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Reliability Leader Bruce Hawkins Joins MRG

Newest Addition Boosts Enterprise Reliability and Training Capabilities

SOUTHBURY, CT: Management Resources Group, Inc. (MRG) announced today that Bruce Hawkins has joined the company as a Senior Consultant.  Mr. Hawkins will play a key role as MRG asserts its leadership in Enterprise Reliability and Training practices.

Vesta Partners, LLC Acquires Terry Wireman’s Intellectual Property Rights

Wireman named Vice President and Board Member at Vesta

Stamford, CT – March 31, 2006 – Vesta Partners, LLC a leading provider of Maintenance and Reliability implementation methodologies, announces the acquisition of the intellectual property of renowned maintenance expert, Terry Wireman.

Alcoa has key(hole) to fast, safe infrared inspections of switchgear without "NASA suit" PPE

$50 UL-approved port lets thermographer inspect through closed door with minimal PPE.  Costs one-tenth of an IR window, transmits full IR spectrum.

April 2006, Newburgh, IN – Alcoa does not like surprises, specifically unplanned downtime that interrupts power from its Warrick Power Plant in Newburgh, Indiana. Like other global leaders, Alcoa is building its bottom line with an aggressive reliability program aimed at elimination of unplanned downtime.  But it’s hard to eliminate unplanned downtime without thermographic surveys of switchgear in a generating station where the newest unit dates to 1970. 

Repair or Reliability Focus

When a pump is received at the maintenance department for service, there are two ways of considering the extent of the repairs to be carried out. Using the traditional “Repair” approach, the pump should be brought back to the “as new” condition with original materials, parts and clearances. Such an approach will be perfectly adequate if the cause for repair is the result of normal wear and tear, and everyone is satisfied with the length of time the pump has run since the last repair. 

Survey of Auto Industry Manufacturing Executives Shows Stopped Production Costs $22K/Min

Manufacturers Say They Need Better Machine Maintenance

PEORIA, Ill., March 27, 2006—In a survey of 101 manufacturing executives in the automotive industry, from parts suppliers to engine makers to automakers, a majority say the cost of stopped production is incredibly high—an average $22,000 per minute. A majority also say they would outsource production machine maintenance as a way to make their factories run better. The research was commissioned by Advanced Technology Services, Inc. (ATS) and conducted by Nielsen Research.

While one minute of stopped production, or downtime, costs an average of $22,000, some survey respondents cite the figure to be as high as $50,000 per minute. With such high costs at stake, keeping production machinery operating smoothly is critical to a factory’s bottom line.

Motor Diagnostics and Motor Health Study

The MDMH Study was a joint effort of the www.reliabilityweb.com and www.maintenancebenchmarking.com websites of NetExpressUSA, Inc., SUCCESS by DESIGN Publishing (SBD) and BJM Corp.  SBD performed the literature review and co-developed the questions with NetExpressUSA.  NetExpressUSA provided the means to perform the motor owner survey online.  NetExpressUSA and BJM Corp provided the email lists to prompt motor owners to perform the survey.  SBD compiled the study and performed detailed analysis of the survey with overview from NetExpressUSA and BJM Corp.  The survey respondents made up an exceptional 2% of the emailed requests.  The literature review was a compilation of US Department of Energy, Academic and Utility research projects starting in 1995.

Motor Diagnostics and Motor Health Newsletter

From the President

I have returned from the RCM/EAM-2006 conference in Las Vegas, NV.  It was an excellent conference and show.

On the short trip from the Orleans Hotel, I learned more about the intricacies of the taxi driver industry than I thought existed.  The discussion even expanded to cover the professional taxi driver and the casual driver.  The driver I got in with had over 20 years in the industry, knew almost all of the streets of the major cities he has worked in throughout the USA, understood the rules and regulations for each area and stayed up to date.  We discussed the best vehicles for the different areas, vehicle maintenance, seat condition and its impact, customer service, dealing with awkward situations, etc.  The man was passionate about what he did, and it showed.  In fact, he was planning another move to help out yet another taxi company get established, in a consulting role, but still doing what he enjoyed most – driving.

Marketing Maintenance to Management

“I can’t see the forest through all these damned trees.” – Anonymous

I have noticed a little problem recently.  Actually, I had noticed it through my decades in the R&M industry.  It did not really strike me as ridiculous until now.  However, with a background in engineering, reliability, sales, marketing, being a vendor, professor, researcher and consultant, I have noticed this issue from different angles.  It wasn’t directly obvious until I started my work on the maintenance and management study to be published in April, 2006, in which the problem stood out in sharp relief:

Institute of Electrical Motor Diagnostics Update

The Institute of Electrical Motor Diagnostics, Inc. has been officially incorporated in the State of Connecticut and recognized, by the state, as a not-for-profit.  We are awaiting the final paperwork from the IRS establishing IEMD as a 501(c)(6) not-for-profit, which should be complete prior to April, 2006.

We will be announcing the Founding Members and Companies in our next, and future, newsletters and through other media.  These members and companies provided the additional resources necessary to start and support IEMD.  You can join as a Founding Member or Founding Company or a Member or Company Member by going to http://www.iemd.org.

We have been actively involved in the development of the ISO TC108, SC-5, Working Group 10 on Electrical Signature Analysis standards and supporting IEEE P1415, the upcoming standard on AC Induction Machine troubleshooting and testing.

IEMD Officers:

Vlad Djuric, Dofasco, President

Dave Humphrey, Allison Transmission (GM), Vice President

Dave Hamilton, Allied Reliability, Treasurer

Leo Dreisilker, Dreisilker Electric Motors, Inc., Secretary

Howard W Penrose, Ph.D., CMRP, SUCCESS by DESIGN, Executive Director

Our first annual executive meeting has been scheduled for September 12, 2006, 3:30pm at the PdM-2006 conference in Chattanooga, TN.  Other IEMD meetings will be announced in the near future.

New International Chairman for the Electrical Apparatus Services Association (EASA)

Brian Gibbon has been appointed International Chairman of the Electrical Apparatus Service Association (EASA). He now heads a team responsible for determining strategy for a worldwide organisation whose 2,000-plus members are facing unprecedented change.

“The erosion in the market for economically rewindable motors has meant that most of our member companies have had to diversify”, says Brian Gibbon. “They’re now proactive engineering solutions providers, maximising plant availability for their customers and delivering their engineering skills on site, and heavily involved in predictive and preventive maintenance, pump repair and control systems servicing.