A Simply Strategy For Eliminating Plant Failures

A Simple Strategy for Eliminating Plant Machinery
Maintenance & Failures

By Abdulrahman Alkhowaiter October-2019
This article discusses new concepts for plant engineers dealing with machinery failures in the
process industry. The plant mechanical engineer should strive to reduce machinery maintenance
by eliminating breakdowns. In the conventional practice a strong focus on machinery condition
monitoring was considered best practice with some Root Cause Analysis. The author considers
that condition monitoring of passive design does not improve MTBF or MTBO and can only
reduce Mean Time to Repair MTTR since monitoring can reduce the impact of major damage.
Discovering the failure root causes and resolving failure mechanisms is superior and can extend
MTBF and MTBO. For Bad Actor Machinery the actual found and future failure mechanisms that
can reduce the machines operating life should be studied and based upon this a redesign of the
machine and its auxiliaries‐environment can be applied.
Boiler Feedwater Pump: Notice High Stiffness L/D Ratio of Shaft [Sulzer]
Reviewing past failure history of similar equipment and others case histories helps in finding the
failure mechanisms. The result is a machine that is more robust and will not fail under the various
operating conditions including the highest load or most difficult environment and process event.
The goal is zero failure operation and zero maintenance meaning only a simple PM is required.
This extreme reliability can be achieved if all the stressors act below the threshold of the
machines resistance to that specific failure and other failure mechanisms. The reference here is
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not only to mechanical stress such as fatigue loadings, but applies to all the various failure
mechanisms possible. Therefore, it is important to raise the machines threshold resistance to
failure mechanisms above the maximum that it is exposed to during its service life. This is similar
to building a Castle’s walls with a fortification that can withstand the strongest cannon balls.
If Machines Could Only Talk; Machinery as Reliability Instructors
At practically every plant, there are machines operating for years without breakdown while
others under the same maintenance & operating staff experience far lower mean time between
failures. As a result, the superior machines can be regarded as Reliability Instructors that teach
plant engineers about the design, installation, and process design aspects that lead to very high
reliability and almost zero breakdown. Their past proven performance as highly reliable machines
at your own plant is the best qualification needed. It is only a matter of studying the design
aspects and comparing the differences with the unreliable but similar type machinery. The
analysis can include shaft speeds, materials, sealing methods, installation quality and type details,
bearing details, construction rigidity, component design, process conditions, and other aspects.
Analysis of Non‐Failures; A Strategy for Learning How to Improve Machinery Reliability
This knowledge should be uncovered by a careful analysis, and is then applied to other similar
[but not necessarily identical] equipment. For example, an extremely reliable pump or
mechanical seal that operates flawlessly for six years and more can teach us many aspects on
how to improve existing unreliable pumps or seals, and what to look for when purchasing new
pumps. A limited amount of this experience‐based knowledge has already been implemented in
newer machinery standards such as API, but many reliability aspects are still not mandated or
recognized.
Examples from Authors Experience: Exceptionally Reliable Machinery Almost Zero Failure 
1. Large Vertical Crude Oil Pumps [1000 To 2500 HP] 15 Years MTBF
2. Large Vertical Motors On Same Pumps 10 Years MTBF
3. Mechanical Seal On Same Pump 10 Years MTBF
4. Home Refrigerator Freon Compressor Unit 15 Years MTBF
5. Horizontal Split Multistage Centrifugal Air Blowers 750 HP 15 Years MTBF
6. Sealless Canned Motor Pumps In Clean Service 10 Years MTBF
7. Well‐designed Self‐Priming Pump In Sump Service 10 Years MTBF
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Examples of Relatively Poor Reliability Machines in the Process Industry 
1. Cooling Tower Fan Gearboxes 1.5 Years MTBF
2. Process Cooler Belt Driven Fin Fan 1.5 Years MTBF
3. Vertical Pumps In Sump Service 0.50 Years MTBF
4. High Speed Integrally Geared Single Stage Pumps 1.0 ‐2.0 Years MTBF
5. Reciprocating Pumps 0.25‐1.0 Years MTBF
6. Single Stage GP Steam Turbines 0.50 Years MTBF
7. Multi‐Casing Vertical Split 3600 RPM Air Blowers 0.50‐1.0 Years MTBF

