52ND MFPT ANNUAL MEETING SYNOPSIS OF A 1998 CONFERENCE ON "PROGNOSIS OF RESIDUAL LIFE OF MACHINERY AND STRUCTURES" The 52nd Meeting of the Society for Machinery Failure Prevention Technology (MFPT) will be held on March 30 April 2, 1998. MFPT Sponsors include the Office of Naval Research, U.S. Army Research Laboratory, National Aeronautical and Space Administration and Naval Surface Warfare Center. The 1998 THEME, "Prognosis of Residual Life of Machinery and Structures," was chosen to highlight the need for more focus on prognosis in the development of the condition monitoring process. As a cooperating society, the Society of Tribological and Lubrication Engineers (STLE) is organizing and sponsoring two special sessions at this meeting. The Opening Session will feature Dr. Dara Childs, Director of the Turbomachinery Laboratory at Texas A&M University, as Keynote Speaker. Dr. Childs' topic will be "Rotordynamic Modeling: Looking Backwards and Looking Forward." Other distinguished invited speakers in the Opening Session are Mr. Patrick Enright, Jr. of Newport News Shipbuilding on "Manning Optimization on Naval Combatants," world-class maintenance consultant Dr. Carlos M. Talbott on "Prognosis of Remaining Machine Life Based on Condition" and Dr. William Scheuren of DARPA on "Joint Strike Fighter Prognostics and Health Management (PHM)." There will be two outstanding Plenary Lecturers one of which is Mr. Charles Jackson, a turbomachinery consultant and a Distinguished Fellow from Monsanto Chemical Company. Mr. Jackson will address the question, "Shop Testing Is it worth it?," from both the users and the OEM perspective. There will be fifteen technical sessions, including seven full or partial special panel sessions or workshops. Session topics include Maintenance Techniques, Failure Analysis, Signal Processing, Sensors Technology, Practical Turbomachinery Reliability Assurance, Diagnostics. Health Monitoring and Reliability of Electronics, Maintenance Technology Resources & Activities, Prognostics and Oil (Wear Particle) Analysis. About thirty MFPT Exhibitors should be on hand. Eight optional short courses are being offered at special rates to meeting registrants. The MFPT 52 Proceedings will be provided to registrants on CDROM and as a case-bound book. For further information or to receive a complete technical program and registration information, contact MFPT Executive Director Henry C. Pusey. Phone (703) 754-2234; FAX (703)754-9743; e-mail hcpusey@ix.netcom.com WEB: MFPT Society Home Page, http://www.mfpt.org. E-MAIL: 52nd MFPT Meeting, hcpusey@ix.netcom.com.

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