1 Prolific Systems & Technologies (PVT) LTD

Prolific Systems & Technologies Pvt Ltd
Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt) Ltd 1

ALIGNMENT
What do you mean by alignment
The process of adjusting parts so that they

are in proper relative position with respect to
each other.
Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

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WHY ALIGNMENT
50% of all machinery problems are caused by machinery
misalignment, the cost of which equates to not merely
damaged components and down-time, but also increased
power consumption and degradation of product quality.
Every year the industry spends a tremendously large

amount of money unnecessarily.

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ALIGNMENT
In virtually every industry rotating machinery plays a vital role
Motors, pumps, conveyors - Critical to all machine

performance is the alignment of their drive shafts
So measuring how accurately they are aligned and how

much you need to correct them is vital information

WHAT IS COUPLING ALIGNMENT?
Coupling alignment
is shaft alignment.
If the shafts are

aligned, the
couplings will
normally go along for
the ride.
WHAT IS SHAFT ALIGNMENT
Shaft alignment is the process to align two

or more shafts with each other to within a
tolerated margin.
It is an absolute requirement for machinery

before the machinery is put in service.

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SHAFT ALIGNMENT
Shaft alignment of rotating equipment is the major
activity in maintenance of the equipment, one has to
concentrate upon
Misalignment of shaft contributes to
Reduced life of the equipments parts.
Premature failure of the equipment, resulting in

breakdown of machinery, causing production loss.

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WHY ALIGNMENT
When the shaft of two rotator machines
are directly coupled via a flexible coupling,
Any misalignment between their

centerlines of rotation can result in
vibration and additional loads depending
on their severity, can produce premature
wear, or even catastrophic failure of
bearings, seals, the coupling itself, and
other machine components
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WHY ALIGNMENT
Misalignment has long been recognized as
one of the leading causes of machinery
damage, and has been responsible for huge
economic losses.
The more misalignment, the greater the
rate of wear, likelihood of premature failure,
and loss of efficiency of the machine.
Moreover, misaligned machines absorb
more energy and consume more power.

TYPES OF COUPLINGS
Rigid usually must Flexible uses one or

be aligned to very more elements to
close tolerances. connect the shafts.
Think of it as solidly Mechanical
bolting one shaft to Elastomeric
another. Metallic
These can tolerate
slightly more
misalignment, thermal
changes, and shock.
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SHAFT ALIGNMENT (METHODS)
STRAIGHT EDGE METHOD DIAL METHOD- RIM AND FACE
REVERSE DIAL METHOD LASER METHOD

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Every shaft, bent or straight, rotates about
an axis that forms a straight line

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ALIGNMENT
The issue is quantification of the alignment
quality and determination of allowable deviation
the so called alignment tolerance.
We define misalignment by visualizing the shaft
centerlines of rotation as two straight lines in
space.
The trick is to get them to coincide so as to form

one straight line. If they dont, then there must
exist either offset misalignment or angular
misalignment or a combination of both.
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CO-LINEARITY
Shafts in this same straight line are

considered co-linear, or in the same
straight line

TYPES OF MISALIGNMENT
Offset, or Parallel the Angular the shafts are not

shafts are parallel to in the same plane, which
each other, but are not causes a difference in
co-planar, or in the same measurement between
plane. This can be both measurements made 180
vertical and horizontal. degrees opposite on the
coupling faces.
Its almost always a combination of both!
TYPES OF MISALIGNMENT ( OFFSET)

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ANGULAR MISALIGNMENT

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MEASUREMENT CONVENTIONS
Offset or Parallel
Misalignment is
measured in thousandths
of an inch (0.000), also
called mils.
Angular Misalignment
is measured in
thousandths of an inch
(0.000), or mils, per inch
of coupling diameter.

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PRE-ALIGNMENT STEPS
15 minutes or so of preparation time can save
you hours, and lots of money, in alignment costs
It can also save you a lot of unnecessary work
The following slides list some of the most

common errors made both before, and during,
shaft alignment

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Error #1
ASSUMPTIONS AND THE LACK OF

OBSERVATION

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Example

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ASSUMPTIONS
NEVER ASSUME ITS LOCKED AND TAGGED!
Dont assume its aligned correctly, even if you did it the last
time.
Can the shafts be rotated together? Can they be rotated
individually? You may have to modify your alignment
technique.
Is there a soft foot issue? Check and minimize before
alignment.
Is there going to be thermal growth? How much? Which
direction? Is it going to get hotter, or colder?