A Study of General Characteristics Leading to Long Life in Above Reliable Machinery
1. The seven reliable machine examples exhibit a common design detail: No external support
auxiliary equipment is required so there is nothing external to fail.
2. The machines exhibit Low to medium shaft speeds, from 450 to 3600 RPM.
3. Most are direct driven; no gearbox or other transmission system was used.
4. Some have Self‐Lubrication bearings utilizing process fluid in pumps such as the vertical
pumps and canned pumps.
5. Non‐Aggressive liquids in pumps and pumped fluids with good lubricating qualities.
6. For mechanically sealed pumps: highly superior designed M‐Shaft seals.
7. For Sealless pumps: Superior process system design to protect from foreign objects,
contamination, and dry running, vaporization of liquid.
8. Manufacturer has applied high accuracy in machining and assembly of parts leading to
excellent internal alignment. In this case, the user himself has overhauled the machine and
applied more precise re‐manufacturing of dimensional and fit standards.
9. Many of the machines on this list either have no shaft couplings at all, or utilize solid
couplings with direct connection. Some have flexible couplings, but are non‐lubricated type
and well rated in terms of design.
10. Installation contractor has applied high construction accuracy & quality in machinery base
foundation and piping fabrication alignment, eliminating strain on casing.
11. The user has applied optimum selection of oil‐grease viscosities and correct lubricant
quality and frequency of PM replacement.
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12. Lubricated bearing housings have superior separation from environment to resist entrance
of contaminants.
13. User and Manufacturer have applied a high degree of mass balancing of machine rotors and
high degree of coupling alignment accuracy.
14. All rotor components are designed and manufactured with high resistance to loosening in‐
service. Set screws not utilized on any parts except M‐Seal Sleeve.
15. The user has operated machines and pumps mostly within their design flow‐operating
window.
Wearing Parts Are Normal in Machinery; A Change in Thinking
The conventional reliability analysis of machinery is typically separated into wearing parts and
non‐wearing parts so that a wearing part replacement is considered normal. For example, the
pump shaft mechanical seal is considered a wearing part and the result is that industry as a whole
considers that it is normal to replace such parts at two or three year intervals upon failure
meaning high leakage. The critical thinking question is why is this a wearing part? Why not design
such components so they do not wear in service? Below is an illustration of a typical failure
mechanism in M‐Seals, which is excess heat generation in the sealing faces.

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Why Do Some Machines Rarely Fail? This is an Important Question

The picture is one of six vertical canned multistage centrifugal pumps working as booster pumps
taking stabilized crude oil from tanks to shipper pumps and four to five out of six are always in
operation. They were installed in 1967 to 1971 and the pump average MTBO is 15 years.
They are Byron Jackson pumps upgraded to single mechanical seals Flowserve Hard vs. Hard SiC
faces with O‐ring seals by a dedicated plant engineer. Average M‐Seal life since 1991 is 10 years
plus after many modifications were applied from 1983 to 1991. The original M‐Seal life was 3
months to 6 months highest MTBF.
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Vertical Turbine Type Crude Oil Transfer Canned Pumps 1000 HP at 900 RPM & 15 Year MTBO
The author worked on these pumps from 1994 to 1998. The pumps and seals never needed an
overhaul during that period. The only faults found were occasional increase of motor vibration.
Normal level at top bearing housing was 0.12 inch/s RMS and High at 0.25 inch/s RMS. The typical
reason for such vibration was unbalance due to accumulation of dirt in the motor rotor, and
possibly a gradual increase in pump bushing bore clearances to shaft with years of operation.
This allows a larger orbit of shaft, measured at top of pump or motor as a higher vibration.
What can we learn from such unusual machinery? In this case, from a pump reliability point of
view it has a single shaft of 5.0‐inch diameter, which is very stiff considering shaft total length of
about 6 meters or 20 feet. In addition, the pump has a wide diameter head giving stiffness against
deflections from pump and piping forces. Impeller fixation to shaft is by Tapered Collet and key.
All pump metallurgy is suitable for the pumped crude oil fluid and includes a permanent suction
strainer made of stainless steel, which has saved the pump from foreign object entry.
Typical Single Stage Mechanical Cartridge Shaft Seal in Crude Service
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Reason for the Extremely High Mechanical Seal Reliability Exceeding 10 Years on all Six Pumps:

M‐Seal Housing Stress and Strain Analysis for Stiffness and Strength improves Reliability

