Took a walk through the old mill in Bethlehem, PA and it hit me

The iron stair treads were worn down a full inch on one side from a century of guys climbing them, but the steel beams above were still solid as the day they went in. It got me thinking about how we plan for wear on moving parts, but the stuff that just sits and carries load never gets the credit. Any of you ever go back to a plant that's been shut down for years and notice something that changes how you look at your own repairs?

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maxp686d ago

Wear on the treads is actually the building doing you a favor. That wear pattern tells you exactly where everybody walked, what side they favored, how they carried their loads. The steel beams staying solid is just good engineering, they were overbuilt on purpose. But the worn treads are the real lesson, that's the stuff you can measure and learn from. Next time you're doing a repair, look for the wear pattern first. That'll tell you more than any spec sheet ever will.