What should be checked to ensure proper alignment of a shaft?

To ensure proper alignment of a shaft, checking the level of contact with the foundation is crucial. Proper alignment is essential for reducing wear and tear on machinery, as misalignment can lead to excessive vibration, increased heat, and premature failure of components. When the foundation is not level, it can cause the shaft to be misaligned, resulting in operational inefficiencies and damage over time.

Assessing the level of contact ensures that the equipment is sitting correctly on its supports, which directly affects how forces are transmitted through the machinery. If the foundation is uneven, it can lead to inconsistent spacing between the shaft and its bearings or couplings, triggering alignment issues that could compromise the entire system's performance.

While factors such as speed of rotation, lubrication levels, and temperature of components are important for overall equipment health, they are not directly tied to the verification of shaft alignment. Instead, those factors might indicate existing problems but do not serve as the primary checks for ensuring that a shaft is properly aligned.