Condition Monitoring with Jack Poley

In this episode, Jack Poley, Technical Director for Kittiwake-Americas, describes his view of the Condition Monitoring field and provides some information on the CM Education Course that will be given at the 2011 STLE Annual Meeting.

Listen to hear what Jack has to say about the course - providing you with an inside look at the course itself, including: course instructors, the intended audience, topical coverage and some helpful tips that you can apply in your work. The course includes four modules:

• Why Condition Monitoring with Chad Chichester, Dow Corning


• Basics of a CBM Program with Evan Zabawski, FluidLife


• Oil Analysis Tests and Data Evaluation with Jack, CMI


• Failure Modes and Data Integration with Allison Toms, GasTops

Click the "play" button on the slider bar to play the episode in your screen, or if that doesn't work, you can click here to play or download the episode. If you prefer, you can read or translate the interview transcript by clicking here. Visit our website for more information on condition monitoring, this and other education courses, and the 2011 Annual Meeting, which will be held in Atlanta, Georgia. Jack writes a bi-monthly feature on Condition Monitoring for TLT, so make sure you check out the last issue. TLT is a wealth of information, as you can see from these previously published articles:

• CM - The Land of Acronyms


• Oil Analysis: Past, Present & Future: Part I


• Oil Analysis: Past, Present & Future: Part II

Remember, STLE has a depth and breadth of knowledge and resources on a variety of topics, and our website is always a great place to start your search.

Learn About Grease with Chuck Coe

In this episode, Chuck Coe, Owner/Founder of Grease Technology Solutions LLC, discusses grease and the Annual Meeting Education Course, Grease 101, which covers basic grease concepts. This course is held jointly with NLGI, the National Lubricating Grease Institute.

Chuck is the Education Course Committee Chair for STLE, the Vice President of NLGI, and the Technical Committee Co-Chair for NLGI. He holds both the NLGI CLGS and the STLE CLS designations. For this course, Chuck will teach the first module, which offers an introduction and background on greases, to be followed by instructors covering many topics including: base oils, grease manufacturing, grease testing, grease selection, applications, and problem solving. If you deal with greases, you will hear why this course is one you cannot afford to miss.

Click the "play" button (triangle shape on the right) on the slider bar to play the episode in your screen, or if that doesn't work (due to security settings or computer configuration), you can click here to either play or download the episode. If you prefer, you can read the transcript by clicking here. If you download the text, you will be able to translate it for your use.

You can visit our website for more information on grease, this or other education courses, and the 2011 STLE Annual Meeting. To get some background information before the course, you can read the TLT article, "Understanding Grease Construction and Function." If you have questions, you can contact us at information@stle.org.

Your Personal Tour Guide to Atlanta, Georgia

In this episode, Art Vogel, Treasurer and Committee Member of the STLE Local Section in Atlanta, provides a personal tour of his city and offers some travel tips, places to visit and even good restaurants where you can get authentic Southern cooking. To listen to what Art has to say, click play on the slider bar above, or click on this link to download the episode. You can also read the transcript here.

In the episode, Art mentions several places, and you can check them out for yourself by visiting their websites:
Places to eat:

• Pitty Pat's Porch: authentic Southern cooking


• Nikolai's Roof: French cuisine, reservations highly suggested


• The Varsity: world's largest drive-in, retro decor

Places to visit:

• Stone Mountain Park: one of the largest masses of exposed granite; one of the 7 Wonders of Georgia. Has a train, boating, hiking, golf courses, and a large sculpture


• Inside CNN Tour: get an inside look at CNN and its operations at its world headquarters


• The World of Coca-Cola: try different, global versions of Coke at this unique attraction


• Atlanta Cyclorama: a 3-D panorama that depicts the Civil War Battle of Atlanta

Don't forget to register for the Annual Meeting! For more ideas on what to see, where to go, and how to save money, you can visit Southern Hospitality Savings, which has some discounts on local attractions. Visit our website to register and explore the Annual Meeting details, including more information on activities and events you can attend while in Atlanta. We hope to see you there!

If you are looking for solid business reasons to attend the Annual Meeting, you can read: A Business Case for STLE's Annual Meeting written by STLE's Director of Professional Development, Robert Gresham. The Annual Meeting is a great networking event, and will propel your company and your career. It's not all business, though. You can have a little fun while you are in town, so take full advantage of everything the 2011 Annual Meeting has to offer!

Synthetics with Gregory Bell

In this episode we talk to Gregory Bell, Senior Engineering Associate with Dupont Performance Lubricants. We discuss synthetics including their definition, their use, and advantages. We also talk about the upcoming Annual Meeting Education Courses - Synthetics 203 and Synthetics 204. Find out what the course covers, the intended audience for each course, and reasons to attend. Greg is one of the Synthetics 203 instructors and will provide a peek into both courses, his module, and the field of synthetics as a whole.

