February 02, 2006
Alignment Tip
EAM-2006/RCM-2006 Maintenance-Tips Challenge 3rd Place Winner
After having gone through the proper prealignment checks, recurring alignment problems can usually be traced to the concrete plinth or base. This is one of the most ignored sources of shaft alignment problems and, is very seldom considered when troubleshooting. If a new concrete base is to be poured, the wooden shutters must be strongly made and a jig made to locate the hold-down J-bolts accurately to avoid bolt binding later on when the baseplate is set. During the pouring of the concrete, the mixture must be vibrated to avoid water and air pockets forming. Because of the exothermic reaction during the curing period, the heat generated must be dissipated by placing wet gunny sacks over the concrete surface until the concrete cures.
The same precautions must be observed when pouring grout into the base plate. The generated heat can, and will distort the level of the base plate and it will become a constant problem. When the concrete foundation has set, check its natural frequency with a vibration analyzer and log the frequency reading. This can be a hidden source of resonance if the rotating component is operating at the same frequency. This is a more common problem than is generally realized.
Tip provided by John C. Robertson
AMSCO Inc.
Simpsonville South Carolina
February 02, 2006
CMMS Tip
EAM-2006/RCM-2006 Maintenance-Tips Challenge 3rd Place Winner
GETTING TIME AND HISTORY INTO THE CMMS
If you are struggling with getting technicians to enter their time and history into the CMMS create a weekly metric.
The CMMS will allow you to extract time data for the week. Show by Crew the amount of time entered for the work week compared to how much time should have been entered and supplement the metric with a detailed report of who entered time and how much time he/she entered.
Next, generate a weekly report identifying work orders that were closed without history comments. The CMMS reports will look for closed work orders where the history field is null. A detailed report showing the work order number is needed so they can go back and enter history.
Distribute the reports and metrics to the right people, at a minimum – the CMMS champion (this is the person(s) who work hardest to get the CMMS in place and probably has a great deal of influence and concern of the program’s success), the technicians’ supervisor, perhaps general manager or person who oversees supervision and most importantly to all the technicians. Distribution via email is fine but posting on a metrics board will work also. The supervisor must be given a hard copy. Be sure to include the distribution list with all reports/metrics.
Tip provided by David A Martin CMRP, Maintenance Coordinator, LOOP LLC
Cut Off, LA
