Run one non-measuring mock setup at the stopped machine. Identify both mounting positions, trace the reference path, and test whether rotation and operator access can coexist. Classify the result as ready with named items, ready after a specific obstruction is removed, or not ready. Resolve exceptions on site before making a hire enquiry.
Alignment equipment access is ready for a hire discussion when the intended measurement positions can be reached and the mounting surfaces are known. The narrower task is to find physical setup failures before equipment is sent: blocked sight lines, insufficient clearance, unsuitable mounting material, an immovable shaft or a missing reference surface.
These alignment equipment mounting checks are deliberately separate from full shutdown planning. They do not allocate users, records, permits or sequencing. They answer one product-independent question: can a measuring arrangement be physically established at the prepared machine?
Walk the intended measurement path at the machine
Begin at the first proposed sensor position and trace the space that the measuring components, brackets and line of sight would occupy. Use the machine’s expected workfront, not a photograph taken with guards or adjacent equipment in a different state.
Look for four forms of physical interruption:
- no safe route to the intended mounting position;
- a guard, casing, pipe, coupling feature or temporary work occupying the required space;
- insufficient clearance around the shaft, coupling or reference feature; or
- no usable relationship between the intended measuring positions.
Record the obstruction and its location. “Limited access” is too broad for the site checklist. “Pipework leaves only a narrow flange face on the inboard side” identifies the constraint that the site must resolve in its mounting plan.
Identify the surface before choosing a bracket
The alignment bracket and shim range includes compact chain-type, compact magnetic, sliding magnetic, extra-thin, magnetic bolt-hole and Cardan brackets. Those names represent different mounting dependencies, not interchangeable items.
For every intended position, record the surface material, available width, shaft or coupling diameter where relevant, and whether the component can rotate. Include a current photograph with a scale reference where site rules allow. A nominal machine model cannot reveal a local obstruction or a replaced coupling.
The compact magnetic bracket shows why surface facts matter. It is intended for ferromagnetic surfaces and can sit on coupling flanges or shaft faces, including narrow coupling flanges. If the available surface is non-ferromagnetic, inaccessible or too irregular for the proposed contact, a magnetic bracket name cannot solve the setup.
This is a go/no-go observation, not a supplier selection. The site must check any named alternative against the actual geometry.
Treat rotation and reference access as separate checks
A measuring position can be reachable while the required movement or reference remains unavailable. Record whether the relevant shaft can rotate under the site’s planned condition and whether the reference face, bore or line can be seen from the proposed setup.
For a shaft relationship, check both sides of the coupling. One accessible face does not prove that the paired measuring arrangement can be mounted or viewed. For a bore or geometric task, identify the start and end reference positions and any casing step, internal obstruction or change of diameter between them.
An accessory name is not a workaround. “Cardan bracket” establishes an equipment family, while “extra-thin bracket” signals a clearance-focused option. Neither proves compatibility with the machine in front of the planner. The physical record should be detailed enough for the proposed item to be checked without guessing.
Distinguish a fixable obstruction from a failed workfront
Classify each setup problem by what must change before measurement could be discussed:
- Clear before hire: a temporary obstruction or incomplete workfront prevents access to an otherwise identified position.
- Measure before hire: surface width, diameter, clearance or reference dimensions are missing.
- Resolve the mounting concept: the available surface material, rotation condition or geometry conflicts with the assumed bracket type.
- Reconsider the measurement position: no accessible pair of positions or reference path exists in the planned machine state.
This short classification prevents an accessory enquiry from concealing a basic access failure. It also keeps the result product-independent. The site can change the workfront, supply missing dimensions or establish another position before naming an accessory.
Make a go or no-go access decision
The access review is complete when each intended measurement position has:
- a current machine-state photograph or sketch;
- surface material and usable mounting dimensions;
- clearance and obstruction notes;
- shaft-rotation status where relevant; and
- the visible relationship to the paired sensor or reference position.
The decision is “ready to name the items” only when those facts describe a physically credible setup path. It is “no-go for the current workfront” when a required position, reference or clearance remains unavailable. Neither result transfers the fit decision to the hire enquiry.
After a go decision, the specialist alignment equipment hire range identifies the literal equipment category. The access record should identify the paired positions as well as the individual mounting surfaces, since a workable bracket at one point does not establish a complete measuring relationship.
Prove the mounting arrangement at the machine
A useful field trial is literal: place the proposed bracket position against the real casing, confirm surface contact and clearance, and check whether the measurement line remains unobstructed through the required movement.
A mounting trial at the machine should precede the hire commitment. Once the bracket or alignment accessory is named, arrange its hire through Aquip. Materially different machine arrangements require separate trials; an accessory list assembled away from the workfront cannot establish a physical result. Confirm the window and included pieces.
Record the actual mounting face, clearance result and any obstruction beside the machine reference. Include the bracket orientation, usable contact area and the line-of-sight constraint that mattered during the trial. Where a guard or coupling position changes the available geometry, state the exact machine condition under which the trial was completed.
Repeat the trial for materially different machine arrangements rather than copying the first result across the shutdown list. Close the check with the physical mounting result at the machine, not with an accessory list assembled away from the workfront.