Bloch, Heinz P.
Heinz P. Bloch resides in Montgomery, Texas. He retired as Exxon Chemical’s Regional Machinery Specialist for the U.S. and has authored or co-written more than 780 publications, among them 23 comprehensive books on practical machinery management, failure analysis, failure avoidance, compressors, steam turbines, pumps, oil mist lubrication and optimized lubrication for industry. Mr. Bloch holds BS and MS degrees (cum laude) in mechanical engineering from the Newark College of Engineering (NCE). He is one of 10 inaugural inductees into NCE’s Hall of Fame, which honors its most distinguished alumni.
HP Reliability: Can integrally geared compressors be successfully used with variable speeds?
A recent HP webinar answered a number of compressor-related questions. This same webinar also generated a few additional ones. A viewer thought that two statements from this presentation were in contr..
HP Reliability: Consider technology-based specialized industrial services
Most downstream professions have heard of (or personally experienced) glitches in activities involving offshoring and outsourcing. Too often, some maintenance and purchasing agents travel the “go..
HP Reliability: Consider suspended-access scaffolding
You may always have left scaffolding and access-to-work questions to an outside contractor to make the final decisions. But plant safety and timely work completion are everybody’s business. As a ..
Update on secondary seals for fluid machines
Elastomer-based O-rings are used as secondary sealing components in millions of fluid machines. Although O-ring seals are primarily intended for fluid containment between different but nonrotating com..
HP Reliability: Advances in gasket designs making progress
Long service life and maintenance cost avoidance for equipment are of great interest to reliability professionals in the hydrocarbon processing industry. These goals are supported by a renowned gasket..
HP Reliability: Things to know and do before starting new initiatives
HP editors frequently attend technical conferences to keep informed on the many factors impacting the hydrocarbon processing industry (HPI). The focus of these conferences often differs. However, one ..
HP Reliability: Normalization of deviance can kill
On January 28, 1986, the space shuttle Challenger (mission STS-51-L) broke apart just 73 seconds after launch. The seven-member crew of the shuttle lived until 3 minutes and 58 seconds after launch, w..
Reliability tips for centrifugal process pumps
The pump’s behavior can be likened to that of a manual transmission in an automobile. While a car can be driven 80 mph in first gear, it would be a mistake to do this for an hour or so.
HP Reliability: Make equipment decisions with up-to-date technical information
Answering lube practice-related questions is important. These questions provide insight on the status of education and technology, along with trends in understanding equipment reliability, safety and ..
HP Reliability: Small deviations can compromise equipment reliability
In 2013, a major refinery was experiencing serious pump problems. The refinery had a massive thrust-bearing failure on a critical 3,560-rpm pump. The pump was designed and manufactured by a well-known..
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