The ability to effectively troubleshoot failures has a direct impact on each and every failure that occurs at your plant. The most effective way to build a complete and thorough troubleshooting guide is by completing a Reliability Centered Maintenance analysis on that asset. The effectiveness and accuracy of the troubleshooting guide alone will typically cover the costs of most Reliability Centered Maintenance analyses over a three year period.

Tip provided by Doug Plucknette
Reliability Solutions
Tel: 585-349-7245
http://www.reliabilitysolution.com

More RCM Resources

PI (Polarization Index) Testing

One good test for finding out additional information about motor insulation is the polarization index (PI) test. The (PI) test can be useful if the misconceptions are understood.

Over time (years), tiny dipole molecules within the insulation lose energy and insulation becomes dry and brittle. Doing this 10 minute test by applying dc voltage across the insulation, at megohm meter test levels, will temporarily bring back to life some/most of these particles. Therefore, the 10 minute resistance is larger than the 1 minute resistance and you can get good results.

IEEE recommends testing 100+ hp because you don’t always get consistent results with anything smaller.

Don’t expect to get good results with new insulation because the dipole molecules will polarize right away and your 1 minute and 10 minute resistance reading will be the same, or a ratio of 1.0. If you have wet or corroded insulation you have a leakage path to ground and you also get a ratio of 1.0. So what’s the difference here? Look at your insulation resistance – in the case of new, clean insulation the level will be very high whereas the level will be low in the latter case. In fact, IEEE 43 (revised 2000) allows that if you get at least 5000 Megohms at 1 minute, you don’t need to do the PI test as your insulation is just fine.

Tip provided by Baker Instrument
Tel: (800) 752-8272
http://www.bakerinst.com

Discuss this tip at the new Motor Testing Forum

Test Tightness Integrity of Neutral Pressure Volumes

Ultrasonic tightness testing is done by placing an ultrasound transmitter inside the test volume and then scanning the seal points (doors, windows, vents, etc…) with the ultrasonic receiver. Leaks are identified by an abrupt increase in ultrasound levels as the inspector passes over the seal area.

This method is used where it is unpractical to place the test volume under pressure or vacuum. Some applications include: Building Envelopes; Automobiles; Airplane Fuselage; Buses; Trucks; Hatch Covers of Ocean Freighters; Clean Rooms in Hospitals and Research Laboratories; etc…

In the hands of a properly trained inspector this method can prove fast, efficient, and useful means of ensuring the tightness of virtually any neutral pressure volume.

This tip supplied by SDT North America
http://www.sdtnorthamerica.com
905-377-1313

Read Ultrasound PdM For The Masses in the March Uptime Digital Edition (Flash)

This comprehensive self guided course emphasizes proven techniques for building high performance maintenance programs. The course is based on the Society for Maintenance & Reliability Professionals (SMRP) 5 Pillars of required knowledge for maintenance & reliability professionals, and is backed by extensive benchmarking and real-world application. SMRP does not endorse any commercial activities including this training course. Completing this course does not ensure that you will pass the CMRP exam.

Students will gain valuable know-how for constructing and working in an exceptional maintenance organization.

The “Five Pillars” model is discussed in detail, with useful examples included in each subject area:
• Business & Management
• Manufacturing Process Reliability
• Equipment Reliability
• People Skills
• Work Management

The Maintenance & Reliability Professional Review Course will provide the critical tools needed to transform your maintenance organization into a cost cutting, failure eliminating partner in any operation.

Learn more about 5 Pillars

Five conditions that induce time pressure are:

1) time constraints

2) performing multiple tasks

3) peer pressure to work fast

4) avoiding an uncomfortable situation

5) obtaining and achieving something

If you are aware of the condition you can take measures to minimize the pressure whether real or perceived.

The Elusiveness of “Human Error

The No. 1 Key To Success in Predictive Maintenance

Why don’t a lot more reliability programs deliver
successful results? It’s certainly not because of a lack
of predictive maintenance technologies. In fact, the
technologies are often considered to be the easy part.

What most people don’t realize is that success in
reliability boils down to a culture change. So it’s really
the people game that’s the hard part.

A lot of corporate reliability leaders say that if they
could do it all over again, they would spend more time
choosing the right people for the key leadership positions.
Because with the right leadership in the right areas
pushing the right things, you can have success. Without
leadership nothing happens.

You see, it’s a manager’s job to make sure existing
policies are being carried out. It’s a leader’s job to
take an organization in a new direction.

