A Simple Strategy for Eliminating Plant

Machinery Maintenance & Failures

By Abdulrahman Alkhowaiter-Saudi Aramco

The plant mechanical engineer should strive to reduce machinery maintenance by eliminating
breakdowns. For Bad Actor Machinery, a study is made of all the possible failure mechanisms
that can reduce the machines operating life and based upon this a redesign of the machine and
its auxiliaries-environment can be applied. 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.

This can be achieved if all the stressors act below the threshold of the machines resistance to
that specific failure and other failure mechanisms. Therefore we must raise the machines
threshold above the maximum that it is exposed to. This is similar to building a Castle’s walls with
a fortification that can withstand the strongest cannon balls.

Sulzer Boiler Feed Pump

If Machines Could Only Talk; Machinery as Reliability Instructors

At practically every plant there are machines which operate for years without breakdown while
others under the same maintenance & operating staff experience far lower mean time between
failures. As a result those superior machines can be regarded as Reliability Instructors which can
teach plant engineers about the design, installation, and process condition 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’s only a matter of studying the

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 A Simple Strategy for Eliminating Plant
Machinery Maintenance & Failures
By Abdulrahman Alkhowaiter-Saudi Aramco

design aspects and comparing the differences with the unreliable, but similar type machinery.
Such analysis can include shaft speeds, materials, sealing methods, installation details, bearing
design details, construction rigidity, component design, process conditions, and other aspects.

Analysis of Non-Failures; a Strategy for Learning How to Improve Machinery Reliability

Once this knowledge is uncovered by a careful analysis, then this can be 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. Some of this experience based knowledge has already been applied to 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 [500 to 2000 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 15 years MTBF
5. Horizontal Split Centrifugal Air Blowers 750 HP -3600 RPM 15 years MTBF
6. Sealless Canned Motor Pumps in Clean Service 10 Years MTBF
7. Self-Priming Pump in Sump Service 8 Years MTBF

Why Do Some Machines Rarely Fail?

 These are six vertical canned pumps working as booster pumps taking stabilized crude oil
from tanks to shipper pumps. MTBF is 15 years.
 These Byron Jackson pumps utilize single mechanical seals Flowserve Hard vs. Hard SiC
faces with O-ring seals. Average life 10 years plus.
 The author worked on these pumps from 1994 to 1997. The pumps and seals never
needed an overhaul during that period. Only faults found were occasionally had increase
of motor top bearing vibration. Normal level was 0.12 inch/s RMS and High at 0.20 inch/s
RMS.
 How can we learn from such unusual machinery?

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 A Simple Strategy for Eliminating Plant
Machinery Maintenance & Failures
By Abdulrahman Alkhowaiter-Saudi Aramco

Abqaiq Plants Vertical Turbine Type Crude Oil Transfer Pumps 1000 HP at 900 RPM

A Study of General Characteristics Leading to Long Life in Above Equipment

 The above seven machines types exhibit a common design detail: No external support
auxiliary equipment is required so there is nothing external to fail.
 The machines exhibit Low to medium shaft speeds, from 450 to 3600 RPM.
 Typically direct drive, no gearbox or other transmission system used.
 Some have Self-Lubrication bearings utilizing process fluid in pumps such as the vertical
pumps and canned pumps.
 Non-Aggressive liquids in pumps and fluids with good lubricating qualities.

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 A Simple Strategy for Eliminating Plant
Machinery Maintenance & Failures
By Abdulrahman Alkhowaiter-Saudi Aramco

 For mechanically sealed pumps: superior designed M-shaft seals.

 For Sealless pumps: Superior process system design to protect from foreign objects and
dry running, vaporization of liquid.
 Manufacturer has applied high accuracy in machining and assembly of parts leading to
excellent internal alignment. Sometimes, it is the user himself who has overhauled the
machine and applied exacting re-manufacturing dimensional and fit standards.
 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.
 Installation contractor has applied high construction accuracy & quality in machinery base
foundation and piping fabrication alignment, eliminating strain on casing.
 User has applied optimum selection of oil-grease viscosities and correct lubricant quality
and frequency of replacement.
 Lubricated bearing housings have superior separation from environment.
 User and Manufacturer have applied a high degree of mass balancing of machine rotors
and high degree of coupling alignment accuracy.
 All rotor components have been designed and manufactured with high resistance to
loosening in service. Set screws not utilized on any parts.
 User has operated pumps mostly within their design flow operating window.

Examples of Relatively Poor Reliability Machines in the Process Industry 

1. Cooling tower fan gearboxes 1.5 Years MTBF

2. Process Cooler Fin Fans 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

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 A Simple Strategy for Eliminating Plant
Machinery Maintenance & Failures
By Abdulrahman Alkhowaiter-Saudi Aramco

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, recip 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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 A Simple Strategy for Eliminating Plant
Machinery Maintenance & Failures
By Abdulrahman Alkhowaiter-Saudi Aramco

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 high efficiency and high reliability. For example, specify
the more reliable Screw compressors as much as possible instead of Reciprocating
compressors, where applicable. Average Screw MTBF is 400% greater.
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% Polytropic 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 machinery as much as 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 pump 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
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. Standby pumps startup time must be
factory tested to within 3 second total start time to full speed. Oversize motor 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 misalignment angle rating of 0.40 degree. For all 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 to have a thermal shrink fit with key or Hydraulic keyless fit [above

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 A Simple Strategy for Eliminating Plant
Machinery Maintenance & Failures
By Abdulrahman Alkhowaiter-Saudi Aramco

5000 RPM]. Without this interference fit, hubs become loose on shaft leading to vibration
and failures.
13. For shaft coupling applications with shock loading or transient torsional vibrations, or unusual
misalignment and below 1000 HP, specify Permanent Magnet Couplings.
14. 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.
15. Require a maximum allowable factory vibration test limit in velocity rms and displacement
[witness tested] for all types of machinery, to reduce field problems by stopping deficiencies
at an early stage. Machines must be tested at full design speed.
16. 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.
17. For all 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 very unusual applications that cannot be met by self-priming pumps, use all
stainless steel body submersible pumps, in 2 x 75% flow configuration.

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 A Simple Strategy for Eliminating Plant
Machinery Maintenance & Failures
By Abdulrahman Alkhowaiter-Saudi Aramco

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.
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 which allows for 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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 A Simple Strategy for Eliminating Plant
Machinery Maintenance & Failures
By Abdulrahman Alkhowaiter-Saudi Aramco

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
innovation items by reliability engineers and senior operations personnel as to applicability
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 A Simple Strategy for Eliminating Plant
Machinery Maintenance & Failures
By Abdulrahman Alkhowaiter-Saudi Aramco

and practicality. This releases the large intellectual capital available at plants that is typically
unused.
14. Develop written, peer reviewed maintenance procedures for all standard machinery repair
jobs, such as replacing seals, bearings, and other medium size activity.
15. Develop employees and enrich their skills by proving them with in-house training courses and
external courses by vendors.

16. All 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.
17. 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 this word is easily
abused by low grade 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 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

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 A Simple Strategy for Eliminating Plant
Machinery Maintenance & Failures
By Abdulrahman Alkhowaiter-Saudi Aramco

highlighted to reliability engineers for study and resolving. Best to require pictures taken at
various PM steps and added to PM completion report.
18. 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 work 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.
19. 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.
20. Develop a written “Safe-Reliable Operation Procedure” for all machinery and organize these
into hard bound printed manuals for operations personnel.
21. 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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