ABB hosted a media event in Bolingbrook, Illinois, where it unveiled the ABB Ability Smart Sensor for mounted bearings. The Smart Sensor, designed to improve safety and reliability and minimize downtime and costs, was a culmination of 137 customer reviews and about 850 hours of discussion. “The new Smart Sensor for mounted bearings is a conditioned monitoring device that will help customers reduce downtime,” says Vasilios Kapousidis, development engineer for mounted bearings at ABB. “It’s easy to use, prevents unexpected shutdowns and improves safety.”

Piscataway, New Jersey, US; John Malinowski, Senior Manager of Industry Affairs (retired from Baldor Electric Company), of Fort Smith, Arkansas, USA has been named an IEEE Fellow. He is being recognized for contributions to motor efficiency manufacturing regulations and standards. The IEEE Grade of Fellow is conferred by the IEEE Board of Directors upon a person with an outstanding record of accomplishments in any of the IEEE fields of interest. The total number selected in any one year cannot exceed one-tenth of one-percent of the total voting membership. IEEE Fellow is the highest grade of membership and is recognized by the technical community as a prestigious honor and an important career achievement.

The ABB Ability Smart Sensor for Dodge mounted bearings is the latest addition to the company’s Digital Powertrain offering, a digital solution suite created to monitor, model and optimize the performance of industrial powertrain systems. This latest wireless sensor—combined with smartphone app and cloud portal—enables users of mounted bearings from ABB as well as other manufacturers to quickly and easily improve the safety, reliability and uptime of rotating equipment operations.

Every grain facility is different, housing varied equipment with wide-ranging applications. So, defining a universal maintenance strategy for bearings is really not possible. No specific preventive maintenance standards exist, either, although Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Standard 1910.272 outlines procedures for regularly schedules inspections and appropriate maintenance "in accordance with manufacturer recommendations as deemed necessary by prior operating records." No maintenance frequency advice is included.

McKale McKinney designed and made a prototype device that has increased efficiency at ABB Motors and Mechanical Inc. (formerly known as Baldor). He is a student at McDowell High and McDowell Technical Community College and works part-time at ABB. He is holding his new device for greasing the roller bearings that are made at ABB. He made this at home on his own initiative. Plant Manager Mark Earley said it saves about 25 percent of the time needed for manufacturing.

ABB has launched Dodge® Food Safe mounted ball bearings, which are designed to withstand caustic, high-pressure cleaning and sanitation processes. The new bearings are the first industrial bearings to achieve the IP69 water protection rating without the use of an end cover, making them ideal for use in the food and beverage industry, where equipment must be aggressively cleaned. They are the only bearings to carry a warranty against failure due to water ingress.

ABB hosted a media event in Bolingbrook, Illinois, where it unveiled the ABB Ability Smart Sensor for mounted bearings. The Smart Sensor, designed to improve safety and reliability and minimize downtime and costs, was a culmination of 137 customer reviews and about 850 hours of discussion. “The new Smart Sensor for mounted bearings is a conditioned monitoring device that will help customers reduce downtime,” says Vasilios Kapousidis, development engineer for mounted bearings at ABB. “It’s easy to use, prevents unexpected shutdowns and improves safety.”

Piscataway, New Jersey, US; John Malinowski, Senior Manager of Industry Affairs (retired from Baldor Electric Company), of Fort Smith, Arkansas, USA has been named an IEEE Fellow. He is being recognized for contributions to motor efficiency manufacturing regulations and standards. The IEEE Grade of Fellow is conferred by the IEEE Board of Directors upon a person with an outstanding record of accomplishments in any of the IEEE fields of interest. The total number selected in any one year cannot exceed one-tenth of one-percent of the total voting membership. IEEE Fellow is the highest grade of membership and is recognized by the technical community as a prestigious honor and an important career achievement.

The ABB Ability Smart Sensor for Dodge mounted bearings is the latest addition to the company’s Digital Powertrain offering, a digital solution suite created to monitor, model and optimize the performance of industrial powertrain systems. This latest wireless sensor—combined with smartphone app and cloud portal—enables users of mounted bearings from ABB as well as other manufacturers to quickly and easily improve the safety, reliability and uptime of rotating equipment operations.

