International Yoga Day - 21st June

Origin : The idea of International Day of Yoga was first proposed by the current Prime Minister of India, Mr. Narendra Modi during his speech at UNGA (united nations general assembly) , on 27 September 2014 . 

He stated :

Yogistic is a valuable gift of India's ancient tradition. It embodies unity of mind and body; thought and action; restraint and fulfillment; harmony. It is not about exercise but to discover the sense of stillness with oneself, the world and the nature. By changing lifestyles and creating consciousness, it can help in well- being. Let us work towards adopting an INTERNATIONAL YOGA DAY. 

The origins of yoga are shrouded in mystery and mythology while some historians find many clues in the practices of Himalayan Shamans as still be seen in Tibet and Nepal. The Lord Shiva is considered as the father of Ancient Yoga while some of historians claim that Patanjali is the father of modern Yoga. 

By the 5th century BC yoga was becoming well known and begun to appear in Vedic scripture. The word Yoga is a Sanskrit word and it comes from the root Yuja which basically means to bind to align to hold.

WHY 21st JUNE AS YOGA DAY ?

When proposing 21 June as the date of yoga, it is said that the date was the longest day of the year in the northern hemisphere, having special significance in many parts if the world .From the perspective of yoga, the summer solstice mark transition to Dakshninayna. The first full moon after summer solstice is known as Guru Poornima . Shiva , the first yogi is said to have begun imparting the knowledge of yoga to the rest of mankind on this day and became the first guru (Adi Guru). 

Author : Vidya Bhushan Sharma 

Bad Isolation - Some Common Problems Seen in the Field - Easyflex

In most commercial and industrial buildings, you will find some type of vibration isolation on the mechanical equipment. If the products have been specified and installed correctly, they should be providing a significant reduction in the force transmitted to the structure, relative to the force that would be transmitted if the equipment was “bolted down.” In our experience, there is a good chance that the isolation is not working properly.

Most problems with vibration isolation can be easily avoided. There are three areas where problems frequently occur:

1)     Improper design, selection & specification

2)     Incorrect installation

3)     Inadequate maintenance

Improper Design, Selection & Specification

The 2015 ASHRAE Handbook on HVAC Applications (Chapter 48 on Noise and Vibration Control) is an excellent source of design information for vibration isolation. We at Easyflex have developed installation guidelines for most commonly used mechanical equipment that should allow the engineer to specify the correct isolation for most types of equipment. Please contact us if you need assistance for both installation guidelines, drawings or tender specifications. Problems arise however, either because the proper sources are not consulted or the information on the drawings is incomplete.

One of most common errors is overloading or under-sizing of the isolator. For springs, it should be obvious when this has occurred, but it is surprising how often it is seen in the field. The figure below shows two examples of fully compressed springs. A well-designed spring will have an additional “travel to solid” of 1.5 times the rated deflection, so the springs shown below are loaded to at least 1.5 times their rated capacity. They should be replaced by stiffer springs providing the specified deflection.

Overloaded spring isolators – pump base (left), spring hanger (right).

For resilient isolators such as rubber pads, overloading may not be so obvious. Special care must be taken with this type of isolator, especially when a concentrated load is applied directly to a pad or sheet of material.

Housed spring isolators are commonly used as OEM equipment, but if possible they should be avoided, due to the potential for binding, corrosion, and debris/liquid collection. The figure below shows a housed two-spring isolator that appears to be working properly, but closer inspection reveals several problems related to the potential for binding, or “short circuiting”. First, due to a slight misalignment, the housing and the nested shell are in contact. Although a piece of resilient material prevents metal-to-metal contact, this condition is less than ideal (notice that the pad on one side is missing). Second, the bolt between the two springs appears extremely close to contacting the springs, which is also bad. Third, the potential for debris getting into the housing and interfering with the isolation is obvious.  On rooftop installation, we have seen ice build-up and bind in the isolator, which prevents it from moving freely.

 Housed spring isolators should be avoided

For some reason, housed isolators are frequently included as part of the original equipment on HVAC equipment such as fans and chillers. When this occurs and it is impractical to replace them, extra care must be taken in the installation and maintenance. Another shortcoming of some housed isolators is that they do not include a neoprene “acoustical” cup under the springs. This feature helps attenuate high frequency vibration that may travel through the spring.

