vibration analysis

EMDS Motion Camera Alerts Cement Plant

EMDS was called to evaluate the E51FN05 Fan, at an aggregate plant, which had been running smoothly until a defect in the fan bearings necessitated their replacement. Continued abnormal motion was detected around the unit, prompting EMDS to acquire and analyze Motion Amplification Video, alongside traditional velocity and acceleration vibration data. The motor and fan were mounted on a substantial concrete base, supported by below- grade caissons, and surrounded by a concrete apron serving as a walk and work platform. Moisture pressing out around the expansion joints while the fan was operating, and noticeable vibrations underfoot raised concerns. An earlier attempt [...]

EMDS Motion Camera Alerts Cement Plant2025-07-24T11:51:42-04:00

Horner Electro-Mechanical Diagnostic Group – Coal Fired Power Plant Vertical Motor

At Horner Industrial Group, we take pride in our commitment to excellence and preventative maintenance solutions. Recently, our EMDS department had a significant impact on the operations of a coal-fired power plant, showcasing the vital role of hands-on data collection and analysis in preventing potential disasters. Our client, a coal-fired power plant, relies heavily on rotating equipment to maintain its operations. Every month, our vibration technician Joe Roseberry, performs vibration data collection and analysis on all rotating equipment at the plant. One critical piece of equipment under Joe’s watchful eye is an agitator, which plays a crucial role in an environmental [...]

Horner Electro-Mechanical Diagnostic Group – Coal Fired Power Plant Vertical Motor2025-01-15T11:05:08-05:00

Power Plant Shut Down Work

We all know that shutdown work is critical to all customers, how- ever, when we are working for a powerplant the stakes are even higher. Bert Serak sold a lot of shutdown work for a powerplant located in southeastern Ohio. The first job was a 1000 HP motor that had to be rebuilt and returned in 5 days. This motor looked like a UFO when it was lifted by a crane to the rooftop of the plant. The next opportunity was to rebuild a dozen fans and drive motors in 5 days. We sent two trucks to pickup the fans and [...]

Power Plant Shut Down Work2024-11-15T12:56:34-05:00

Chassis Dyno Failure

Horner received a call from a diesel engine company regarding a chassis dyno that had failed. If you do not know, a chassis dyno is a test cell in which a vehicle is driven into and the tires ride on a roll to simulate driving. This particular test cell is a four wheel drive test cell and the customer is measuring emissions of the vehicle. The customer was experiencing issues with the rear assembly. Horner was on-site several times helping the customer identify the problem and determined it would be best for the unit to be pulled and the motor sent [...]

Chassis Dyno Failure2024-11-15T12:59:05-05:00

Agricultural Seed Plant Drying Facility

A company that raises seed corn has two large locations in Northern Indiana. They bring in the corn during harvest season every August to October when its on the ear, which means its wet. The company dries the corn and shells it on site. The company then sells the seed to farmers to grow the following year. These facilities have a bunch of large belt driven fans that are used for the drying process. One plant has 24 and the other 48. Since the facilities only run a few months a year, they sit idle the rest of the year. They [...]

Agricultural Seed Plant Drying Facility2024-11-15T12:59:44-05:00

500 MW Generator Failure: Lesson Be Observant

          A 500 MW generator failed catastrophically, it had an internal short that resulted in a phase to phase short. The generator stopped so suddenly that it sheared off 24 2 ½” bolts in the coupling between the generator and the turbine. The problem was traced to the phase leads resonance shifting to 120HZ as the generator aged. This problem resulted in the annual testing of the phase leads for the unit that had the failure and also on its sister machine. One of the key lessons learned during many hours of testing these generators was that [...]

500 MW Generator Failure: Lesson Be Observant2024-02-28T09:55:34-05:00

Locker Manufacturer Fan Failure

A locker manufacturer in Illinois builds lockers like you would see in schools and employee work areas. They called Horner because they had a fan failure and it caused enough damage to need to be replaced. This fan is part of an oven application that dries the painted locker panels. The fan failed due to fatigue and the fan blades came off and destroyed the fan cone. When this fan was originally built it was installed without consideration of it ever being replaced or repaired. A double wall had to be cut and removed to allow the job to be accomplished. [...]

Locker Manufacturer Fan Failure2023-06-16T13:34:48-04:00

Process Equipment Repair Opportunity

Most customer accounts begin with small motor repair jobs and then graduate to larger motors and driven equipment repair work such as fans, gearboxes and pumps. A few of our customers have specialized process equipment that also needs service work to keep production rolling. One of our customers produces only one product – cellulous fiber, and they cannot make enough of it to satisfy the consumer demand for this product. Cellulose is found in all plant matter. This customer uses large rolls of white paper as their only source of cellulose. The wood pulp in the paper along with the starch [...]

Process Equipment Repair Opportunity2023-03-15T09:57:04-04:00

Aluminum Plant Outage

A major aluminum manufacturer contracts Horner EMDS (Electro Mechanical Diagnostic Services) to perform monthly vibration data collection and analysis. EMDS identified a mill gearbox input shaft bearing issue. In 2022, the monthly vibration analysis indicated the bearing issue increasing. The vibration analysis was discussed with the customer and the vibration data collection increased to twice weekly. At the same time, customer was planning a major outage to on-site repair the gearbox. The March outage was scheduled. Horner provided 24 hour per day, 5-day work schedule. On a Monday the outage started. Mark Rosebrock was lead tech on day shift and Matt [...]

Aluminum Plant Outage2023-03-14T11:27:59-04:00

Office Building Window Vibration

An office building had an open atrium that went from ground level up to the roof. In the center of the atrium was a large flowing fountain. Surrounding the fountain were meeting rooms. Each meeting room had a large plate glass window approximately 8 feet tall and 12 feet wide through which the individuals in the meeting room could view the fountain. The problem was that these large plate glass windows had high levels of vibration. The frequency of the vibration was 240 cycles/minute. The floors and walls were all tested and no significant level of the 240 cpm vibration was [...]

Office Building Window Vibration2023-03-13T10:34:23-04:00

Helpful Resources

Corporate Office

1521 East Washington Street
Indianapolis, Indiana 46201
Phone: (877) 467-6372
Fax: 317-639-4342

Like Us on Facebook!

Follow Us on LinkedIn!

Follow Us on LinkedIn!

© 2025 Horner Industrial Group
Privacy Policy | Transparency In Coverage

Site by Sharp Guys Web Design

About

Products

Services

Locations

Info

Go to Top