Industrial machineries foundation

Industrial Machinery Foundation
INTRODUCTION
The dynamics of machine-foundation system is an involved task in itself and consideration of
earthquake effects further adds to its complexity. The performance, safety and stability of machines
depend largely on their design, manufacturing and interaction with environment. In principle machine
foundations should be designed such that the dynamic forces of machines are transmitted to the soil
through the foundation in such a way that all kinds of harmful effects are eliminated (Barkan, 1962;
Bhatia, 1984, 2006, 2008; Major, 1980; Prakash and Puri, 1988; Srinivasulu and Vaidyanathan, 1980). In
the past, simple methods of calculation were used, most often involving the multiplication of static loads
by an estimated dynamic factor and the result being treated as an increased static load without any
knowledge of the actual safety factor. Because of this uncertainty, the value of the adopted dynamic factor
was usually too high, although practice showed that during operation harmful deformations did result in
spite of using such excessive factors. This necessitated a deeper scientific investigation of dynamic
loading. A more detailed study became urgent because of the development of machines of higher
capacities (Bhatia, 1984).
Machines of higher ratings gave rise to considerably higher stresses thereby posing problems with
respect to performance and safety. This called for development partly in the field of vibration technique
and partly in that of soil mechanics. Hence new theoretical procedures were developed for calculating the
dynamic response of foundations (Bhatia, 2006).
Based on the scientific investigations carried out in the last few decades it has been established that it
is not enough to base the design only on the vertical loads multiplied by a dynamic factor, even if this
factor introduces a dynamic load many times greater than the original one. It should be remembered that
operation of the machines generates not only vertical forces, but also forces acting perpendicular to the
axis; it is thus not enough to take into account the vertical loads only and to multiply those by a selected
dynamic factor (Bhatia, 2006, 2008). It has also been found that the suitability of machine foundations
depends not only on the forces to which they will be subjected to, but also on their behaviour, when
14 Foundations for Industrial Machines and Earthquake Effects
exposed to dynamic loads, which depends on the speed of the machine and natural frequency of the
foundation. Thus a vibration analysis becomes necessary. Each and every machine foundation does
require detailed vibration analysis providing insight into the dynamic behaviour of foundation and its
components for satisfactory performance of the machine. The complete knowledge of load-transfer
mechanism from the machine to the foundation and also the complete knowledge of excitation forces and
associated frequencies are a must for the correct evaluation of machine performance.
All machine foundations, irrespective of the size and type of machine, should be regarded as
engineering problems and their designs should be based on sound engineering practices. Dynamic loads
from the machines causing vibrations must be duly accounted for to provide a solution, which is
technically sound and economical. Though advanced computational tools are available for precise
evaluation of dynamic characteristics of machine-foundation systems, their use in design offices, which
was limited in the past, has now been found to be quite common. A machine-foundation system can be
modeled either as a two-dimensional structure or as a three-dimensional structure.
For mathematical modeling and analysis, valid assumptions are made keeping in view the following:
• The mathematical model should be compatible with the prototype structure within a reasonable
degree of accuracy.
• The mathematical model has to be such that it can be analysed with the available mathematical tools.
• The influence of each assumption should be quantitatively known with regard to the response of the
foundation.
Vibration isolation techniques have also been used to reduce vibrations in the machines. Isolation
leads to reduction in the transmissibility of the exciting forces from the machine to the foundation and
vice-versa. Use of vibration isolation devices is one of the methods by which one can achieve satisfactory
performance, which in turn can result in minimizing failures and reduce downtime on account of high
vibrations. However, for equipment on elevated foundations, it is desirable to have support structure
stiffness sufficiently higher than the overall stiffness of isolation system in order to get the desired
isolation efficiency (Bhatia, 2008). The support structure, a 3-D elevated structural system, possesses
many natural frequencies. The vibration isolation system, comprising the machine, inertia block and the
isolation devices, also has six modes of vibration having specific stiffness values corresponding to each
mode of vibration. It is of interest to note that the lateral stiffness of an elevated structure is very much
lower than its vertical stiffness. If this lower (lateral) stiffness is comparable to the stiffness of isolators, it
certainly affects the overall stiffness and thereby the response of the machine-foundation system. Hence,
the lateral stiffness of the support structure must also be computed and considered while selecting the
isolators. Finally it may be desirable to carry out detailed dynamic analysis of the complete system
including the substructure.
MACHINE-FOUNDATION SYSTEM
The main constituents of a typical machine-foundation system are
• machine: rotary machines, reciprocating machines, impact machines;
• foundation: block foundations, or frame foundations; and
• support medium: soil continuum, or a soil-pile system, or a substructure that, in turn, is supported
over the soil continuum or soil-pile system.
Dynamic forces are (i) internally generated forces by the machine itself, or (ii) externally applied forces
(that are applied directly to the machine, or transmitted through the support medium/foundation).
Figure 1 shows the schematic of dynamics between various elements of a machine-foundation
system. It is seen that all the three constituents of the machine-foundation system, viz., machine,
foundation and soil, contribute to the frequency of the system. This system, when subjected to dynamic
forces (whether internally generated, externally applied, or transmitted through the soil), results in
response of the system.

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Industrial Machinery Foundation

response of the system.

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