The Reliability Maintenance Institute® introduces new training delivery options and courses.The doctor is in the house. And SKF® customers can now take advantage of an outstanding remedy for their machine reliability ailments.
SKF has expanded training options offered by the company’s Reliability Maintenance Institute (RMI), the industry’s premiere source of training for machine reliability and maintenance practices. Now available is a new on-site mentoring program that can bring training directly to customer sites. The RMI skills training program has also been broadened with a number of new and expanded courses.
   Courses offered by the RMI are designed to help companies improve productivity, extend machine life and get the most from new technologies by enhancing the skills of operators and maintenance professionals. The RMI also offers courses for management and executive level professionals.
   “At the request of customers, we now offer a mentoring program that brings specific machine, product or technology training directly to customer sites,” says SKF Manager of Reliability Maintenance Training Joe Bruno. “This enables us to train employees in the exact technologies, machines and environment they deal with every day.”
   Other additions to the RMI’s offerings include a program designed to help employees effectively implement changing technologies and cultures, an apprenticeship course in basic bearing maintenance, and expanded training for those who want to move beyond basic bearing maintenance to bearing selection, retrofitting and redesign.
Here’s a look at what’s new from the RMI:

Site mentor on-site training
This program places an RMI instructor and/or technical expert side-by-side with your employees, at your location. Training is provided in the specific skills they need in bearings, precision skills or condition monitoring. While at your site, RMI instructors can also assess maintenance skills and practices to identify improvement opportunities and training needs. Hands-on site mentoring is the most practical and effective training program available for implementing world-class skills within an organization.

Management courses
Proactive Change for Reliability
Implementing new technologies and practices can only be effective if employees understand the benefits of change and the value of embracing new technologies and methods of operation. This course teaches effective management and leadership processes and behaviors that can smooth the way for changes in reliability and proactive maintenance practices. The course covers common mistakes made when trying to change and improve; an eight-stage process for creating major organizational change; the effects of change on team development and productivity; and situational leadership behavior for managers.

Proactive Maintenance Planning/
Scheduling and Work Management
Effective work planning lays the foundation for productivity. This course is designed for anyone who supports the work management process, including maintenance planners and schedulers, maintenance supervisors, superintendents and managers. Information and skills training provided through this program will enhance efficiency and effectiveness in the important areas of planning, scheduling, parts acquisition, coordination and measurement.

Skills enhancement courses
Bearing Maintenance Apprenticeship
For years, the RMI’s bearing maintenance course has provided an introduction to bearing basics. This has now been expanded to include more in-depth training. The new apprenticeship program moves beyond the basics, covering advanced rolling element bearing maintenance and service techniques used with typical industrial rotating machinery. The program starts with bearing fundamentals including types, shaft and housing fits, shaft and housing repair techniques, and factors affecting performance. Further instruction is provided with hands-on mounting and dismounting, proper lubrication techniques, bearing troubleshooting and failure analysis.

Bearing Maintenance
A condensed version of the RMI’s traditional three-day basic bearing maintenance and reliability course, this program covers the key fundamentals of rolling element bearing technologies in just two days.
   The course serves as a basic introduction to bearing types, nomenclature, components, terminology and loads; factors effecting performance; and proper techniques for mounting and dismounting.

Bearing Selection for Machine Reliability
Proper bearing selection is key to improving the operational reliability of rotating equipment. This course encourages participants to bring design problems or applications with them to learn specific techniques for redesign or optimization. Ideal for engineering, reliability, and maintenance staff of industrial plants, the course trains participants to: specify and size the best bearing arrangement; verify the capability of current bearing designs; and optimize performance of existing applications. The course also details how to ensure operational reliability through proper assembly and repair practices; lubrication and maintenance techniques; and use of condition monitoring.

MARLIN™ and Machine Analyst
Collecting and monitoring machine vibration and temperature data is critical to reliability and performance. The Marlin data collection system and Machine Analyst data management display and reporting system, are outstanding SKF tools for basic condition monitoring. This course provides an introduction to the Marlin and Machine Analyst systems, including setup and utilization.

TWSA650/C Laser Shaft Alignment
The importance of precision alignment, the adverse affects of misalignment, and the solutions offered through the SKF TWSA650/C Laser Shaft Alignment system are emphasized in this program. The course enables attendees to apply the Laser Shaft Alignment system to achieve precision alignment through a process of pre-alignment inspections, proactive alignment moves and final checks and corrections.

Computer-based training products
SKF now brings two outstanding training aids right to your desktop, with new products available in CD Rom format.

Vibration Diagnostics CD
This CD provides a handy reference for maintenance and engineering staff, and a refresher for recent RMI course students. The CD contains typical vibration spectra that determine the operating condition of rotating machines, and guides the analyst in diagnosing a wide array of potential problems. Key features include: illustrations of typical vibration spectra; text elaborating on symptoms that normally accompany the 44 machine problems covered; and drawings illustrating how phase reacts when such problems are predominant.

Machinery Balancing CD
Recommended for individuals who are new to balancing, this CD provides a full course of instruction on basic machinery balancing concepts, considerations, terminology and procedures.
   After completing the course, users will be able to determine: whether imbalance is the problem; the type of imbalance; the number of correction planes necessary to balance; whether to balance in-place or on a balancing machine; required balancing equipment; and basic balancing procedures.

For additional information about the Reliability Maintenance Institute, call (717) 646-2900. Or visit www.skfusa.com/rmi/