Laser Centering

Intense vibrations of the rotating equipment create an undesirable level of noise, damage to the bearings and bearing housing, damage to the equipment foundations, the electric motor etc.
The most common cause of an increase in vibrations is a misaligment of the drive and driven axle. (shaft and axle)

When the shafts of two machines are joined together by their couplings, we have to try and correct the misaligned axles as this misalignment leads to damage of the bearings and seals, of connections as well as unnecessary energy loss.

The use of the laser for measuring and correcting the alignment of axles is very quick and the most precise method available.

Regular maintenance is useful when checking alignment (by measuring the spectrum of vibrations or directly with laser equipment) and if necessary, correcting alignment with the laser so that machinery lasts longer and works more reliably.

Laser centring of 1MW turbo-compressor shaft

There are a couple of methods for correcting the alignment (centering) of shafts. One of these includes the “more or less” method, which includes placing a ruler across the joint, the use of a comparator and laser centering equipment. Every method gives results of a different precision, whereby the use of the comparator is the most time-consuming.

By the use of laser geometric measurement and aligment equipment for corrective measures, we can very quickly and precisely achieve the following:

  • checking the aligment of the axles
  • centering axles while taking into consideration the dilatation of the machinery during activity
  • centering a series of axles while minimally moving the machinery
  • correcting propeller shafts
  • measuring the “straightness” and deflection of long shafts
  • measuring and aligning the position of pulleys

Besides the aforementioned, the use of a laser enables us to very quickly reassess the position of the shafts after their implementation on new machinery, that is, whether the parts were assembled as per the specifications of the manufacturer.

Laser pulley aligment

Laser pulley aligment

With the correct usage, the use of the laser in geometric measurement and alignment can save (you) time and money.  By implementing these kinds of corrective measures, we can achieve:

  • the elimination of vibrations
  • a reduction of maintenance costs
  • a reduction of down time

The laboratory at RWlab has the most modern equipment of the manufacturer Fixturlaser for the laser geometric measurement of machinery and for correcting the aligment of axles, as well as having equipment of the manufacturer SKF, for ensuring the parallelism of pulleys.