Every grain facility is different, housing varied equipment with wide-ranging applications. So, defining a universal maintenance strategy for bearings is really not possible. No specific preventive maintenance standards exist, either, although Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) Standard 1910.272 outlines procedures for regularly schedules inspections and appropriate maintenance "in accordance with manufacturer recommendations as deemed necessary by prior operating records." No maintenance frequency advice is included.

McKale McKinney designed and made a prototype device that has increased efficiency at ABB Motors and Mechanical Inc. (formerly known as Baldor). He is a student at McDowell High and McDowell Technical Community College and works part-time at ABB. He is holding his new device for greasing the roller bearings that are made at ABB. He made this at home on his own initiative. Plant Manager Mark Earley said it saves about 25 percent of the time needed for manufacturing.

“ABB has been driving industrial change for more than a century as a global pioneering technology leader. As a result of our Next Level strategy, all of our businesses are today number 1 or 2 in their respective markets. To support our customers in a world of unprecedented technological change and digitalization, we must focus, simplify and shape our business for leadership. Today’s actions will create a new ABB, a leader focused in digital industries,” said ABB CEO, Ulrich Spiesshofer.

A Control Design reader writes: I work at an OEM that makes process skids for wastewater treatment and custom agricultural-related machines and equipment. It seems like we have a huge number of suppliers, which affects both design and procurement with too much time spent specifying parts, too many purchase orders and too much time chasing delivery time. We either need to limit the suppliers or find an easier way to specify, order and receive parts. Are there online tools, online stores or portals where the design and purchasing departments can go to select parts and configure systems? I'm looking for a way to automatically generate a parts list or have quick access to standard, fast lead time control components. What are my options for both new, upgrade and spare parts projects?

Powering production in food plants is not as simple as throwing a switch. Peak-time charges, outages, surges and other factors can complicate calculations of cost and reliability and require solutions that go beyond standardizing on premium motors. The good news is that OEMs are delivering solutions on multiple fronts, from systems approaches to power delivery and servo options to sanitary design improvements and smart motors.

In ways big and small, food manufacturing is tapping into the promise and potential of internet-based tools and applications that address some of the most nettlesome problems in plant operations. At least two makers of AC induction motors are introducing moderately priced sensors for monitoring temperature, current and vibration, a capability reserved in years past for large machinery that would have catastrophic consequences if they went down. One of these condition-monitoring tools, the ABB Smart Sensor, soon will be able to continuously relay data to the cloud for analysis and reporting of maintenance alerts.

Greenville-Anderson-Mauldin takes second place due to strong growth in manufacturing employment over the past few years. From 2010 – 2015, the number of manufacturing jobs in the area grew by 37.8%, a figure beaten by only 5% of metro areas in our study. The growth in jobs is accompanied by growing incomes. From 2014 to 2015 the average income for a manufacturing worker here grew by 14.7%. That’s the 13th-fastest rate.

Element material selection is a critical component in the design process for any elastomeric coupling. This is no different for axially split tire elements. Some manufacturers use a high-load-capacity polyurethane bonded to metal clamp rings. At first glance, this material would appear to be a wise choice; polyurethane is a very strong material, and the primary function of a coupling is to transmit torque.

In all aspects of business, having dependable equipment is crucial to ensuring optimal performance and profitability. This couldn’t be truer in the feed and grain industry where time and productivity is of the essence. However, the conditions to which electric motors are exposed to in this environment are very different from typical electric motor applications like warehouses or manufacturing facilities.

ABB has launched Dodge® Food Safe mounted ball bearings, which are designed to withstand caustic, high-pressure cleaning and sanitation processes. The new bearings are the first industrial bearings to achieve the IP69 water protection rating without the use of an end cover, making them ideal for use in the food and beverage industry, where equipment must be aggressively cleaned. They are the only bearings to carry a warranty against failure due to water ingress.

