Alignment Fundamentals and Field Balancing Seminar

Alignment Fundamentals and Field Balancing Seminar

A Training Seminar for Rotating Equipment Professionals Who Need to Get the Most from Their Machinery.

Seminar Objectives

To provide the practical knowledge and skills to align rotating machines and to balance single and multiplane rotors in the field using vibration information and fundamentals of rotating machinery diagnostics. Students may register for both the alignment and field balancing sessions together or for either session separately (see Seminar Tuition).

Seminar Description

Alignment Fundamentals: Students will learn to use graphical and analytical techniques to align rotating machines. Lectures and workshops will include many practical alignment considerations including dealing with thermal growth. Hands-on labs will give students opportunity to practice their skills using lab stations and advanced diagnostic instruments. Case histories will provide examples of application of techniques in the field. See Outline for more.

Field Balancing: Students will learn to use graphical and analytical techniques to balance single and multi- (dual) plane rotors. Lectures and workshops will include many practical field balancing conditions such thermal vectors, critical balancing decisions, balancing within alarm limits, noise compensation and industry balancing standards. Multiple hands-on labs will give students opportunity to practice their skills using lab stations equipped with rotor kits and advanced diagnostic instruments. See Outline for more.

Who Should Attend

This seminar is designed for:

  1. Rotating equipment engineers, vibration analysts and technicians, supervisors and managers responsible for maintenance and reliability of rotating equipment.

Prerequisites:

  1. Machinery diagnostic concepts which are critical to successful rotor balancing will be reviewed (phase, fundamental rotor response). However, it is recommended that participants have attended the Machinery Diagnostic Seminar or have 2-3 years of vibration experience.
  2. *Professional Development Hours: This seminar provides a total of 36 hours of professional development hours (PDHs) toward professional engineering licensure (1 PDH per class hour).

Seminar Materials

Student Manual: Students will receive a manual containing the slide presentations and workshop exercises.

Outline

All RoMaDyn training seminars are designed to give students the maximum opportunity to improve their knowledge and performance. This seminar includes hands-on workshop sessions in which students practice using actual field data and on laboratory stations equipped with rotor kits and the latest diagnostic instruments.

Alignment Fundamentals Day 1 & 2
  1. Detecting Misalignment & Preloads
  2. Couplings
  3. Preparation for Alignment Checks
  4. Compensating For Thermal Growth
  5. Graphical Technique Alignment Workshop
  6. Laser Machinery Alignment Workshop
  7. Thermal Growth Plotting Workshop
  8. Cold Stand Thermal Growth Check Case History
Field Balancing, Day 1

Vibration Measurements

  1. Displacement vs. Velocity vs. Acceleration – when to use each
  2. Transducer response curves. Balancing low or high on curves
  3. Signal integration methods/problems
  4. Absolute displacement measurements – importance of using, how to obtain
  5. Signal noise – problems, sources & elimination

Introduction to Unbalance

  1. Static unbalance – rigid rotors
  2. Quasi-static unbalance – rigid rotors
  3. Couple unbalance – rigid rotors
  4. Dynamic unbalance – rigid rotors & flexible rotors
  5. Root causes of unbalance

Balancing Best Practices

  1. Evaluating Machine Condition
  2. Decision-making
  3. Understanding Engineering Assumptions
  4. Collecting Transient Data
  5. Recognizing Resonance
  6. Considering Mode Shapes
  7. Compensating for Runout
  8. Mass Amount Calculations
  9. Machine Balancing Techniques
  10. Documenting Results

Phase

  1. Phase Workshop

Fundamental Synchronous Rotor Response

Understanding the Fundamental Cause of 1X Rotor Vibration

Influence and Vector Math Review

  1. Review of vector math and software available

Single Plane Balancing

  1. Graphical single plane balancing
  2. Single plane vector & influence calculations
  3. Single plane graphical workshop

Thermal Vector Balancing Response

  1. Dealing with rotor system thermal vectors in balancing
Field Balancing, Day 2

Single Plane Balancing Continued

  1. Thermal bow balancing graphical workshop
  2. Single plane influence balancing workshop
  3. Over hung balancing workshop

Multiplane Unbalance Response

  1. Modal mass influences

Multiplane Balancing

  1. Graphical static/couple balancing
  2. Vector math static/couple solutions
  3. Two plane influence vector solution balancing
  4. Graphical single speed 2 plane static/couple balancing workshop
Field Balancing, Day 3

Multiplane Balancing Continued

  1. Single speed 2 plane influence balancing workshop
  2. Single speed 3 plane influence balancing workshop. Optional
  3. Multi speed 2 plane balancing workshop
  4. Rotor system non-linearities
  5. Causes of non-linear system response
  6. Forward vibration component measurements as a way to help deal with non-linearities

Practical field balancing considerations

  1. Industry balancing standards
  2. Vibration limits during balancing exercises
  3. Record keeping during balancing exercises
  4. Pre-balancing management meeting – setting expectations

Instructors

  1. E. Peyton Swan, P.E.
  2. Ned Endres
  3. D. Craig Sever, P.E.