Machinery Installation and Alignment
Foundation to baseplate
Sequence matters: cured and chipped foundation, anchor bolt locations verified, machine set on packers or wedges, rough level, anchor bolts snugged but not used to pull the base down, grout poured with a proper head and allowed to cure, then final level and alignment. Precision levels read in in/ft; 0.0005 in/ft is normal machinery grade.
Soft foot
Soft foot is a gap under one foot that twists the frame when the bolt tightens. Check each foot with a dial indicator or feeler gauge: loosen the bolt and read the movement. Correct it with shims, never by drawing the foot down with the anchor bolt. The usual limit is 0.002 in (0.05 mm). Fewer thick shims beat a stack of thin ones, and stainless shims go next to the machine.
Pipe strain and thermal growth
Connect piping after alignment. An unconnected flange should come together without force, and a dial indicator on the coupling should not move when flange bolts are tightened. Hot-running machines need a cold offset - use the OEM growth values or compute ΔL = α·L·ΔT.
Traps
Grouting before rough alignment, torquing anchor bolts before grout cures, checking level in only one direction, ignoring coupling runout, and recording only as-found data with no as-left record.
Rule of thumb
Soft foot ≤ 0.002 in and flange pull-in ≤ 0.003 in without re-checking alignment. Always re-verify alignment after piping is connected and bolts are torqued in stages.