Incorrect Installation

By far the most prevalent installation “misstep” is to place an anchor or other rigid metal part in parallel with the isolator. This occurs frequently since the installer wants to hold the equipment in place. An example is shown for a small air compressor below. In this example, if the bolt is placed in an oversized hole, a neoprene washer is used, and the nut is only finger tight, then this arrangement is acceptable. There should be no metal-metal contact if vibration isolation is to be effective. The bolt then only provides restraint against excessive motion, not normal vibratory motion.

 

 Another curious example is shown below. The pumps are isolated with springs under pump bases, but the pipe stands at the end of the pumps are supported directly on the slab below. In this case a larger base should have been used to allow the stand to be supported by the base. Essentially the housekeeping pad shown is too small for the pump size.

 

A bolt or other rigid metal part installed in parallel with the isolator can render it ineffective

Misalignment is a common problem for both spring mounts and hangers. As shown below, misalignment can create contact resulting in “short circuiting” of the isolation. The remedy for this lies with careful quality control in the field. It is the responsibility of the contractor to ensure that the springs are installed with concentric loading. For hangers, this involves drilling overhead holes, which must be located accurately relative the pipe being supported. Isolator alignment requirements should be stated clearly in the project specifications.

A second type of problem that occurs with hangers is essentially the opposite of the overloading problem discussed above. The figure below shows a spring hanger that is obviously not supporting any load. The clevis hanger below the spring isolator is simply too big. In this case, either a smaller clevis hanger should have been used or the available one modified.

 Spring hanger problems – misalignment (left), oversized clevis hanger (right)

Flexible connectors are a critical element in the isolation of equipment with connected piping. One frequently encountered problem with braided stainless steel hose is installation in a vertical orientation, when the vibratory motion is also in this direction. The figure below shows an example of incorrect installation. Since the braided stainless steel is relatively stiff along its length, it is not an effective isolator for motion in this direction. The flexible hose should have been installed horizontally, perpendicular to the plane of motion. It is easy to see why this is sometimes not done, since it requires extra space which may not be available if this arrangement was not anticipated. If a vertical installation is required, an elastomeric connector should be considered.

In this photo, note that the concrete inertia base has been correctly sized to support the pump stand.

Braided steel connectors should be installed perpendicular to the direction of vibratory motion (not as shown)

Inadequate Maintenance

All too often, vibration isolation is installed and forgotten. Mechanical rooms in older buildings can be virtual museums of ancient, neglected isolation hardware. In many cases the hardware is no longer providing effective isolation. See the photo of a badly corroded mount below. In spite of its bad condition, it may continue to support the equipment for a long time, and probably does not need to be replaced unless a vibration problem is occurring. In other cases, the isolation should be restored by replacing or repairing the hardware.

Another case of a housed spring isolator in bad condition is shown below. It also appears that the height-saving bracket was poorly designed and has experienced excessive distortion.

A corroded leveling mount (left), a housed spring isolator in bad shape (right)

Oftentimes building maintenance personnel will make creative retrofits to vibration isolation, such as in the situation shown below. Pieces of 2x4s have been used to shore up a fan on which the hangers were not working properly, and the fan is now supported on the duct below. When this type of situation is encountered, it should be corrected as soon as possible. In some cases, modifications to the isolation can create a safety hazard, especially in high seismic areas.

 A creative retrofit to vibration isolation

Like the equipment itself, the vibration isolation has a finite lifespan. It is often the case that when the isolation is in bad shape, the equipment is also old. Hence, a major replacement or upgrade of the isolation on existing equipment may not be a good investment. However, any new equipment should be properly fitted with the most up-to-date vibration isolation.

The Bottom Line

Proper design, installation, and maintenance are the keys to providing long term, effective vibration isolation of mechanical equipment. In building projects, vibration isolation can be a significant part of the mechanical equipment budget.  Because of this, it is incumbent upon engineers, suppliers, and contractors to provide the most effective isolation possible within the project budget. The project specifications should be clear with regard to the vibration isolation requirements. Once in place, the isolation should be well maintained. In this way, value to the building owner will be maximized and occupants will receive the benefits of low vibration.

