Test & Measurement

Tip of the Week: Keep Your Motors Healthy

Feb. 23, 2015

Do more than minimal maintenance to keep your motors running longer

Maintaining motors entails costs. Labor hours, test equipment, and bearing lubricant are the most obvious ones. And despite maintenance, motors sometimes fail anyhow. For example, a well-maintained motor might burn out due to an undetected voltage imbalance.

You can eliminate these costs by running motors to failure and then replacing them. The problem with that approach is when a motor fails unexpectedly, you get a process interruption until it’s replaced. The costs here can be enormous: lost revenue, paid operators with nothing to operate, generation of scrap, and corollary damage to production equipment.

These same problems crop up when motor maintenance is only partially done. For example, maintaining the motor without maintaining the motor system is why a well-maintained motor burns out due to undetected voltage imbalance.

Think through, then implement, a strategy based on keeping motors healthy rather than doing minimal maintenance.

About the Author

Mark Lamendola

Mark is an expert in maintenance management, having racked up an impressive track record during his time working in the field. He also has extensive knowledge of, and practical expertise with, the National Electrical Code (NEC). Through his consulting business, he provides articles and training materials on electrical topics, specializing in making difficult subjects easy to understand and focusing on the practical aspects of electrical work.

Prior to starting his own business, Mark served as the Technical Editor on EC&M for six years, worked three years in nuclear maintenance, six years as a contract project engineer/project manager, three years as a systems engineer, and three years in plant maintenance management.

Mark earned an AAS degree from Rock Valley College, a BSEET from Columbia Pacific University, and an MBA from Lake Erie College. He’s also completed several related certifications over the years and even was formerly licensed as a Master Electrician. He is a Senior Member of the IEEE and past Chairman of the Kansas City Chapters of both the IEEE and the IEEE Computer Society. Mark also served as the program director for, a board member of, and webmaster of, the Midwest Chapter of the 7x24 Exchange. He has also held memberships with the following organizations: NETA, NFPA, International Association of Webmasters, and Institute of Certified Professional Managers.