1. Hard work by the plant rotating equipment engineer who spent 8 years from 1984 to 1991
experimenting with various new seal design solutions working with the seal vendor design
staff. Original M‐Seal MTBF was 3 to 6 months only on all sister pumps.
2. The pump shaft low rotation speed of 900 rpm reduces the M‐Seal Face PV factor so the
surface friction on seals is reduced. However, notice that this still did not extend life when
using the older OEM seals. Why? The answer is that numerous other failure mechanisms
were stronger and the seal failed early.
3. Low speed pumps of 900 or 1200 RPM have higher shaft torque because speed is low, for
a constant HP transmitted. The larger dimeter shafts have higher stiffness compared to
1800 or 3600‐RPM vertical pumps. This leads to a minimum of deflection in operation
compared to higher speed pumps. This greatly extends pump bushing life and M‐Seal life.
4. Optimum M‐Seal face balance pressure and spring tension has minimized the operating
face gap while still maintaining full boundary lubrication regime from the lubricant here,
which is the pumped fluid that is Crude oil at 110 DegF.
5. Excellent pump shaft to centerline pump alignment including pump head, bowls, columns,
and seal flange alignment has allowed almost perfect face operation without tracking and
misalignment forces, thus greatly extending lifetime. These alignments are due to the
Manufacturer and later improvements by the company maintenance shop during
overhauls.
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6. Excellent shaft coupling alignment accuracy to the driver motor minimizes shaft deflections
during operation, thus helping to keep the faces well aligned. It is a solid coupling.
7. Excellent selection of seal metallurgy eliminated any past corrosion problems that would
reduce seal life. All metal parts were of stainless steel metallurgy suitable for service.
8. The M‐Seal O‐rings were upgraded from original Buna‐N to Viton Flouroelastomer which
has far longer lifetime in crude oil service due to chemical compatibility; oil resistance and
double the temperature‐rating limit.
9. The final selected faces upgrade in 1990 to 1991 changed the Tungsten Carbide versus
Carbon, to Silicon Carbide vs Silicon Carbide. This hard versus hard face combination has no
weak point when operating with medium to high viscosity fluids such as crude oil.
10. The API seal plan is a simple plan using discharge flush with centrifugal separator.
11. Yearly Pump PM includes cleaning of the M‐Seal Cyclone separator and suction screen.

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12. Careful monthly vibration condition monitoring route monitors motor and pump seismic
vibration. When motor vibration exceeds 0.25 inch RMS, the pump is shut down and the
motor balanced at top cooling fan, dropping vibration down to 0.05 inch/s. This happens
once per 5 years on average.
13. Excellent selection of pump bushing materials and optimum clearances to allow long life
without significant wear failure. Wear of bushings allows high shaft movement and
vibration, leading to more stress‐wear on bushings and the mechanical seal.
14. M‐Seal design is a single seal cartridge type with disaster bushing; the simplicity greatly
increases reliability per the Series component law of reliability R‐total = R1 x R2 x R3 x R4….If
the part is not there then it cannot fail.
15. The pump and mechanical seal smaller components were very critical to success also:
Example include the impeller locking to shaft components, the Bowl bushings, the M‐Seal
springs and rotating face holders, the method of attaching rotating Seal hard face to
holders, the shaft coupling hubs, spacer and bolts.
16. The pump uses no thrust bearing such as rolling element type; the only thrust bearing is at
the top of motor. This reduces part count.
17. Finally, the M‐Seal is reliable because it is a component on an extremely reliable pump and
this means that the seal operates in an ideal mechanical environment of very smooth
vibration, very low shaft movement in axial or radial directions, no significant thermal
gradients caused by pump, and other pump related factors.

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Steps to Improve Plant Machinery Reliability in the Design & Purchase Stage:

