Vibralign Blog

mechanical seals| seal failures| machinery diagnostics

By VibrAlign Author on May 27, 2020

  Although it is not the millwright or mechanics responsibility to specify mechanical seal applications, it is a good idea to have a basic understanding of their purpose. This blog will give the basics of double and tandem mechanical seals. The double mechanical seal uses two mechanical seals (an inboard and outboard seal). They can […]

Pre-Alignment| Precision Shaft Alignment| machinery diagnostics

By Mike Arnold on March 4, 2020

ACOEM-VibrAlign has shared over 100 separate blog posts and over 1 million YouTube views on Pre-Alignment. Thus, we can all agree it is an important topic and the key to a successful precision shaft alignment job. No matter if you are using a Straight Edge, Dial Indicators, or the latest and greatest Laser Shaft Alignment […]

OneProd Nest| machinery diagnostics| condition monitoring| machinery health

By Chris Troutt on January 28, 2020

Once you have moved your data back into the Nest, after a Route has been collected, you may want to provide a report or reports to different parts of an organization. The Nest has several ways of generating a couple different types of custom reports. For your discussion we will focus on a global report […]

machinery diagnostics| pump vibration| Smart Machine Checker| bearing defects| bearing installation

By Tom Shelton on December 16, 2019

At a recent Fixturlaser Smart Machine Checker (SMC) training class, one particular pump came up during the discussions. This pump has been “a problem child” for years. It had been rebuilt recently by one of the class attendees. The mechanic had rebuilt the pump “just as it had come apart” and was certain the impeller […]

machinery diagnostics| Precision Shaft Alignment| Vibration Analysis| condition monitoring

By VibrAlign Author on July 16, 2019

I read that Albert Einstein once said, “I don’t need to know everything, I just need to know where to find it when I need it.” If one did some research, that may not necessarily be true. However, if a question comes up, it’s always helpful to have resources to refer to. When it comes […]

looseness| Vibration Analysis| machinery diagnostics| condition monitoring| machinery vibration| OneProd Falcon

By Chris Troutt on November 2, 2018

A common vibration signature on equipment is looseness. There are two types of looseness: structural/fastener, fit between rotating components. For this discussion, we will focus on structural and fastener looseness.  Typically, it is highly directional, occurs at 1xRPM, and will look similar to this spectrum. In this case, the vibration was confined to the vertical […]

machinery vibration| condition monitoring| ONEPROD| Vibration Analysis| machinery diagnostics| vibration sensor| SMC| OneProd Eagle| OneProd MVX

By Chris Troutt on June 20, 2018

At the wrap up of a recent Hawk/SMC class the discussion was around what rotating assets to collect vibration data on going forward. The conversation quickly turned to a few keys assets that had the ability to impact large percentages of the downstream processes. The area technicians said that even though the machine was very […]

condition monitoring| machinery vibration| Fixturlaser Smart Machine Checker| SMC| machinery diagnostics

By James Pekarek on March 13, 2018

When using the Fixturlaser Smart Machine Checker (SMC) or any of VibrAlign’s Condition Monitoring Tools, there are typically only two variables you need to know for an accurate diagnosis of your machine.  You need the horsepower of the motor and the correct rotating speed.  This information will usually be stamped on the motor data plate.  […]

Vibration Analysis| soft foot| Obvious soft foot| Precision Shaft Alignment| angled soft foot| machinery diagnostics

By Stan Riddle on February 26, 2018

Most industrial maintenance mechanics who are involved with precision shaft alignment are familiar with the phenomenon of soft foot.  From an alignment standpoint, soft foot causes: Changes in alignment values, between when the hold down bolts are loose, and when they are tight. Non-repeatability in alignment measurements, especially if the bolts are not tightened in […]

"shaft alignment"| "coupling tolerance"| "foot tolerance"| Alignment tolerances| Precision Shaft Alignment| machinery diagnostics

By Mac MacCormack on February 8, 2018

While on the road conducting precision shaft alignment training I run across a wide range of skill level. It is not uncommon to have a lot of questions. I like it when there are questions, that is usually an indication that the trainees are engaged. It is also not uncommon that a question starts with, […]

axis of rotation| Precision Shaft Alignment| machinery diagnostics| machinery vibration| Fixturlaser Smart Machine Checker| rotational axis| accelerometer

By Tom Shelton on February 1, 2018

Everything must have perspective, a point of view, to be communicated. To communicate the three spatial dimensions, we use the X,Y, Z coordinates. These denote height, width and depth. In referring to machinery we use the same X,Y, Z denotations, but we give them different values or meanings. To make it even more interesting, there […]

maintenance reliability| machinery diagnostics| Smart Machine Checker| Fixturlaser Smart Machine Checker| machinery vibration

By Doug Burdsall on January 16, 2018

With the introduction of the OneProd Hawk in April of 2015, VibrAlign shed light on the idea that the future of Machinery Diagnostics was about to get easier; That you can achieve a second level diagnosis on any machine without help from a professional vibration analyst. It just took a tool that empowers mechanics to […]

ISO 10816-3| ONEPROD| ONEPROD Hawk| machinery diagnostics| OneProd Falcon| ISO Vibration Severity Chart

By Tim Sorensen on November 1, 2017

For years, vibration analysts have depended upon the ISO Vibration Severity Chart for the determination of machinery health.  Typically, this chart provides a level of certainty that would allow the analyst to look at the vibration levels, and if acceptable, move onto the next machine for analysis.   Some defects are determined in the waveform […]

aligning machinery| "precision alignment"| Precision Shaft Alignment| ONEPROD Hawk| machinery diagnostics| condition monitoring| machinery vibration| Vibration Analysis

By Stan Riddle on October 26, 2017

One of the hallmarks of a good maintenance technician is the ability to troubleshoot – not just using vibration tools, or volt meters, or laptops with Ethernet plug-ins, but the ability to troubleshoot machinery in their minds.  In other words, the ability to visualize what the problem might be. “Fix the easy things first” is […]

Precision Shaft Alignment| Vibration Analysis| machinery diagnostics| Balancing| maintenance reliability

By Michael Keohane on August 16, 2017

I read an interesting article in the June/July 17 issue of Uptime Magazine. It was titled “The Reliability Impact Within the P-F Curve” by Randy Riddell. Randy is the Reliability Manager for the SCA Barton Mill in Alabama. I encourage you to read the full article (https://reliabilityweb.com/articles/entry/the-reliability-impact-within-the-p-f-curve). The article includes the following graphic that I […]