Credit – ESI Engineering ( https://www.esi-engineering.com/resources/white-papers/bad-isolation/ )

 

Author : Easyflex

 

Realistic Goals-The First Step to Success

^{The victory of success is half won when one gains the habit of setting goals and achieving them.}

^{Even the most tedious chore will become endurable as you parade through each day convinced that every task, no matter how menial or boring, brings you closer to fulfilling your dreams.}

^{We’ve all been told that we should set goals, and we assume that we can – but most of us have never been taught how to set goals effectively so they are realistic and achievable.}

^{One of the most sobering goal setting statistics was that 25% of resolutions were broken in the first week.  And the odds didn’t get much better for the first couple months – among gym goers, 80% drop out within eight weeks.}

^{I think a large part of this is due to not having realistic goals – without something to shoot towards, it’s easy to get discouraged and give up.  It’s hard enough to make changes in our life and accomplish what we desire – if your goal is unrealistic, or not well defined, then you’re starting out with an immediate handicap.}

^{So, what can you do to keep your goals on track? Here are seven keys for setting realistic goals.}

^{Key #1 – Write Your Goals Down}

^{Studies and surveys have shown that you are far more likely to achieve your goals if you write it down.  I personally like to write my goals down and refer to them daily to keep them at the front of my mind.}

^{Writing down our goals also helps make them real to us.  If we just think about a goal, it’s not physically real – and it’s easy for us to change our minds.  When we write it down however, the very act of writing helps us commit to the goals – and also gives us something we can visually see and reflect on.}

^{Key #2 – Set Short Term Milestones}

^{Goals that are far out of reach are easy to procrastinate on and put off. It’s fine to have long term dreams – but in the short run, you should have regular mile stones as well.}

^{For example, if your goal is to write a novel, rather than just saying you’ll write a novel this year and leave it at that, instead commit to a certain number of pages or words a month – these short term milestones will help you stay on track, and will make your long term goal much more manageable.}

^{Key #3 – Be Specific}

^{If your goal is to “lose weight” – how will you know when you’re done?  Going along with the above of setting short term mile stones, even if your long term goal is “get in better shape” – you can still be specific such as “be in good enough shape to play football for two hours twice a week.”}

^{The more specific you are, the better motivated you’ll be as you get closer to achieving your goal. With vague goals, it’s very easy to get discouraged, because you may not feel like you’re getting closer to due to having no clear end in sight.}

^{Use specific, tangible words in your goals such as measurements and (if applicable) a date by which they will be accomplished.}

^{Key #4 – Measure Actions as Well As Progress}

^{Sticking with the theme of setting fitness goals, many people I know get frustrated when they set a specific goal such as “lose 20 pounds by summer” – and then fall short of their goal. While it’s good to have aggressive goals, in some situations it may be better to measure your actions instead of your progress.}

^{So for example, instead of setting fitness goals based on pounds lost, you could set goals for the amount of cardio you do every week and whether you keep your calories below a certain threshold.}

^{This is also good for vague goals that may be difficult to measure, such as achieving proficiency playing a sport or playing an instrument. Setting goals based on perhaps 1 or 2 hours of practice a day may be more helpful than simply saying “get better before school starts.”}

^{Key #5 – Start With Just One Goal}

^{A classic mistake that I see over and over, and that I’ve made many times myself, is to be overzealous and try to change too many things at one time.  You may decide you want to turn your life around and set out to accomplish a laundry list of goals at once.}

^{Unfortunately, trying to accomplish too many things at once is frequently a recipe for failure.  For most people, changing too many aspects of their lives requires an overwhelming amount of willpower, and ends up being unrealistic.}

^{I prefer the approach-To set one goal at a time, and then as you get that goal under control, slowly add more goals into the mix.}

^{Key #6 – Schedule In Time For Your Goals}

^{If you don’t make time for your goals, you’ll never accomplish them – it’s as simple as that.  Along those same lines, generally speaking, the more time you allocate per day to your goal, the faster you’ll achieve it.}

^{Rather than leave it to chance, I recommend scheduling a specific time every day for your goal. I think this is part of the reason why organized sports and personal trainers are so effective for people looking to improve their fitness – the activity has a set block of time on their schedule, and so people attend regularly.}

^{Key #7 – Set Goals You Actually Want To Achieve}

^{Be realistic towards your Goal Setting and decide what you want to achieve.  Unless you know your goals you will not be able to plan your actions towards achieving the goal. Setting Realistic Goals is the most important step for achieving any dream.} 

^{Author : Sujata Das}