Mike Sondalini — Thought Leader

There is a good chance you can make astounding changes and achieve incredible performance improvements from your plant and equipment.

It can be done with the method used by Thomas Edison to solve his problems and make his discoveries. Improvements in the order of 20% maintenance savings with 100% on-time achievement of production plans are possible.

The method is that of continuous improvement. You start by proving it works for yourself first and then, once you are sure it works you introduce it to your people.

Keywords: continuous education

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What you will learn from this article.

• Grease is made from oil into which a thickener is added.
• Additives are added to the grease to provide specific required characteristics.
• Grease has specific advantages over oil lubrication provided the correct grease is selected.

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What you will learn from this article.

• The life of a road depends on the vehicle wheel loading.
• Aggregate size determines the strength of the tarmac.
• The sub-base below the tarmac distributes wheel forces.
• Slope the surface to prevent water pooling.

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Roll mills, drum dryers, kilns, ball mills and rotating reactors usually turn on metal tyres and trunnion rollers.

Eventually, the tyres and rollers wear out or fatigue and require repair or replacement.

Usually, the equipment manufacturers keep material specifications as proprietary information and one is forced to buy the parts from them. [Read more…]

What you will learn from this article:

• How shaft packing works.
• What to consider when selecting and using shaft packing.
• Good installation practices.
• Proper commissioning of shaft packing.

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Chemical corrosion can destroy the containment materials in contact with a process.

Means exist to mitigate and even prevent chemical corrosion. This article focuses on several such methods.

Acceptable corrosion

At times chemical corrosion is acceptable and one need only allow for it by using thicker materials. An example is the storage of sulphuric acid in mild steel tanks at ambient conditions and concentrations [Read more…]

What you will learn from this article.

• The importance of using datum for aligning kilns.
• How to set-up the necessary datum.
• The effect of trunnion alignment on the behavior of the kiln.
• How axial float is achieved by skewing the trunnions.

• Rotary dryers, kilns, mills, and reactors turn on tyres and trunnions.

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Consider these Experiences when making a Selection

What you will learn from this article:

• How ultrasonic level detectors work.
• Issues to consider when reviewing their suitability for use. Issues to consider when selecting their location.
• The importance of process and chemical compatibility.

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The cost of maintenance destroys your capital investment returns.

When equipment is first selected the buyer has the choice to buy for quality and long trouble-free operating life or to buy based on least cost. The least cost choice will result in high maintenance and operating expense for the life of the equipment.

When net present value cost of maintenance for cheap equipment is calculated in today’s dollars investors will discover that a large part of their capital will never earn them income but will be spent on maintenance and repair.

Keywords: replacement asset value, internal rate of return, opportunity cost  [Read more…]

What readers will learn in this article:

• Bolts and studs behave like springs when loads are applied.
• Gaskets behave like springs when loads are applied
• Introduced to the use of force diagrams to explain and analyze bolt and gasket behavior.
• Bolt torque-up issues and considerations.
• The effects of thread surface finish on friction.
• Proper bolting practices, sequence, and methods.

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What readers will learn in this article:

• Bearings in dusty environments require added protection against dust ingress.
• The use of shaft seals and how they protect bearings.
• Eight dust ingress control methods for bearings.
• Good contamination reduction practices when assembling bearings
  and parts.

Dusty surroundings are one of the most difficult environments for bearings.

In equipment handling powders or in processes generating dust the protection of bearings against contamination by fine particles requires special consideration. [Read more…]

What readers will learn in this article:

• The flow of bulk materials through chutes is affected by internal properties of the bulk product.
• Friction exists between the chute walls and a moving product.
• Momentum and velocity must be maintained when running bulk
  materials through chutes.
• Bulk materials chute design and use considerations.

For the effective flow of a cohesive (sticks to itself) product, a chute must be designed to maintain momentum & velocity. [Read more…]

What readers will learn in this article.

• Centrifugal pumps can be moved to a new service.
• The impeller size, impeller speed, and motor power need to match the new service.
• That Similarity Law formula is used in calculating the new impeller size, speed, and motor power.
• Introduction to centrifugal pump curves and their use.

When there is a need to determine a new service duty for a centrifugal pump, and no performance curves are available, the recommended method is to use the Similarity Laws. These laws are derived by the use of [Read more…]