

Asset Condition Management

Balancing by the Timed Oscillation Method

  • Used successfully for short rotors such as:
    -overhung fans up to 2m diameter,
    -pump impellers on mandrels (using a pot magnet as the swing weight).
    • Also on smaller fans with two bearings that are nearer to "long" rotors.
    • How used for a 10-stage pump of the ring-section design (where each impeller is assembled in turn with its matching stationary section):
      -Parallel ways were clamped to the bed of a milling machine.
      -Balance correction was made on the adjacent machine using an end milling cutter.
      -A table was calculated and drawn up giving the depth of cut required in each case.
      -Position was marked clearly on the impeller: machinist cut the required mass from the back shroud.
    • Rotor must be in rolling element bearings, or set up
    • ...

    New Balmac Model 4216 Vibration Analyzer with LED Strobe Light

    Balmac Inc. introduces the affordable Model 4216 Vibration Analyzer with an LED Strobe Light for vibration analysis and dynamic balancing applications.

    Asset Condition Management

    Alignment Tip: Never Assume

    In alignment when things just will not work , it's usually because you've assumed something was - when it wasn't.

    Example: Two guys attempted to align a motor to a pump for about two days and just could not get anything to work right. Even though they were both experienced millwrights, they kept assuming they were making some simple error. It was a new pump in a new construction project. What should have been a pump in pristine condition turned out to be a pump with no bearings. (No bearings???) The pump did not require mechanical seals. The two sets of packing provided sufficient "bearings" to allow the pump to be turned by hand; but there was a slight axial drift where there shouldn't have been. Once the new bearings (which included axial thrust bearings) were installed, the alignment process went smoothly.

    Tip from A Millwrights Guide to Motor/Pump Alignment 2nd Edition by Tommy B. Harlon (Industrial Press)

    The Impact on Bearing Life of Overtensioned Belts

    by Jeremy Davis and Hunter Golden

    One of the leading causes of premature bearing failure can be attributed to overload and overstress conditions.  A common catalyst for this type of condition is improper belt tensioning.  Increasing the radial load on a bearing will drastically reduce the expected bearing life span and can be graphically illustrated as y=1/x (0<x<infinity).  In order to achieve optimal design expectations, procedure based, precision maintenance practices must be utilized.

    Asset Condition Management

    Alignment Supplies, Inc. Announces D450 Giveaway Contest

    Alignment Supplies, Inc. today announced an unprecedented giveaway to begin the New Year.  Beginning January 20, 2010, Alignment Supplies, Inc. will open the D450 Laser Shaft Alignment Giveaway enter-to-win contest.  ASI will award a free Easy-Laser D450 Shaft Alignment System (a $6000 value) to not just one, but two lucky winners over the course of 2010, with the first drawing in June, and the second drawing in December.

    Pinpoint Laser Systems is introducing the “Transparent” Receiver to the Microgage 2D Family

    The method of operation is simple - a narrow laser beam provides a measuring reference line and these receivers determine the position of a machine or sub-assembly relative to this laser reference beam.  These new receivers will operate over distances of 100 feet or more and deliver a measuring precision of 0.0005 inch; ideal for demanding industrial alignment applications.

    Redefining Shaft / Coupling Alignment

    SHAFTALIGN is a high precision easy-to-use shaft alignment tool incorporating human error proof functions.

    With its TFT backlit color display it combines simplicity of operation with precise measurement and state-of-the-art technology.

    Soft Foot – What it is and how to correct it
    Asset Condition Management

    Soft Foot – What it is and how to correct it

    A 9 minute tutorial by Paul Berberian, Alignment Supplies

    Soft foot correction is an essential step in the horizontal shaft alignment process. Just because you can't see it, doesn't mean it isn't there. This short tutorial will introduce some techniques for detecting soft foot and provide solutions for correcting it.

     

    LUDECA Holds Annual Sales Meeting

    Doral, Florida - At LUDECA’s annual sales meeting, management, sales representatives and company employees shared the company’s strategic plans for 2010 and prepared for the market launch of the latest additions to LUDECA’s product line up which include the new SHAFTALIGN shaft alignment system and the new HYDRALIGN continuous foundation monitoring systems by PRUEFTECHNIK.

    Asset Condition Management

    Gross Horizontal Alignment Error and Soft Foot

    When you discover a gross horizontal misalignment with your laser alignment system, make the horizontal adjustment and re-check for softfoot. The motor is now in its operating position and

    Pinpoint Laser Systems new right 90-Line Square Plane

    October 2009, Peabody, Massachusetts: Pinpoint Laser Systems is introducing a new right 90-Line Square Plane. This newest Pinpoint product is ideal for squaring machinery and equipment, setting up presses, checking machine tools, aligning guide rails, establishing parallelism between web rollers, idlers and take up reels and a wide variety of other measuring and alignment tasks. Coupled with the Laser Microgage system, the 90-Line Square Plane allows quick and precise equipment measurement and alignment for optimal production efficiency.

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