Machine Alignment: Alignment Pitfalls – How to Identify and Eliminate Them

I was asked recently to investigate and solve an overheating problem in a mobile hydraulics application. The hydraulic system that was overheating comprised a diesel-hydraulic power unit, which was being used to power a pipe-cutting saw. The saw was designed for sub-sea use and was connected to the hydraulic power unit on the surface via a 710-foot umbilical. The operating requirements for the saw were 24 gpm at 3000 psi. Heating of hydraulic fluid in operation is caused by inefficiencies. Inefficiencies result in losses of input power, which are converted to heat. A hydraulic system's heat load is equal to the total power lost (PL) through inefficiencies.

Don’t run centrifugal pumps on the end of the curve. Pumps are designed and selected to operate near their highest efficiency point. If they operate at the right-hand end of the centrifugal pump curve the likelihood of cavitation increases.

Use the proper tools and a good pair of eyes to eliminate almost all your belt drive problems. Did you know that premature belt drive failures can be attributed to just a half-dozen commonly encountered problems? Or that all it takes to solve these problems is just a few tools and using your head? Other than normal wear and use, the most common sources of belt drive failures are 1) improper tension, 2) misalignment, 3) handling, 4) hardware, 5) environmental factors, and 6) design factors.

One of the most costly mistakes that almost every company makes with its pumps is to actually buy the wrong pump. Sadly, this is a situation that occurs with much more frequency than anyone would care to admit. The ramifications are truly enormous—and they are magnified even more in tough economic environments. Efficiency drops. Reliability plummets. Maintenance costs rise dramatically. Even in the best of times, you couldn't afford to gamble on the efficiency and reliability of your pumping systems. Don't start now.

How long should a vertical pump's suction bell last? That was a question a plant manager asked me during a recent consulting assignment for a power plant. A pump manufacturer's typical response to such a question is, "it depends." So what does it depend on?

Spindles are one of the most expensive and sophisticated rotating components on the planet. They rotate at super high speeds with fits and tolerances 10 to 20 times what is required on other rotating devices, such as pumps or motors. If there ever were machines that needed to communicate their health and activity it would be spindles.

The valve is one of the most basic and indispensable components of our modern technological society. It is essential to virtually all manufacturing processes and every energy production and supply system. Yet it is one of the oldest products known to man, with a history of thousands of years.