ABB applies industry-leading smart sensor technology to Dodge® mounted bearings to prevent unexpected downtime and extend equipment life. ABB has launched the ABB Ability™ Smart Sensor for Dodge mounted bearings, part of the ABB Ability™ Digital Powertrain, that enables “health checks” for bearings. The smart sensor technology provides an early indicator of any potential problems by assessing the condition of bearings from vibration and temperature information. This helps to prevent downtime on applications such as bulk material handling conveyors typically found in the mining, aggregate and cement industries, as well as applications in the food and beverage and air handling sectors.

Food safety compliance demands equipment that can face the challenges of the food and beverage industry. Food safety violations are on the rise, costing companies thousands, if not millions, to resolve; all while posing a health risk to the public and damaging the company’s reputation. This means that all food processing equipment should be designed, used, and maintained with food safety principals in mind. Yet, many products fail prematurely due to corrosion and/or grease washout from the high pressure, caustic washdowns common in achieving the increasingly stringent cleanliness standards.

We are proud to announce the next generation food safe, stainless steel motor platform for extreme environments within the food and beverage industry. Baldor-Reliance Food Safe motors, designed with smooth contours and advanced sealing, exceed IP69K for water, to maximize motor life in high pressure, sanitary cleaning environments.

The Dodge Hydraulic ISAF (HISAF) mounted spherical roller bearing features a patented built-in hydraulic mounting system that makes this bearing simple to mount and dismount. Hydraulic pressure replaces physical labor, creating a safer and more accurate installation. The ease and precision of installation means less time is spent installing and removing the HISAF, reducing downtime on the equipment and labor costs associated with replacing bearings. Built to the same critical mounting dimensions as the industry standard SAF and SDAF, HISAF is a drop in interchange to existing equipment.

The Quantis product family, a full line of modular gear drives, has expanded to offer four and five stages of gear reduction for all three types of gear arrangements; in-line helical (ILH), offset parallel (MSM) and right angle helical bevel (RHB). Quantis reducers and gearmotors can now be configured in ratios over 7500:1 with an output torque range up to 14,000 Nm, making the new output speed range 20-times greater than before.

Azima, Inc. offered corporate leaders and plant managers a rare glimpse into its proprietary machine-reliability databases, by publishing definitive reliability scores for the industrial motors most commonly deployed around the world today. Azima has ranked not just the world's leading industrial motor brands, but specific models as well. Azima's Reliability Ratings Report (Industrial Motors) is the first installment in a series of forthcoming performance ratings for various classes of industrial rotating machinery. Azima is a fast-growing high-tech company that maximizes industrial productivity. Azima provides technology-powered, data-driven Predictive Maintenance services to hundreds of leading companies in twelve different industries, all over the world.

ABB, a motor and generator manufacturer, developed an impressive recycling program over the past year. Recycling included more than 2,727 tons of scrap metal, wood, used oil, batteries, electronics, lamps, paper, cardboard and plastic. Other non-recyclable waste was turned into energy through their recent Zero Landfill Initiative. The facility worked with their largest supplier to establish a returnable packaging agreement. In 2017, ABB earned more than $265,000 from the sale of its recyclables. When meals were catered to the facility, excess food was donated to the local fire department. To encourage recycling and zero waste, every employee was trained and these initiatives were incorporated into new employee orientation. ABB also participated in the Upstate Lean Alliance, sharing ideas with and mentoring other businesses.

For the 16th year in a row, Control Design Magazine readers has chosen Baldor-Reliance motors as the premier choice in the industrial electric motor category. More than 15,000 readers were invited to access Control Design Magazine confidential ballot to cast their vote in an unaided ballot of their go-to sources for products and service in machine automation.

Tennessee Occupational Health and Safety Administration (TOSHA) officials traveled to Rogersville on Tuesday, March 20, to present the Governor’s Award of Excellence for Workplace Safety and Health to the ABB Rogersville Ball Bearing Plant.

We've now tabulated the Readers' Choice Awards 26 times, for more than a quarter century, and we're starting to see it as an institution—more than a habit, at least a tradition, and we think, a trusted repository of valuable information for process automation professionals who want to know which companies offer the best technology, according to their peers.

Eighteen South Carolina businesses have been recognized by the SC Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation's Division of Labor for their commitment to safety. The Division of Labor's Safety Awards Program is open to all South Carolina Employers.