1. At the purchasing stage, maintain a restricted list of highly qualified manufacturers for each
machinery type to maximize initial manufacturing quality, design, and reliability. Make an in‐
house study of the most reliable machinery vendors worldwide, use consultants also. Also
require vendors to submit their sub supplier list for review and approval to remove low
quality sources.
2. Develop company machinery purchasing standards for each machine type [compressors,
pumps, blowers, gearboxes, motors, steam turbines, reciprocating engines], which are based
upon an international standard such as API or ISO, but also add many life cycle based
reliability, maintainability, and safety requirements and learn from other companies’
standards. The standards should include detailed requirements of the latest proven high
reliability components. Material selection for pumps, compressors, steam turbines should be
clearly tabulated for various corrosive services. Pump correct metallurgy selection is
extremely critical to equipment life and maintenance expenditure.
3. Require stringent factory testing with documentation for all equipment of 500 HP & above.
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4. Install and commission machinery at your plant based upon a mandatory detailed machinery
installation document such as API‐RP‐686.
5. During project design stage, perform a value engineering process to select the type of
machinery that is optimum in terms of minimum number of rotating equipment, high
efficiency and high reliability.
6. Require a minimum efficiency figure in your standards for all Turbomachinery, specific to
each type. Higher efficiency can also increase overall MTBF and MTBO. For centrifugal process
gas compressors, use 81.0% Polytrophic as minimum. For special purpose steam turbines, use
83.0% Adiabatic.
7. Study all unusual environmental conditions at plant location, and clarify in your standard such
details as maximum ambient temperatures, true max cooling water temperatures, dust, wet
conditions, and others.
8. Make a mandatory selection to low & medium speed pumping machinery when technically
possible to enhance reliability; for example, choose 1800 rpm or four‐pole motor drive
instead of 3600 or two‐pole motor drive. This extends driver and driven machine life by
cutting stress cycles by half. For a centrifugal pump example; the bearings, mechanical seals,
couplings, and rotors are only subjected to one‐half the cycles in one year of operation as
compared to a two‐pole speed operation. For high pressure, pumping applications there may
be no choice but to utilize two‐pole motors.
9. Require direct drive as the first option in all applications where possible, to reduce machinery
parts count. This eliminates gearboxes, reduction belting, and additional shaft couplings,
reduces alignment, reduces PM’s, and reduces installation complication.
10. Require the driver [motor, turbine] to be overrated by a 1.1 factor in all applications. For drive
motors, definitely require TEFC or TEAC motors for all services, with F‐rated insulation.
11. Require full 100% stainless steel lube oil systems on all pressurized lube oil applications,
including reservoirs, piping, and heat exchangers. For critical Special Purpose API lube oil
systems, the standby pumps startup time must be factory tested to within three‐second total
start time to full speed. Increase motor torque rating if needed.
12. Require dry flexible metal shaft couplings for all applications and prohibit gear couplings and
other lubricated type couplings. Dry couplings have a minimum of maintenance. Require a
minimum continuous total misalignment angle rating of 0.40 degree. For applications of 100
HP and above, require a minimum spacer length of 12.0 inches. For larger equipment using
Special purpose API‐617 couplings, the minimum spacer length is mandated as 18.0 inch.
Require all coupling hubs of 4000 RPM and below to be a straight shaft with thermal shrink
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13. fit and keys. For higher speeds, mandate Tapered Hydraulic keyless fit. Without this
interference fit, hubs become loose on shaft leading to vibration and failures.
14. For shaft coupling applications with shock loading or transient torsional vibrations, or unusual
misalignment and below 1000 HP, specify Permanent Magnet Couplings.
15. During technical review of vendor bids of rotating equipment, careful analysis by machinery
specialists and consultants should be used to make optimum selection of rotating equipment,
as technical bids can vary greatly in offering.
16. Require a maximum allowable factory vibration test limit in velocity rms and displacement
[witness tested] for all machinery of 500 HP and above, to reduce field problems by stopping
deficiencies at an early stage. Machines must be tested at full design speed.
17. Require a maximum allowable radial and thrust temperature limit during factory mechanical
run tests and full load tests where utilized. There should be limits for both pressurized
bearings and self‐contained bearing housings.
18. For sump pump applications, modify sump design to allow operation with above ground
horizontal mounted self‐priming pumps exclusively. Prohibit vertical pumps in all sump
applications for safety and reliability reasons. For unusual applications that cannot be met by
self‐priming pumps; use all stainless steel body submersible pumps in 2 x 75% flow
configuration with special precautions to allow operation in hazardous atmosphere.
19.
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20.
18. Require for all fluid machinery, a permanent heavy‐duty stainless steel suction strainer to
protect the machine from foreign object damage. DP sensors to be installed in suction.
19. For all Turbomachinery and pumps with pressurized feed supply bearings, specify Medium
Turbine ISO‐VG‐46 viscosity oils only as this higher viscosity increases sleeve and tilting pad
bearing hydrodynamic film thickness thus extending bearing life and reducing rotor vibration.
20. Specify 10‐micron filtration only for all pressurized lubrication oil systems. Greater than this
rating leads to more wear of bearings and shaft journals.
21. Require online protective instrumentation for machinery of 500 HP & above. This can include
alarm and trip for bearing temperatures, discharge temperature shutdown protection, and
online vibration protection for all driver and driven equipment from 500 HP & upwards. These
can be lower cost simplified systems using casing mounted transducers. For high‐speed
machinery, these require displacement type probes and monitors.

