NEW ORLEANS — For the past 14 years, Richard Witte, president of Witte Energy Management, has been making an annual visit to The Times-Picayune.

His finely tuned ears and instruments have been monitoring and charting the wear in bearings and other mechanical parts in the Advance Publications daily’s Goss Headliner presses.

With more than 23 years of experience, Witte, using thermal graphic inspection techniques developed by NASA, is able to determine equipment fatigue far in advance of any other indicators.

“If you can audibly hear bearing noise, its too late,” Witte said.

Richard E. Witte, president of Witte Energy Management, demonstrates his ultrasonic inspection technique on The Times-Picayune’s Goss Headliner press.
Photo: Mary L. Van Meter

Using ultrasonic and thermal inspection, his company is able to pinpoint anomalies in normal ultrasonic and thermal signatures.

The annual collection of this data, Witte said, can help newspapers predict and prevent costly catastrophic failure in their equipment.

That said, ultrasonic inspection won’t reduce normal maintenance.

“All equipment requires maintenance,” Witte said. “But newspapers are better able to predict and thereby prevent costly failures associated with bearing wear and fatigue.”

The Times-Picayune is only one of Witte’s clients; the firm recently completed a baseline study measuring the performance of MAN Roland presses and folders installed at the Mobile (Ala.) Register’s new production facility.

Witte Energy Management
915.559.6003