Here You Go.

Have you been thinking about adding a variable frequency drive (VFD) to an electric motor in your plant? VFD's are great controls that allows you to change the speed of the machine at the push of a button or you can program it into your automation platform. 

Before adding a Variable Frequency Drive to an electric motor in your plant, take a look at these 6 factors and see if its the right for for you:

You have a motor that failed and now you need a repair. How much is it going to cost to have it fixed? It seems like a pretty easy question, but the answer is a little more complex. 

Before any electric motor repair shop can give you an accurate estimate, they should have some questions of their own that have to be answered first. The only person who can answer these questions is you, so it is good to be prepared going into the call.

Here is what to expect when you make the "how much will this cost" call:

Industrial vibration analysis is a measurement tool used to identify, predict, and prevent failures in rotating machinery. When analyzing machine frequency vibrations, (frequency analysis) it is normal to find a number of important frequencies that are directly related to the movement of various parts of the machine. Vibration may influence the durability and reliability of machinery systems or structures and cause problems such as damage, abnormal stopping, and catastrophic failures. Vibration measurement is an important countermeasure to prevent these problems from occurring.

Often times when I broach the subject of electric motor management with a potential customer I hear “we already have that”. I then ask them to explain to me what their motor management program consists of? Most of the time I get, “my motor shop stores my motors and when I have a motor fail, they send me another”. I then think to myself; “This is not motor management this is a motor hotel…” Motors are stuck on a shelf and held until they are needed.

Don’t you love when a motor fails on you in your plant and come to find out you didn’t even know that motor was there or even worse there is no spare?  Now you have unwanted downtime, rush repair costs/rushing in a new motor, rigging cost and an unwanted hit to your budget. This then makes you realize there could be another piece of equipment in your facility that you don’t know about, that is vital in your process.

One of the biggest differences between horizontal motors and vertical motors is the bearing arrangement. Typically, the bearing arrangement inside a vertical motor consists of one or more thrust bearings and a guide bearing. The thrust bearing is commonly mounted on the top of the motor and the guide bearing is located on the bottom. The typical thrust bearings found in a vertical motor are one or more angular contact bearings, a spherical roller bearing, or a hydrodynamic plate bearing, lubricated in an oil bath reservoir. The axial force is either upward, downward or balanced, and is generally the factor used to size the thrust bearing. As the thrust becomes greater, the bearing size or quantity of bearings normally increases.

When looking to upgrade or purchase a spare medium voltage or ANEMA (above NEMA) motor it can be very intimidating. You have different enclosures, bearing designs, accessories, and about 100 manufacturers that would love to sell you a motor. You will also need take a good look at the driven equipment and your plant equipment to see what issues this upgrade/spare motor may cause. Wouldn’t it be nice to send everything you need to one place and have them do all the work? But that isn’t always the case. 

A philosophy of our company has always been to help whenever we can. We have the resources, experience, and mindset to bring solutions to our customers on almost every motor related issue. Often times we are asked to bring solutions and answer questions to problems in breakdown situations without all of the facts. These breakdown situation questions can either be on motors that have been sent into our shop or motors that are still in-service. 

Factory Acceptance Testing (FAT) is becoming more common in large motors purchases and repair validation. Many end users are starting to establish specifications that include every test imaginable to ensure that the motor is designed and built to the specification provided and will last as long as current technology and testing procedures allow.

Just like in our everyday relationships, we tend to stay with a person or business because we have been “using them for years", but are they helping you or do you feel obligated to stay with them?  Have you been using the same car mechanic forever, but your car still has the same issues? 

Would you continue to use that vendor?