The 2016 EASA (Electrical Apparatus Service Association) Convention in Toronto on June 12-14 was a great opportunity to show off our new Easy-Laser E720 shaft alignment tool to the people attending the show.
The Metro Toronto Convention Centre was full of attendees from around North America.
At the Hannover Messe, Easy-Laser showcased (see image above) a new all-in-one solution for the machinery installation process, the Easy-Laser® E720.
There are other issues we should be aware of when talking about a machine’s thermal growth in our rotating machinery and how it affects the machine’s alignment at the coupling. One major factor affecting machinery alignment is Dynamic pipe strain caused by thermal growth. However, there are two types of pipe strain and the other type is also important to know about. Static pipe strain exists when the machines are not even operating. Static pipe strain is a major cause of machine failures and is the result of incorrect fabrication and/or installation, inadequate or missing support, or machine movement after piping is connected. Its effects are relatively simple to measure however, it’s often ignored because repairs or rework are perceived to be costly, but that’s not always the case.
Easy-Laser® is one of the world’s largest suppliers of laser based measurement systems to the manufacturers and service companies in the wind power generation industry. There are many applications for the Easy-Laser® systems in this industry.
In the first part of this article (click here for Understanding Thermal Growth in Your Rotating Machinery – Part 1), we defined what thermal growth in machines is. We used an example of a machine growing equal amounts in the vertical direction. The fix was to lift or lower the machine of choice by a total of 5 thou (0.005“) to compensate for the growth offset. To reiterate this example a little further see below the temperature readings we took on a motor running at approx. 1800 rpm. The first reading (PHOTO – below) the front foot is 51° C and the next reading (PHOTO – below) the back foot is 38° C.
We’re happy to announce that our new training center is now open!
Owner John Lambert says,
“This is a space where we can focus on giving the correct training to mechanics, millwrights, service technicians, laser alignment end-users, industry maintenance professionals, etc. – anyone who is in the business of machinery installation.
Recently, I was asked to do some consulting/on-the-job training for one of our customers in the Greater Toronto Area. This was a sizable pump supplier & maintenance company that just bought our entry-level Easy-Laser E420 Shaft Alignment tool. They needed to align the two shafts (of the pump & motor) and later commission it into service for their customer. They were packaging the machine units together (bolting the pump and motor to the base frame while aligning the shafts) and it was to be shipped on a skid to their customer. Once the machine units and frame were delivered they were to do a final alignment check after the machine’s base was bolted to the foundation.
Thermal growth is an issue that is very much ignored because many think it too complicated to calculate and compensate for. Some are even unaware that it is an important issue that should be considered. However, many machinery manufacturers (for example, a Heat Pump Manufacturer) have to be aware of and take thermal growth into consideration when manufacturing such machines for home and commercial use. So our aim is to address this issue and hopefully simplify it so that it can be measured and compensated for on a more regular basis. We will do this over a three-part article – Part Two and Three will follow in the New Year. So excuse the pun but we want thermal growth to be the hot issue in 2016!
One of our focuses in 2016 will be our new Easy-Laser E975 Roll Alignment tool. Belterra, one of our customers in Western Canada this year, is using it (in conjunction with the Easy-Laser E970 Parallel tool) and finding success moving, correcting and aligning rolls live time!
Just recently, we performed a successful demonstration of the system at a large metal-forming company. It is very encouraging to see their excitement when they can see that they can move the rolls live time in both vertical and horizontal planes while keeping the alignment process very accurate.
The following is information written by our partner Easy-Laser® AB and can also be viewed on their Blog here. Enjoy!
With over 25 years of experience in developing, manufacturing and marketing laser shaft alignment and measurement tools, we thought we would share some noteworthy facts that you perhaps did not know about alignment.
