Machinery Lubrication magazine published by Noria Corporation
Issue link: http://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/572212
Q: What types of training have you taken to get to your current position? A: I studied Noria's online machinery lubri- cation courses before I transferred into my new job. I then took a four-day training course offered by my oil analysis lab that included a one-day course on how to use the oil analysis database as well as three days on oil analysis and machinery lubrica- tion principles and best practices. I have also attended the Reliable Plant conference the past two years and a three-day lubrica- tion refresher course as part of my recertification requirement. Q: What professional certifica- tions have you attained? A: I hold Level I Machine Lubrication Tech- nician (MLT) and Level II Machine Lubricant Analyst (MLA) certifications from the Inter- national Council for Machinery Lubrication (ICML). I also hold a Power Engineering Fourth Class certificate and a certificate in management skills. Q: Are you planning to obtain addi- tional training or achieve higher certifications? A: I am interested in attaining the MLT II and MLA III certifications. I will also become certified and develop a program for ultrasonic technology later this year. This will be the newest technology to be introduced at our facility and will enhance our reliability depart- ment along with our vibration analysis. Q: What is a normal work day like for you? A: A normal work day always starts with safety first by attending a toolbox safety meeting with our mechanical department. Then our rotating equipment reliability group will meet to discuss any safety or mechanical issues that need to be addressed. The rest of the day is used to perform predictive maintenance (PdM) scheduled tasks, which include lubrication inspections, mechanical integrity routes, and maintenance tasks such as scheduled oil changes and oil filter and desiccant breather changes. Other tasks involve collecting oil samples, analyzing results and acting upon any deficiencies that have been detected. I also find time to manage the lubrication survey for our rotating equip- ment, control inventory levels and set up lubrication-related PMs. Q: What is the amount and range of equipment you help service through lubrication/oil analysis tasks? A: We average 50 oil samples a month at our facility. I help service air compressors, carbon-dioxide compressors, high-pressure ammonia pumps, turbo machinery, process pumps, gearboxes, conveyor belts, shaker screens, rotating drums, blowers and elec- tric motors. Q: On what lubrication-related projects are you currently working? A: I am working on a large project to improve the cleanliness of our incoming oil. It started with a complete housecleaning of the lube room. I have had the walls painted and the floor coated to reduce the dust. The next step is to start using high-efficiency oil filtration pumps with particle counters to clean up our incoming oil to a specific ISO code before introducing it into our machinery. I have started working with our oil filter distributor to audit our machinery to establish ISO cleanliness specifications and improve our filtering, air and water ingression, and best sampling practices. The next phase is to upgrade all of our machinery oil filters to high-efficient filters After 18 years of shift work at the Koch Fertilizer facility in Manitoba, Canada, Todd Misanchuk decided that a change was needed when the lubrication technician position became available at the plant. Once he started performing lubrication tasks, he soon discov- ered that he truly enjoyed what he was doing and that the different machines around the plant required specific lubricants and attention. This was a completely new field for Misan- chuk, but he embraced the change and the challenge. Misanchuk was given the opportunity to receive the education he needed and was encouraged to continue to forge a path to success. Misanchuk, Koch Embracing Change in Lubrication Practices Name Todd Misanchuk Age 51 Job Title Machinery Lubrication Technician and Analyst Company Koch Fertilizer Location Manitoba, Canada Length of Service 25 years 36 | September - October 2015 | www.machinerylubrication.com GET to KNOW