That’s why it’s so critical to select the right leaders:
the ones who share the vision, want to educate themselves
and have the tenacity and leadership skills to bring the
rest of the group along with them.

How People React to Change

Whenever people are faced with a change initiative, they
start asking questions like:

“Why are we doing this?”
“What’s wrong with the way we’ve been doing it?”
“What’s in it for me?”

As a result, most people will respond in one of three ways:

1. Some people will “get it” and actively support the
change initiative.
2. Some will be against it and actively oppose it.
3. Most people will sit on the fence with a “wait-and-see”
attitude.

The key is to encourage and reward the ones who “get it”,
neutralize the influence of the opposition, and motivate
and persuade the fence-sitters to join your side.

This last point is extremely important because the
fence-sitters are usually the largest of the three groups,
so you must have them on your side to be successful.

4 Keys to Successful Leadership

Here are 4 tips for keeping people motivated and moving in the right direction.

1. Articulate the vision in plain English.

Make sure the benefits of condition-based maintenance are something that everybody knows, understands and believes. It’s a huge challenge to keep everyone focused on projects which last 2 to 3 years and avoid the program-of-the-month mentality.

Successful programs begin with a set of shared beliefs,
which are common understanding and appreciation gained
through education.

In order to change the way people act, you must first
change the way they think.

2. Get senior leaders on board.

It is no accident that the most successful corporate
reliability initiatives have executive or “C” level
sponsorship. That sends a clear signal that reliability is
not optional --- that it is much more than just a
“maintenance thing”.

How can you get leadership support? Simple. Show them the money!

Senior managers speak the universal language of money. So show them the financial benefits of doing more planned, proactive maintenance and less reactive, breakdown maintenance. Emphasize the financial gains you plan to achieve in capacity, labor and materials, stores, quality and safety.

You need to have a clear and compelling business case with a return on investment presented in language that senior leaders understand. What is the specific financial
language and methodology your company uses to define
financial success? Return on Investment (ROI), Rate of
Return (ROR), Net Present Value (NPV), Economic Value Added (EVA), Return of Net Assets (RONA), Return of Gross
Investment (ROGI), Internal Rate of Return (IRR) or some
other measure of financial performance?

When someone goes for a capital appropriation, ask yourself what language they should use—and speak that language.

3. Get an honest assessment of your current situation.

Most organizations can benefit from an independent
evaluation of their reliability systems, structure and
processes. The truth is, it’s difficult to assess your own
performance, because you don’t know what you don’t know.

Start with a baseline relative to best practices in your
industry. Then highlight opportunities for improvement,
prioritize them and show progress against the baseline to
your management.

4. Use measurements to drive performance.

What gets measured gets improved, so measurements are a great way to drive positive behavior changes.

One key metric to track is the amount of your total
maintenance work that’s driven by PdM. Overall, best
practice maintenance and reliability programs generate an
average of 50% of their work from PdM inspections and the
resulting opportunities to effectively plan, schedule and
eliminate defects and do root cause analysis to ensure the
defect does not return.

So if PdM isn’t generating at least half your work, you’ve
got room for improvement.

Surprisingly enough, most companies don’t know how much PdM work they do. Why? Because they mix PM and PdM together, so they can’t break out a true PdM number.

However, we’ve found that most plants in North America
generate less than 10% of their maintenance workflow from
PdM.

Conclusion

To borrow a phrase from author and scientist Margaret Mead, “Never doubt that a small group of thoughtful people can change the world. Indeed, it’s the only thing that ever has.”

Mega-Tip provided by John Schultz
Allied Reliability, Inc.
http://www.alliedreliability.com

Discuss this tip at MaintenanceForums.com

Assets are critical to many organizations and ARC’s research indicates that concern with Enterprise Asset Management is increasing as companies struggle to reduce operating costs and comply with expanding regulations. At the same time, the challenges surrounding asset lifecycle management continue to grow, requiring development of new practices and technology. This survey is an assessment of what you consider to be the most important issues that providers of software and technology solutions should be addressing in this area.

Who Should Take the Survey?

Individuals with responsibility for asset management issues or knowledge of asset management issues within their companies should take this Survey.

Benefits of Taking the Survey

Recent ARC research has identified a number of important new asset management issues that provide opportunity for product differentiation, offer attractive value propositions, and have strong potential for driving future EAM market growth. This survey will help qualify the real value and importance of each of these identified asset management issues.

In return for taking the survey you will receive the results for free when they are completed.

Begin the survey now

How to get the most out of a thermal camera product demonstration.