How to Improve Plant Machinery Reliability in the Maintenance & Operation Stage:
1. Require by contract all purchased rotating equipment to be provided with hard copy and soft
copy operating manuals and separate detailed maintenance manuals that include overhaul
methods. Soft copy manuals shall be electronic versions and not scanned quality.
2. Choose company storehouse grease and oil grades and approved vendors very carefully as
these have a major impact on machinery reliability. Grease and oil grades have many
properties that can enhance reliability and reduce preventive maintenance.
3. Establish a yearly plant machinery upgrade budget [separate from normal budget] with
approved capital expenditures that allow easy upgrading of bad actor machinery and/or
replacement with improved new machinery that is economically justified.
4. For all machinery maintenance consumables such as drive belts, filter elements, rolling
element bearings, O‐ring kits; again, a restricted vendor list is required, with a detailed
description for each spare part mentioning the exact type, design, materials, and country of
origin of the required parts. For example, fake counterfeit bearings, or those of low quality
manufacture, have caused a large number of premature machinery failures.
5. Establish an approved repair outside repair facility list for medium and major repairs of
machinery with vendors chosen for specific types of machinery repair activities.
6. Establish a plant reliability unit with engineers and technicians. Shall have responsibility over
all plant rotating equipment technical issues.
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7. Perform laser shaft alignment as much as possible as this is more efficient and has the
minimum number of errors compared to all other alignment methods.
8. Set up a condition monitoring monthly vibration route to monitor all machinery including
auxiliary machines such as lube oil pumps‐motors. Set Alarm and Shutdown limits based upon
a vibration consultant and your experience but do not always trust OEM limits, these can be
excessive.
9. Set up a Thermography monthly route for machinery & electrical equipment. This tool will
certainly pay back in all electrical related functions such as breakers, electric motors, and
other applications. This device allows on‐line PM for operating breakers, which then reduces
plant disruption and increases safety; but careful inspection procedure is necessary.
10. Set a monthly lube oil sampling and lab testing for all pressurized lube oil systems at plant.
11. Set up a formal lube oil leakage elimination program to review all plant machinery for oil
leakage causes and provide solutions to eliminate this.
12. For all rotating equipment with self‐contained lube oil housings, set a lube oil PM
replacement interval at four months. Do not increase this figure as any oil savings are
negligible, but machinery losses are very high in cost. Drain oil, add solvent to flush housing,
then blow out solvent with clean air, install drain plug and replace with fresh oil.
13. Set up an employee Innovation & Reliability Idea program to recognize and reward improved
reliability, safety, and maintenance reduction ideas using material rewards. Review of
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14. innovation items by reliability engineers and senior operations personnel as to applicability
and practicality. This releases the large intellectual capital available at plants that is typically
unused.
15. Develop written, peer reviewed maintenance procedures for all standard machinery repair
jobs, such as replacing seals, bearings, and other medium size activity.
16. Develop employees and enrich their skills by proving them with in‐house training courses and
external courses by vendors.
17. All machinery mechanical, electrical and instrument preventative maintenance work
activities must include a defect report that is filled out by the technician. Such defect reports
can greatly reduce the amount of failures. Reward technicians based upon accurate defect
reporting.
18. Optimize PM scope and frequency so that PM’s are focused mostly on items that are difficult
to condition monitor, and reduce the word “Inspect” in PM procedures as true meaning of
this word is easily misunderstood by technicians. Use command words such as “Replace part”
or “Measure exact dimension and compare to original”. All PM work must be documented
with each step having an input line for as found condition by technician and work steps
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performed, with signature of employee and supervisor. A PM report review is then made at
each maintenance craft, with addition of findings to future planned repair activities. Excess
defects to be highlighted to reliability engineers for study and resolving. Best to require
pictures taken at various PM steps and added to PM completion report.
19. Reliability unit specialists should perform yearly review of PM defect reports to make some
type of statistical report that measures the cost versus benefit of existing PM intervals and
PM work scope activity [man hours]. Based upon this, an increase in time interval can be
chosen to reduce costs, or a reduction in working man‐hours by reducing PM scope can also
be applied. However, a hazard analysis should also be applied to insure no impact on plant or
personnel safety from possible machinery failures. Another tool that can reduce PM work is
to apply additional condition monitoring tools, but not all machine components can be
condition monitored.
20. Utilize senior highly skilled supervisory staff technicians of all specialties as quality control
spot‐checking personnel to review daily work activities on various repair jobs.
21. Develop a written “Safe‐Reliable Operation Procedure” for all machinery and organize these
into hardbound printed manuals for operations personnel.
22. Develop a monthly or bimonthly trip report that analyses all major critical machinery
unexpected shutdowns, with a simple root cause analysis of each incident, and proposed
solution. Those trips that are electrical related are studied by an electrical engineer or senior
craftsman while instrumentation trips and mechanical failure trips are handled by the
respective specialists.
This is not the last word in improving plant machinery; Can you create more new ideas which
capture the overall machinery reliability picture and greatly Impact Reliability?
The answer is yes.
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