In these Annual Meeting courses, each instructor brings their own personal experience into the classroom and provides unique tips and insight that they have picked up from their work. See what Greg's tip is when it comes to synthetics and fluorinated lubricants.

Click on the "play" button to start the episode from this screen, download the episode here, or open the transcript and translate the text into another language.

If you want to learn more about synthetics, you can visit our website for more news, information and research. You can also read the following articles that appeared in STLE's monthly member magazine, TLT, also called Tribology & Lubrication Technology.

• "Defining Synthetic Lubricants" by R. David Whitby, author of the Worldwide features


• "Synthetic Lubricants: Perception vs. Reality" by Charles Barrett, CLS

April Webinar on Hydraulics: Open for Registration!

The latest webinar in the Industry Insight series will cover The Role of Fluids in Compact and Efficient Fluid Power Systems. The live webinar event will take place Wednesday, April 20, 2011, at 12:00 p.m. Central (CDT). The presentation will last for 60 minutes, including 15 minutes of Q&A (12:00-1:00 p.m. Central). A bonus Q&A Session will be provided from 1:00-1:30 p.m. Central (CDT). The extended Q&A will be available for those wishing to stay on the line and ask their questions, but for those with other commitments, the recording will capture the additional information and will be available for your review post-event.

You can submit questions ahead of time to get them integrated into the presentation by visiting your STLE University Training Menu and posting a discussion topic. You can also send us an email or leave a comment below.

The presentation will be given by Professor Kim Stelson, Director of the Center for Compact and Efficient Fluid Power (CCEFP). The live webinar will cover fluid power, looking at the future of the field with the case studies of wind energy and hydraulic hybrid vehicles.

You can view the flyer for more information, or click here to register for the event. The registration deadline for the live event is Monday, April 18, 2011. There is limited space available. To ensure your participation, you MUST register before this date. Registrations will not be accepted after this date, except by advance request, and only if there is space available.

Attending will not only allow you to learn this vital information, but you can also earn 1.0 STLE ECs (Education Credits) for your full participation. ECs may be used toward recertification.

For more details, you can contact us at university@stle.org.

Metalworking Fluids and Chemical Additives

In this episode, Dr. Neil Canter, Owner and Founder of Chemical Solutions, provides his perspective and input on the Metalworking Fluid Hot Topics course that will be offered at the 2011 STLE Annual Meeting. The course includes many modules, and we talked previously with Dr. Fred Passman on his module about microbicides. You can listen to that episode by clicking on the posting below.

Dr. Canter covers chemical additives and green chemistry in the course, and in this episode, you can hear what he has to say about the course and his reasons to attend.

Click the "play" button (triangle shape on the right) on the slider bar to play the episode in your screen, or if that doesn't work (mainly due to nuances in security settings or computer configuration), you can click here to download the episode. If you prefer, you can read the transcript by clicking here. If you download the text, you will be able to translate it for your use.
Visit our website for more information on metalworking fluids, chemical additives, this education course, and the Annual Meeting. You can also read this previously published TLT article, "The Mysterious World of MWF Additives" to get some background on the topic. This month's TLT is also packed full of articles on metalworking and metalworking fluids, and it is available to everyone as a digital resource. Dr. Canter's article, "Monitoring Metalworking Fluids," is included in this month's issue. If you have questions, our website and TLT are two good places to start.

What are YOUR hot topics? Whether you're attending or not, what do you think really matters to the metalworking fluid industry right now? Leave us a comment below and get the discussion going.

Metalworking Fluid Microbicides

In the latest episode, Dr. Fred Passman, President & Founder of Biodeterioration Control Associates, Inc., discusses metalworking fluids, microbicides, and recent EPA actions that will impact the use of microbicides. He also provides some detail on the 2011 STLE Annual Meeting, and the education courses provided. For the Annual Meeting Education Course, Metalworking Fluid Hot Topics, Dr. Passman will be teaching one of the course modules.

To listen, click the play button in the slider bar above, click here to download the episode, or click here to read the transcript. Visit our website for more information about the Annual Meeting including education courses offered. You can read Microbial Problems in Metalworking Fluids by Dr. Passman for more information on the topic.

If you're planning on attending this course, tell us by leaving a comment below. You can provide as much or as little detail as you want - including where you're at in your career, why you're going to the course, and what you hope to learn. Make some connections before the course starts, and get a chance to get the discussion going before the course is in session!