The best way to start is to write down a list of requirements and create a matrix that captures your requirements in order of priority. Without prior experience you may not be aware of important user issues like NFPA 70E (arch flash safety) compliance and how to evaluate cameras and how they satisfy these requirements. Electrophysics have developed an evaluation matrix that you can download, customize and use a guide.

It is very important that you evaluate cameras as a system. Very few users simply use the camera to find thermal problems and then call a technician to come over immediately and fix the problem. Most users develop a program that includes understanding what they are inspecting and what is the necessary equipment will be necessary. Will you have the appropriate lenses, what level of temperature analysis is required, what information will be captured in post inspection reports and who will be trained to operate the system?

Do not assume that all thermographic systems do the job of infrared inspections just because they feature on-board image recording and include report generation software. The free camera evaluation matrix should help you better understand the many aspects of thermography systems.

Once you complete your evaluation of competitive units the evaluation matrix will assist you in quantifying the results of you specific requirements and answer typical questions like:

1. What level of resolution do I need?
2. How easy are the cameras to use?
3. How much image memory do I need?
4. How do I record, recall and transfer images to my PC?
5. Which camera meets my requirements for object size and inspection distance?
6. How does each camera approach NFPA 70E compliance?
7. How long is the camera’s battery life and how much are replacement batteries
8. How do the various cameras generate reports and how long does it take?
9. What are the licensing requirements for vendor’s software products?
10. Is there an upgrade path?
11. What is the warranty and where is service performed?
12. Which camera meets my plant environmental concerns?
13. Who will do the training?

Make sure you exercise the vendor’s thermography cameras as you intend to use them. Consider creating a checklist and ask each sales representative to complete each task. It is important to consider the ongoing costs of a thermography program in addition to the acquisition costs for the camera.

Consider the case in which camera A costs $10,000 and camera B costs $20,000. Assuming a 5-year depreciation schedule, the cameras expense will be $166/month and $333/month respectively. Now assume that the labor costs to operate the camera are $70,000/year or $32/hour. If camera B have features and functions that save only 2 hours per week over the use of camera A, Camera A will cost more to operate than a camera costing twice as much.

Find out which infrared cameras are better. The answer may surprise you! 

Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM) Tip
The ability to effectively troubleshoot failures has a direct impact on each and every failure that occurs at your plant. The most effective way to build a complete and thorough troubleshooting guide is by completing a Reliability Centered Maintenance analysis on that asset. The effectiveness and accuracy of the troubleshooting guide alone will typically cover the costs of most Reliability Centered Maintenance analyses over a three year period.

Tip provided by Doug Plucknette
Reliability Solutions
Tel: 585-349-7245
http://www.reliabilitysolution.com

More RCM Resources

Make the most of your next maintenance and reliability conference or trade show by mapping activities and setting goals in advance.

One way to do this is to sit with the conference brochure or print out the session details from the event web page and “MAP” the sessions you wish to attend.

Many conferences run multiple tracks and it is advisable to get into the room early to reserve your seat. You may even get a special bonus and met the presenter as he/she prepares. You can ask a question and have your own private session before the learning session even starts.

Reliabilityweb.com offers a free Maintenance Conference Pre-Flight Checklist that can make your experience more productive at any maintenance and reliability conference.

Click here for the MaintenanceConference Preflight Checklist (45K PDF

Motor Circuit Analysis (MCA) impedance readings can be used to evaluate the insulation condition of cables in the electric motor system. When testing an electric motor from the Motor Control Center (MCC) and a fault is detected with MCA tests including resistance, impedance, inductance, phase angle, current/frequency response and insulation to ground, it is important to isolate the motor from the circuit to confirm motor condition. If the test results are the same, then the fault is in the motor; If it improves, but the motor still shows faults, then the fault is in the motor and possibly the cable; If the fault goes away, or the readings change significantly, the fault may be in the cable.

To confirm the cable condition, disconnect the cable at the MCC and at the motor and separate the ends from each other. First, test each cable leg to ground. While IEEE Std 43 provides an insulation to ground limit of 5 MegOhms for systems under 600 Volts and 100 MegOhms for systems over 600 Volts, it is recommended that the cable should have an insulation value greater than 100 MegOhms. Testing impedance between cable phases will identify a breakdown of insulation, damage or contamination, between conductors. By experience, a good phase to phase test of cables of over 100 feet should be greater than 800 Ohms of impedance.

Tip provided by ALL-TEST Pro, LLC
http://www.alltestpro.com
Tel: 860.395.2988

More Motor Testing Resources