ASME Event: A historical journey through Rotor Balancing.

ASME Event: A historical journey through Rotor Balancing.

Summary: Shop tour of Siemens Energy’s Telge Road, Houston site, followed by technical presentation on rotor balancing – history and methodology.

Date: Wednesday, 13th May 2026.

Speaker:

William C. Foiles is the Head of Product Integrity for compression products in North America at Siemens Energy, where he leads efforts to ensure the reliability and performance of critical compressor and related rotating equipment across a large installed base and new equipment. In this role he draws decades of experience in rotor dynamics, machinery vibration, and rotor balancing, including work on gas turbines, steam turbines, generators, compressors, and auxiliary gear units. His background blends hands-on field diagnostics, advanced analytical methods, and standards work, giving him a uniquely integrated perspective on product integrity and lifecycle risk for compression assets

Recognized for his expertise in rotor balancing, Foiles has served as a U.S. Subject Matter Expert to ISO on vibration, balancing, training, and diagnostics within ISO TC 108, where he coordinated U.S. comments and recommended national positions on balancing standards for several years. He was twice elected as the Technical Advisory Group (TAG) Chair to ANSI for ISO TC 108/SC2, reflecting both his technical depth and his ability to build consensus among practitioners and stakeholders. His experience includes developing and teaching advanced courses on rotor dynamics and balancing, notably the Vibration Institute’s ISO Category IV course, and creating specialized balancing and alignment seminars early in his career.

Foiles’ practical balancing experience spans from nuclear and petrochemical facilities to major OEM turbine. At GE Gas Turbine Product Service, he advised globally on rotor, bearing, vibration, and balance issues and delivered balance shots for large-frame machines such as 6F, 7F, 9F, and 7EA units, along with steam turbines, generators, and other frames, some in first-of-a-kind field balances. Earlier roles at Bently Nevada, Saudi Aramco, and BP America involved field diagnostics, startup testing, modal analysis, and corrective balancing for a variety of rotating equipment across refineries, upstream assets, LNG projects, and power applications, reinforcing his reputation as a problem-solver on complex machines.

Technical discussion:

This presentation, A Historical Journey Through Rotor Balancing by William C. Foiles, reviews the evolution of rotor balancing from early theoretical foundations to modern field methods, with emphasis on how past ideas shaped current balancing practice. It begins with foundational rotor dynamic work by Föppl and Jeffcott, then traces the development of practical balancing concepts such as single-plane balancing, graphical solutions, and the recognition of imbalance as a rotating forcing function.

A central theme is the emergence of influence-coefficient methods and their practical importance. The presentation highlights contributions from Rathbone, Hopkirk, and Thearle, showing how linear relationships between correction weights and rotor response enabled more systematic balancing, while later work by Goodman introduced weighted least-squares optimization to reduce the worst residual vibration rather than just overall error. It also stresses practical lessons such as the importance of repeatability, the limits of balancing predictions beyond 1× vibration, and the continuing relevance of older methods for troubleshooting.

Meeting Cost:

In-person (ASME members & Volunteers): $15 per Plate (or Veggie Option)

In-person (non-ASME members): $20 per Plate (or Veggie Option)

Student: Free with RSVP

Online: Free via Zoom Link

Meeting Agenda:

5:30 – 5:45 PM CDT Sign-In

5:45 – 6:30 PM CDT Shop tour of Siemens Energy's Telge Road, Houston facility.

6:30 – 7:00 PM CDT Networking and Dinner (in-person)

7:00 – 7:15 PM CDT ASME Business Announcements (in-person and Virtual)

7:15 – 8:15 PM CDT Presentation (in-person and Virtual)

Online Meeting:

https://us02web.zoom.us/j/82251407427?pwd=xEslJBqaYOZZCXsTRByie4a7P09Ked.1

Site Address:

Siemens Energy,

10730 Telge Road,

Houston 77095, USA.

Site and Safety Protocols:

No photos.

Safety shoes.

Safety glasses, hard hats and vests.

Host can provide Personal Protective Equipment (PPE), however attendees are encouraged to bring their own, if possible.

Questions: Contact [email protected]

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