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ASSUMPTIONS
Is the coupling insert worn? Does it need
replacement?
Is there adequate spacing between the shafts?
Between couplings?
Has pipe strain been minimized?
Is the pump assembly sitting on isolators? Are they
functioning properly?
Is the pump assembly sitting on an inertia block? Is
it properly affixed to the floor?

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ASSUMPTIONS
Do you notice any cracks in the floor around the
base? Can you feel vibration in the floor?
Does the coupling insert have excessive backlash?
Are the coupling flanges tight to the shaft?
Are set screws and bolts tight?
Are keys in place?

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ASSUMPTIONS
Are the hubs concentric? You may be able to align an
eccentric hub, but may cause vibration, and make you look
bad, if you miss it.
Does the coupling guard clear the coupling?
How clean is the area?
Soft foot is not limited to just under the motor feet. It can
happen between a riser and frame, and between a frame and a
floor.
Are there jack bolts? Are they screwed tight to the motor?

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Error #2
You do not know what your

alignment target, or tolerance, is

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ALIGNMENT TARGETS
DONT GO BY THE COUPLING MANUFACTURERS
TOLERANCE!
The coupling manufacturers tolerance is based upon

the amount of misalignment the coupling will tolerate,
NOT what the bearings and seals will tolerate!
Think of it like a rubber band.

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ALIGNMENT TOLERANCES
Alignment tolerances are
based on many things,
including:
Coupling type
Running speed
Company guidelines
Most alignment tool
VibrAligns tolerance manufacturers also have
table tolerances. Consult your
Engineering department, or
your alignment tool
representative, for more
information.
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THERMAL GROWTH TARGETS
Machines that operate at a considerably hotter or
colder condition than the ambient room temperature
should be thermally compensated. They will grow
or shrink as they heat up, or cool off

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THE MACHINE MANUFACTURERS
SPECS ARE A GOOD PLACE TO START
But, the machine manufacturer probably does not know:
The exact temperature of the driver and driven
machines
Ventilation quality or cooling effects
Piping strain influences
Piping thermal changes
COEFFICIENT OF THERMAL EXPANSION
If you cant
remember this chart,
remember this:
1 foot of steel get
100 degrees hotter, it
grows about 8 mils
( 0.008)

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HOWEVER, THIS IS NOT A MAGIC FORMULA!
Machines do not usually heat or cool at the exact same
temperature top to bottom.
You need to find a mean, or average temperature of the

machine from the centerline of the shaft, to the bottom
of the foot.

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THE BEST WAY TO KNOW THERMAL GROWTH
CHANGES
is to measure them yourself.

Measure the machine in the cold condition, and pre-
set it to the manufacturers recommendations.
Re-measure in the hot condition, if possible.
Some lasers can do this calculation for you, or you
can simply plot it on paper.
In addition, some laser alignment tool manufacturers
sell equipment that allow you to measure the
thermal changes.

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Error #3
NOT CORRECTING FOR SOFT FOOT
Soft foot
Soft foot occurs when Soft foot is caused by deformed
machine feet do not rest machine base plates or by deformed
flatly on the machine base machine feet
Soft foot can be offset, angular, or both

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ERROR #4
NOT KNOWING WHEN TO SAY WHEN
When the machine is aligned to within your alignment

tolerance, you are done
Dont try to get it all the way to zero
You may cause more problems than you correct
AND, you will certainly waste time

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ERROR #5
NOT ROUGHING IN
Straightedge, flashlight, feeler gauges, taper gauge,
outside caliper, etc

