Mechanical Blogs
Three Signs it’s Time to Replace Your Water Pump System
December 17, 2025
Water pump systems don’t last forever and eventually they need to be replaced with newer, more efficient models.
Troubleshooting Thursday: Predicting Maintenance Downtime with PdM
August 8, 2024
Predictive Maintenance is a powerful strategy, but it might not be practical for all devices in your facility. For example, if a machine isn’t critical – short periods of downtime are manageable – or repairs can’t be predicted, then it might not be worth maintaining with a predictive model.
Top 10 HVAC Worker Injuries
November 10, 2022
Work-related injuries or disorders affecting muscles, tendons, nerves, cartilage, joints, or spinal discs are known as musculoskeletal disorders (MSDs).
Top Six Ways to Reduce Machine Downtime
December 6, 2021
Industry researchers have found that the average downtime episode lasts 1.5 to 4 hours and costs between $30,000 and $50,000 while production crews sit idle waiting for machines to come back online, and then earn overtime while the plant plays catch up to make its quotas.
Troubleshooting Thursday | True Cost of Factory Downtime: How Downtime Affects Productivity (Tip 67)
October 8, 2021
Today we’ll be looking at how to calculate the true cost of facilities maintenance. It’s not exactly news that factory downtime costs manufacturers.
How to Calculate Pump Efficiency
May 11, 2021
If pumps were ideal, the horsepower entering the pump would equal the horsepower exiting the pump, producing 100 percent efficiency. Unfortunately, friction, leakage, and other energy losses will always mean mechanical horsepower input will be higher than water horsepower output.
How to Extend Boiler Life
February 12, 2021
As you might expect, the more effort you put into maintaining your boiler, the longer you can expect it to function. Here’s how to extend boiler life.
HVAC Challenges in Historical Buildings
February 10, 2021
Installing or upgrading HVAC for historic buildings is a complicated—and sometimes nerve-wracking—process. As the HVAC installer, you have two responsibilities that can sometimes clash.
The True Cost of Deferred HVAC Maintenance
February 10, 2021
Deferred HVAC maintenance is a new term for that old adage, “if it ain’t broke, don’t fix it.” On the surface it makes sense—if the HVAC system is running, why expend the resources associated with preventative maintenance?
Types of Pumps and Their Applications
January 29, 2021
Choosing the right types of pump requires an understanding of the classifications of pumps: the right pump for one situation is entirely wrong for other pump applications.
How to Read a Blueprint
January 8, 2021
Knowing how to read a blueprint is a valuable skill for anyone who works in construction, maintenance, or facilities management. Accurate blueprint reading helps you identify the location of important building elements during renovations, rebuilding, or work on electrical and HVAC systems.
How to Avoid Factory Downtime Costs
November 9, 2020
Factory downtime costs are the bane of the manufacturing industry, with facilities losing anywhere from five to twenty percent of productivity to downtime every month.
Generator Safety Tips
October 8, 2020
A portable generator is used to produce electricity when temporary or remote power is required. Often used on construction sites or to power facilities during power outages or disasters, portable generators are powered by engines, and must be used with care to avoid injury and fire.
Preventive and Corrective Maintenance Levels
September 15, 2018
Corrective and preventive maintenance are often classified by levels of complexity, with each level indicating the need for more specialized training to successfully complete procedures, diagnostics, and repairs.
Employee Training: Tips to Maximize Knowledge Retention
August 27, 2018
In 1885, German psychologist Herman Ebbinghaus created a mathematical model that demonstrates how quickly people forget new information. Called the “forgetting curve,” Ebbinghaus’s model indicates people lose roughly seventy percent of what they learn within twenty-four hours.
What is Motor Pump Alignment? (And Why it's Important to Train Your Employees On It)
August 22, 2018
Proper motor pump alignment helps ensure your equipment has longer life spans while requiring fewer repairs and costly downtime. Here we’ll explain what motor/pump alignment is, why it’s so important, and why your maintenance staff need alignment training.
Bearing Failure Analysis and Best Practices
August 8, 2018
Roller bearings are one of the sturdiest precision components in industrial motors and other applications, with less than one percent not completing their expected lifecycle.
8 Common Concerns with Commercial HVAC Systems
August 1, 2018
Commercial HVAC systems make up a large portion of a building’s energy demands and need regular maintenance to operate at peak efficiency. Even with the best care, your HVAC system can develop problems that impact air and temperature quality, increase energy consumption, or damage system components.
Implementing an Effective Maintenance Plan
October 11, 2017
Creating and implementing an effective maintenance plan takes time and effort, but the end result is well worth the effort. Your goal is to reach a point where preventative maintenance accounts for at least sixty percent of all maintenance tasks, and emergency maintenance is an uncommon occurrence.
Conducting an HVAC Energy Audit
May 20, 2017
A commercial energy audit offers a chance to determine your HVAC system’s energy needs and identify possible areas of concern by examining energy use and performing a component-by-component examination of system health.
Facilities Management and the Bottom Line
November 9, 2016
When the economy worsens and a company’s bottom line suffers, facilities managers often see their budgets decimated. As a result, Staff may be laid off, inventory reduced, and important facilities management training courses delayed or cancelled.
6 Common AC Odors and Their Causes
October 11, 2016
When a building resident reports foul odors from air conditioning, facility managers have a wide range of potential culprits to consider. Often the odor itself provides a clue to the root cause of the problem and may indicate anything from a mild mold problem to a dangerous buildup of toxic fumes.
How to Improve Industrial Preventive Maintenance
August 23, 2016
Improving your company’s preventive maintenance (PM) program can feel overwhelming. PM processes often develop organically as new machinery and equipment comes into play, old equipment is phased out, and new reliability strategies become available.
How to Prevent Problems with Your Condenser
July 19, 2016
Located on the outside of the building, an air conditioner’s condenser is exposed to the elements and vulnerable to damage. Here’s how to identify and prevent problems with your condenser before they become serious.
8 Emergency Generator Tips to Protect Your Facility from Power Outages
April 5, 2016
With severe weather on the rise, so too are power outages.