Machinery Lubrication magazine published by Noria Corporation
Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/490438
Frandsen Works to Improve Lubrication Practices at Compass Minerals Name blaine Frandsen Age 54 Job Title Senior reliability Engineer Company Compass Minerals Location Ogden, Utah Length of Service 1 year gET to knoW 50 March - April 2015 | www.machinerylubrication.com Q: How did you get your start in machinery lubrication? A: I was involved with lubrication at ATK/Thiokol for 23 years. My main concern was with the reus- able solid rocket motor (RSRM) O-rings and seal surface preserva- tion. We looked at grease that not only had to be clean but also last for a minimum of five years after installation. It had to have a shelf life of 20 years. A lot of testing efforts had been completed to find a grease that would hold up in any conditions, from the dry climate of Utah to the high-hu- midity climate of Florida. Later at Rio Tinto's Kennecott division, I was involved as a superintendent over reliability where I had five engineers and two predictive maintenance (PdM) technicians reporting to me. We were over the entire human capital management (HCM) program at the refinery, from lubricant selection to the kind of filter to use as well as oil sampling and oil replacement. Here at Compass Minerals, I have been asked to oversee two lube techs as well as implement best lubrication practices. But it's not just on my shoulders to make this call. I work with and am supported by five or six others who have a lot of knowledge. We all work very well together as a team. Q: What types of training have you taken to get to your current position? A: With ATK/Thiokol, it was a lot of hands-on training, collabo- rating with NASA and our vendors, and then performing tests and analyzing results. Kennecott had the money and management support to send people out or bring people in for training. Most of my guys had been through all of the Noria training as well as other certified training over the years, and I would consider them to be at the top of their fields. Compass Minerals has stepped up big over the last two years in making improvements. The lube techs have been through Noria's online training, and a lot of money has been spent on the new lube building, filtration units, oil sampling, air breathers and sample ports. Q: What professional certifi- cations have you attained? A: At this time, I do not have any lubrication certifications, but those around me over the years have had lube and HCM certifica- tions. I have learned a lot from them and have supported them in any way they needed. Q: Are you planning to obtain additional training or achieve any certifications? A: We have planned for training this year, and a budget has been set up to obtain certification training for at least the four of us involved with the lubrication efforts. Q: What is the amount and range of equipment that you help service through lubri- cation/oil analysis tasks? A: We have more than 1,000 gear- boxes and pumps, ranging from gearboxes as small as 1 gallon in size to as big as those that can Be Featured in the Next 'get to know' Section WOULD yOU LIKE TO bE FEaTUrED In THE nExT "GET TO KnOW" section or know someone who should be profiled in an upcoming issue of Machinery Lubrication magazine? nominate yourself or fellow lubrication professionals by emailing a photo and contact information to editor@noria.com. blaine Frandsen's job as a senior reliability engineer at compass Minerals is all about making improve- ments. this includes overseeing any lubrication problems that arise. Frandsen meets at least once a week with his lube technicians to discuss lubrication improvement projects such as tagging of equipment, instal- lation of sample ports, new kinds of breathers and quick-fill breathers on mobile equipment. With four lubrication routes that must be completed each day and nearly 200 oil samples to collect each month, he has found that there are always new ways of improving and eliminating lubrication issues.