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A QUICK COMMENT ON SHIMS
Try to use a maximum of 4 or less shims under each foot. Its
not always possible, but try to minimize the number of shims
per foot
Use pre-cut stainless steel shims
You cant cut them for less than you can buy them
When you insert shims under the foot, slide them all the way in,
then back them out , so the bolt threads dont bend them
Dont reuse painted, or badly bent shims
Be careful. A 0.003 shim can cut you like a knife. Trust me on

this one!
Keep them neat

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ERROR #6
NOT CONTROLLING BACKLASH OR
UNWANTED MOVEMENT
Some alignment systems are sensitive to backlash
or play in the coupling. Not only lasers, but
indicators can be misread due to backlash,
especially if there is any eccentricity in the coupling
Beware of bumping your indicators or laser detectors
Beware of any binding or tightness in the machines

as they are rotated

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ERROR #7
INCORRECT SEQUENCE OF MOVES

Always correct vertical misalignment first.
Once the vertical (top to bottom, up and down)

is corrected, you can theoretically move the
machine side to side as far as it will go,
without changing the vertical alignment.
Then, correct misalignment in the horizontal

plane (side to side).

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NOW WERE READY TO ALIGN!

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YOU GOT TO MAKE THE RIGHT
MOVES!

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Regardless of the method you use,
alignment needs to be done in four steps

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ANGULAR MISALIGNMENT IN THE VERTICAL PLANE
Side View

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PARALLEL OFFSET IN THE VERTICAL PLANE
Side View

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ANGULAR MISALIGNMENT IN THE HORIZONTAL PLANE
Top View

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PARALLEL OFFSET IN THE HORIZONTAL PLANE
Top View

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THATS THE WAY ITS SUPPOSED TO
HAPPEN!

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SO WHAT DO WE DO IF IT DOESNT?
Check for soft foot.
Check for bolt or base bound condition.
Check to make sure you havent bumped or moved

your alignment tools
Check for coupling backlash.
Check for excessive vibration in the area
Re-measure, and see if your results are repeatable.

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TRICKS OF THE TRADE
A straightedge, an outside caliper, a Starrett taper gauge,
and a flashlight are good roughing-in tools.
A can of compressed air, like those used for cleaning
electronics, is good to clean dirt out from under motor feet.
A 0-1 micrometer is great for measuring the thickness of
shim stacks.
When aligning, excessive backlash can be compensated
with a few rounds of duct tape.
Two dial indicator magnetic bases make great stops to rest
the laser tool or indicator brackets at the 3 and 9 oclock
positions. It gives you an extra set of hands.

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ALIGNMENT IN BELT DRIVE SYSTEM
Proper Alignment can increase belt drive
performance.
Misalignment is one of the most common causes
of premature belt failure.
Depending on its severity, misalignment can
gradually reduce belt performance by increasing
wear and fatigue Or It can destroy a belt in a
matter of hours or days.

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TYPES OF ALIGNMENT
Basically, any degree of misalignment, angular or parallel, will
decrease the normal service life of a belt drive
Angular misalignment results in
accelerated belt/sheave wear and
potential belt stability problems
with individual V-belts.
Uneven belt and cord loading,
results in unequal load sharing
within multiple belt drives, and can
lead to premature failure
Gates Corporation Power
Transmission Product Application
engineers caution that angular
misalignment has a severe effect
on the performance of
synchronous belt drives
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PARALLEL MISALIGNMENT
Parallel misalignment also
results in accelerated
belt/sheave wear and potential
belt stability problems with
individual V-belts. Uneven belt
and cord loading is not as
significant a concern as in
angular misalignment
However, parallel misalignment

is typically more of a concern
with V belts than with
synchronous belts This is
because V-belts run in fixed
grooves and cannot free float
between flanges, as
synchronous belts can, to a
limited degree
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MEASURE MISALIGNMENT

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MEASURE OF MISALIGNMENT
When preparing to measure parallel misalignment, the
maintenance technician must first verify that the
edges of both sheaves and sprockets are of equal
thickness, or quantify the difference in thickness
It is important to align the sheave grooves or

sprocket faces directly in line with one another, rather
than just the outside surfaces of the sheaves or
sprockets (flanges)
It may be necessary to mount sheaves or sprockets

with the outside surfaces offset with respect to one
another in order to properly align the grooves or
sprocket faces
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Sprocket flanges should also be inspected to be sure
that they run true. A bent flange could result in
erroneous measurements if the laser tool or
straightedge rests against the outside edge of the
damaged flange during the inspection process
To determine how much misalignment is acceptable

and at what point it becomes excessive, the
alignment must first be measured, quantified, and
then compared to the belt manufacturer's
recommendations for the particular type of belt
These recommendations can be found in drive

design manuals
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MEASURING MISALIGNMENT
Misalignment can either be quantified mathematically,
or be compared to some general rules of thumb for
quicker and easier results
While using a straight edge to project the plane of the

outside face of sheave or sprocket #1 with respect to
sheave or sprocket #2, angular misalignment can be
quantified as the difference in clearance between the
straightedge and the outside surface of the sheave or
sprocket #2 across the diameter
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MEASURING THE MISALIGNMENT
(ANGULAR MISALIGNMENT)

