Which maintenance practice can help diagnose machine misalignment?

Vibration analysis is a key maintenance practice for diagnosing machine misalignment because it allows for a detailed assessment of the vibrations produced by machinery during operation. Misalignment can cause imbalanced forces that lead to abnormal vibration signatures, which can be detected and analyzed. By measuring vibration amplitude and frequency, maintenance personnel can determine if the vibrations fall within acceptable limits or if they indicate misalignment issues.

This practice provides quantitative data and a clear indication of the severity and nature of the misalignment, facilitating timely interventions to prevent further damage to the machinery.

While other maintenance practices, such as frequent lubrication, noise monitoring, and visual inspections, can provide useful information about machine condition, they are not specifically geared toward diagnosing misalignment. Lubrication helps in reducing friction and wear but does not directly indicate alignment issues. Noise monitoring can indicate problems, but the source of the noise may not be conclusively identified as misalignment. Visual inspections may help identify obvious signs of wear or misalignment, but they are subjective and may miss underlying issues that vibration analysis can reveal.