March Webinar: Bearing Damage Analysis

The latest Webinar in the Industry Insight series will cover Bearing Damage Analysis. The Webinar is set for Wednesday, March 16, 2011, at 12:00 p.m. Central (CST). The presentation will last for 60 minutes, including 15 minutes devoted to Q&A. We got such a positive response about the bonus Q&A session provided with the last Webinar that we are including it for this event as well! This extended Q&A will last from 1:00-1:30 p.m. Central (CST) and will be available for those wishing to stay on the line and ask their questions. For those who have other commitments, the recording will capture the additional information and will be available for your review post-event. You can also submit questions ahead of time to get them integrated into the presentation. You can do so through the Discussion Forum on your Training Menu, by sending us an email, or by leaving a comment below.

The presentation will be given by Dr. Paul Shiller, Tribological Specialist with the Tribology and Next Generation Materials Group at the Timken Technology Center. He has a Ph.D. in Physical Chemistry and an M.S. in Chemical Engineering. He has received the Shell Lubricants Award for Instructor Excellence from NLGI. He is a member of STLE, ACS, and SOR.

The live Webinar event will cover bearing damage analysis. Bearing maintenance and proper analysis are the keys to keeping equipment up and running, optimizing performance and decreasing downtime. The purpose of this presentation is to help identify some of the more common types of bearing damage, explain possible causes, discuss corrective actions, and cover methods used to discover the root causes of bearing damage and how that relates to improved performance.

You can view the flyer for more information, or click here to register for the event. The registration deadline for the live event is Monday, March 14, 2011. There is limited space available. To ensure your participation, you MUST register before this date. Registrations will not be accepted after this date, except by advance request, and only if there is space available. Attending will not only allow you to learn this vital information, but you can also earn 1.0 ECs (STLE Education Credits) for your full participation. ECs may be used towards recertification.

For more details, please contact us at university@stle.org.

Tribology of Interface Layers and Powder Lubrication with Dr. Hooshang Heshmat

"From the Cradle to the Grave - Learn, From the Powder to the Coating - Inferno" is the title of the latest episode where STLE interviews Dr. Hooshang Heshmat, a Leading Founder and Technical Director at Mohawk Innovative Technology, Inc. (MiTi). His pioneering research work, along with his published articles, papers and books, has generated a scientific field within the field of tribology known as powder lubrication or third-body lubrication. He posits that "under appropriate geometries, powders behave in a similar way to liquid lubricants, thus, generating a hydrodynamic-like pressure, and consequently, a load capacity." Powder lubrication can be used in applications for extreme environments, and Dr. Heshmat explores this notion in the interview, as well as providing detail on his new book, Tribology of Interface Layers.

Click on the slider bar to play the episode in your screen, download the episode, or read the transcript. You can also extend the interview experience by reading the 20 Minutes article on Dr. Heshmat.

You can get even more by reading the book review written by Dr. Robert Gresham that appeared in the October 2010 issue of TLT. You can purchase the book from our website, and if you are a member, you will receive a discount! See the flyer for more information. You can get more information about the book by visiting the publisher, CRC Press, at their website. Complete the overall experience by viewing photos from the book signing below.

Registration Open for February's Webinar on Condition Monitoring

The latest Webinar in the Industry Insight series will address Data Interpretation in Condition Monitoring. The Webinar is set for Wednesday, February 16, 2011, at 12:00 p.m. Central. This special presentation will last for 90 minutes, with 30 minutes of that time devoted to Q&A. With this event, STLE is introducing a new feature: a bonus Q&A session. This extended Q&A will last from 1:30-2:00 p.m. and will be available for those who wish to stay on the line. For those who have other commitments, the recording will capture the additional information and will be available for their review post-event.

The presentation will be given by Evan Zabawski, Education & Training Manager at Fluid Life. Evan is a Fourth Class Power Engineer with a degree in Chemical Engineering. He has been an STLE member for over 10 years, he is the Chair of the STLE-Alberta Section, an instructor for STLE's Annual Meeting Education Course on Condition Monitoring, and Editor of TLT Magazine.

This Webinar presentation will bring clarity and understanding to evaluating and interpreting oil analysis data into meaningful information directly related to the condition of the operating equipment. It examines many of the various fluid testing procedures, including a brief look at the purpose and limitations of each tests, to help provide better value from used oil analysis.

View the flyer for more information, or click here to register for the event. The registration deadline is set for Monday, February 14, 2011. There is limited space available. In order to ensure your participation, please register before this date. For full participation in the Webinar, you will receive 1.5 Education Credits (ECs) which may be used towards recertification. For details, please contact us at university@stle.org.