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(PARALLEL MISALIGNMENT)

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MEASUREMENT OF MISALIGNMENT
The angle of parallel misalignment can be

quantified as the difference in clearance
between the straightedge and the outer
surfaces of the two sheaves or sprockets
across the separation distance

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ALLOWABLE MISALIGNMENT
The total allowable misalignment
recommended for V-belts, in general, is
1/2-degree
While individual V-belts are known to be

capable of handling greater amounts of
misalignment before becoming unstable
Maintaining the misalignment to within 1/2-

degree will maximize belt life
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ALLOWABLE MISALIGNMENT
The total amount of misalignment

recommended for synchronous, urethane 60-
degree belts (Polyflex), and poly-V belts
(Micro-V) is 1/4-degree
These drives are less tolerant of

misalignment than conventional V-belt drives,
and must be aligned more accurately

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MEASUREMENT OF BELT
MISALIGNMENT
When determining if a V-type drive system is
aligned within these recommendations, the
angular and parallel misalignment must both be
measured and quantified individually and then
Added together
The total sum of angular and parallel

misalignment can then be compared to the belt
manufacturer's recommendations for the particular
type of drive.
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RULE OF THUMB
Maintenance technicians may not always find it
practical or possible to accurately calculate the total
misalignment in a system while determining if it is in
acceptable alignment
It is also difficult to visualize small fractions of an
angle such as 1/2 and 1/4 degrees
These can be more clearly illustrated with the following
rules of thumb:
For V-belt drives:
1/2-degree angle = approximately 1/10-inch per foot of
distance travelled
For synchronous, 60-degree angle, and V-ribbed
drives:
1/4-degree angle = approximately 1/16-inch per foot of
distance travelled
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IMPORTANT TIPS
Misalignment can be an obstacle for satisfactory
synchronous and V-belt drive performance
In many cases, it is not easily detectable in complex

drive applications. Maintenance technicians should
also check related components, such as brackets and
platforms, for proper design and placement.
These parts must be strong enough to withstand the

peak forces exerted by the belt drive without bending
or flexing

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THANK YOU

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Prolific Systems & Technologies Pvt Ltd

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt) Ltd 1

What do you mean by alignment

The process of adjusting parts so that they

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

Every year the industry spends a tremendously large

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

Motors, pumps, conveyors - Critical to all machine

So measuring how accurately they are aligned and how

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt) Ltd 4

If the shafts are

Shaft alignment is the process to align two

It is an absolute requirement for machinery

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

Misalignment of shaft contributes to

Reduced life of the equipments parts.

Premature failure of the equipment, resulting in

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

Any misalignment between their

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt) Ltd 9

Rigid usually must Flexible uses one or

REVERSE DIAL METHOD LASER METHOD

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

The trick is to get them to coincide so as to form

Shafts in this same straight line are

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt) Ltd 14

Offset, or Parallel the Angular the shafts are not

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

It can also save you a lot of unnecessary work

The following slides list some of the most

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

ASSUMPTIONS AND THE LACK OF

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

Does the coupling insert have excessive backlash?

Are the coupling flanges tight to the shaft?

Are set screws and bolts tight?

Are keys in place?

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

Does the coupling guard clear the coupling?

How clean is the area?

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

You do not know what your

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

The coupling manufacturers tolerance is based upon

NOT what the bearings and seals will tolerate!

Think of it like a rubber band.

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

You need to find a mean, or average temperature of the

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

is to measure them yourself.

Prolific Systems & Technologies (Pvt)

Soft foot can be offset, angular, or both

When the machine is aligned to within your alignment

Dont try to get it all the way to zero

You may cause more problems than you correct