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human capital management

Hydraulic Institute Enters Into Training Partner Agreement With Abb and Baldor Electric Company

The Hydraulic Institute (HI) has entered a Training Partner Agreement with ABB, a leader in power and automation technologies and Baldor ElectricCompany, the leading North American manufacturer of industrial electric motors, drives and mechanical power transmission products. Through this relationship, all three companies will broaden educational opportunities for pump end-users, distributors and consulting firms by developing high quality, co-branded educational and training programs and sponsoring technical webinars and e-learning courses focused on a variety of pump topics as well as host the expanded Pump Systems Optimization courses.

New Hire Announcement

John Bickley has been hired as the Vice President of Sustainable Utility Sales at Hydrotex®, a manufacturer and distributor of high performance lubricant and fuel improver solutions. Bickley has over 35 years of experience in electric utility operations, maintenance and technical support, collaborative R&D, consultative sales, transmission systems reliability and compliance monitoring. He has held various positions at previous employers, including; TXU (Luminant), The Electric Power Research Institute (EPRI), Pavilion Technologies, The North American Electric Reliability Council (NERC) and Shermco Industries.

Leadership for Reliability

Amazing Risk Management

by Sam R. Harkreader

Managing risk is like working a maze, the kind you find in puzzle books.

Each maze has a beginning and an end, and often rules are applied. It would be unwise to begin a maze without first learning the end point and the rules of the game. If the rules allowed you to simply pick up your pencil and jump to the end, the game would be simple, albeit not very fun. If, on the other hand, the rules required you to start at the beginning, not lift your pencil and not backtrack, the game would be more difficult and challenging. Clearly, the strategy for winning differs based on the rules.

Group CBS Announces Hire of Former Yahoo Executive as President of Astro Controls, Inc. at PowerTest

Group CBS, Inc. (GroupCBS.com), with interests in electrical supply, field service, and engineering companies across North America, is pleased to introduce Randall “Randy” Roumillat as the new president of Astro Controls, Inc. (AstroControls.com; Irving, Texas), during the 2014 PowerTest Conference, the premier electrical maintenance and safety event. Astro Controls Inc. is a Group CBS company that specializes in circuit breaker and motor control electrical equipment.

The Hydraulic Institute Announces 2014 - 2015 Board Of Directors And Officers

The Hydraulic Institute (HI), the global authority on pumps and pumping systems, announced the 2014-2015 Board of Directors and Officers during its Annual meeting recently held in Phoenix, Arizona. The Board is primarily responsible for guiding the strategic direction of the Hydraulic Institute and providing organization oversight. Dennis Wierzbicki, President, Grundfos USA, has been elected to serve as Chairman of the Board. George Harris, President & CEO, Hydro, Inc. has been elected to serve as HI President.

James Dawson Appoints First Ever Chinese National General Manager Of Its Operations In Shanghai

James Dawson - the engineer of bespoke advanced silicone and organic rubber products - has appointed Chinese national Pan Feng as General Manager for Dawson Polymer Products in Shanghai, and Indian national Amit Kaul as Sales Manager-India in New Delhi.

RSES Announces Interim Executive Vice President

RSES has appointed Rich Hoke, CMS, to hold the title of interim RSES executive vice president until further notice. Hoke will work directly with RSES Headquarters staff as well as the board of directors to ensure all areas of the organization are upheld through the transition.

Retired Member of the Department of Navy Senior Executive Service Joins Life Cycle Engineering

Life Cycle Engineering, Inc. (LCE) today announced that Edward S. Godfrey has joined Life Cycle Engineering as vice president of business development. Godfrey will be responsible for partnering with Department of Defense (DoD) customers and other government organizations to establish engineering and technical solutions that support the warfighter and DoD mission.

Probelle Products: Enhancing The Vitality & Health Of Your Nails Touch N’ Grow Formula Rebuilds

Introducing Probelle, an all-natural product that focuses on nail hardening and strengthening that will forever change the look and inner health of your nails. With the aim of: cure, grow, and strengthen – users will rebuild and maintain healthy nails while preventing cracked, dry and split nails. Probelle offers a long-term solution to those struggling with nail health or those wanting to maintain the health of their nails altogether. With a line of “Touch N” Grow” products, Probelle enhances the overall vitality of nails for every personality.

True Maintenance Leaders Require Courage for Success

By Ralph W. “Pete” Peters

Believe: You’d better believe that maintenance people must have courage for success in doing what they do each day in all types of adverse, hazardous conditions. Follow a craftsperson for a day in a large refinery, a cement plant, or what about the repair job on the International Space Station. The most precise item they work with is bearings; bearings of all types and sizes. An item in which one speck of dirt or corrosion started by handling it with sweaty hands can make bearings fail prematurely. However, this is not about precision balls in bearing traces. This is about the courage and commitment it takes to be a craftsperson and, most importantly, a true maintenance leader.

Certification & Job Performance

by Heinz P. Bloch

Soon after the BP offshore oil spill in April 2010, quite a bit of soul-searching was done by industry. As you may recall, 11 people lost their lives in the fiery explosion that preceded the release of millions of gallons of crude oil into the U.S. portion of the Gulf coastline. Some sources called it the greatest spill ever and, if nothing else, we can agree that it changed many lives.

Leadership for Reliability

Delayed Retribution - The Demise of Skilled Trades Apprenticeship Programs

by Doug Plucknette

We are performing a reliability centered maintenance (RCM) analysis on a critical piece of rotating equipment and discussing the mitigating tasks for misalignment. I ask the team if the maintenance group has a laser alignment tool to facilitate precision alignment each time the unit is uncoupled and recoupled.

Wolf Pack Maintenance - Taking the Team Approach to Meet Your Goals

by Michael Rezendes

Many companies today are jumping on board for the latest and greatest “flavor of the month” when it comes to getting the job done as a team. There is no shortage of experts more than willing to step in and guide your company on how to make sure your team is the best, with success all but assured if you follow their process. I’m certainly no expert in the field, but I believe a common sense approach that leverages real lessons learned from the past — a tribal knowledge, if you will — enforced by a wolf pack hierarchy is the way to success. A wolf pack approach understands the strengths and weaknesses inherent in any teaming situation and leverages that understanding to meet team goals.

Indiana Foundry Hits Record on Days Without Lost Time

Foundries and machine shops are notoriously known for being dangerous places, but one Indiana foundry is changing the tides of the industry. Bremen Castings Inc. (BCI) in Bremen, Indiana has gone almost 500 days without lost time. Lost time injury is defined as an occurrence that resulted in a fatality, permanent disability or lost time from work of one day or shift and possibly more.