Where do you go to find new suppliers for your power transmission projects? Where do you test drive the latest technologies available?

We just returned from WEFTEC — the premier U.S. water and wastewater management show. Our recent discussion (Game Changer) highlighted the negative impact of low oil prices.

At SKF, we believe in the longterm development of the U.S. industrial economy. The reindustrialization is supported by a strong university-based research network, a competitive workforce and energy supply from domestic energy resources. However, there are still challenges, particularly regarding the availability of skilled labor. Business, education and governments have a responsibility to work together to ensure this is not the bottleneck in U.S. industrial development. I am particularly pleased with and support the work the National Association of Manufacturers is doing in this area.

Implementing a predictive maintenance (PM) program can be tough. Despite its proven success, many companies have been operating the same way for over 50 years and don’t know where to start. Understanding where to start and where to focus is critical. The intention of this article is to give insight to start and sustain an effective program using today’s technology and devices.

Reader John Pellegrino looks for advice on his pursuit of a positively engaged continuously variable transmission.

This letter to the editor from Joe T. Franklin, Jr., president of AGMA, first appeared in the May 2010 issue of Gear Technology.