Q: Why does CBM CONNECT exist?

CBM CONNECT exists for two reasons: we all need to learn, and we need to connect with other practitioners who do what we do. If you have a moment we can explore this a little further.

Learn

Everyone needs to learn. And everyone needs to solve problems. Given how complex and important the field of condition monitoring is, that is certainly true for us. But until now, there has not been a good website for condition monitoring practitioners. You can google endlessly and find a random list of outdated, often commercially oriented, and frequently technically flawed articles. CBM CONNECT will provide up-to-date, accurate information that is very well organized.

In addition, video is often a much better way to learn, so we are creating hours of video for the site. In many cases, the content will be available in multiple formats to suit your exact need (you could read the article at work and watch the video at night).

Plus we are all so busy. A 40 minute video may provide a lot of useful detail, but you may not have 40 minutes. So we are creating lots of content in short and long formats. You could watch a short video, and if that did not answer all your questions, you can watch the 40 minute version.

Connect

So many people in our professional community have knowledge and experience to share. So many problems that you will face in the future have been faced and solved before. So we want to capture that knowledge and experience, and connect those people with you, to help you solve your problems (and avoid future problems).

And via the article/video comment sections, and the Q&A area, we hope you will share your experience to answer questions.

On a personal note

As the founder of Mobius, IMVAC, and now, CBM CONNECT, I have spent many years creating software, courses, articles and presentations that help people in their work. We have trained many thousands of people in our lives, CBT and online courses, and almost a million more via Webinars and YouTube videos. So I am enthusiastic about creating even more material for CBM CONNECT, and to have so many contributors share their knowledge.

I hope you will visit frequently and share what you learn with others in your own network.

Q: Why should I subscribe?

You can benefit in so many ways without subscribing, but if you choose to subscribe you will gain additional benefits:

1. You can specify which technologies are more important to you, and thus when you visit the site the content will be filtered just for you.
2. You can get a weekly digest of the new content in your technical areas of interest.
3. You can subscribe to learning paths and essentially, take a free course. Each week you will be notified that the next lesson is available.
4. You will have an identity on the site, and you will be recognized for your contribution in the Q&A area and when answering visitor questions in the comments section.
5. You will see ads that are relevant to you, based on where you live. The ads are always related to the content you are viewing, but some of the ads are only relevant to certain countries. Therefore, if you live in England, for example, you will not see ads from companies that only provide their products or services in another country, but you will see ads from solution providers that do service your country.
6. And a minor benefit, if there is content that requires registration (Webinars, learning paths, and “gated” content) you won’t have to re-enter your details.

Q: What will you do with my contact details if I subscribe?

We will use your content details, if you choose, to contact you when new content is available. It will also be used to automate the registration process for Webinars, learning paths, and when there is “gated” content – but only when you choose to register for that content.

Q: What is “gated” content?

In addition to Mobius employees, CBM CONNECT employees, and industry experts providing content for our site, solution providers (providers of products, services, and training) will also create detailed content. Some of that content will require a lot of effort to create. So the sponsors would like to do a trade with you.  If you provide your contact details, and give them permission to contact you about their products/services, they will give you access to their detailed videos. Of course, it is totally up to you decide, but you can always unsubscribe from their emails if you believe they are inappropriate.

Q: How do I find content that will help me?

We have tried to make it very easy to find the content that interests you. In fact, that was one of the driving forces behind creating CBM CONNECT. There is a ton of information on the Internet, but sorting through it all, determining what is accurate, can waste a lot of time. Here are a few ways CBM connect will help you find the information you need.

Select the technology area of interest. If you are interested in vibration analysis, for example, you can either click the filter icon in the top right, or select the search drop-down box. Now you will only see content related to vibration analysis.

Select the type of content you would like by clicking the EDUCATION menu item: two minute tips, five minute facts, nine minutes of knowledge, articles, long videos, etc.

Enter keywords of interest and CBM CONNECT will find a match. You can either do that through the search function at the top of the page (click the magnifying glass icon), or use the two drop downs and search terms to narrow down your area of interest.

Select a tag. When you read an article, or any other form of content, you will see a list of tags. If you select one of those tags, you will now view a page of all content that has the same tag.

You may also be interested in… When you read an article, or any other form of content, at the bottom of the page there will be a scrolling list of content that matches what you have just seen.

Q: What is the difference between 2MT, 5MF, and 9MoK?

We wanted to make it very easy for you to access the content that best meets your needs, based on the time you have available and the nature of your requirements.

The Two-Minute Tips (2MT) are brief, focused tips that should help you to solve or avoid a problem. The intention is for the video to be complete within three minutes; however some do run just a little bit longer…

The Five-Minute Facts (5MF) are brief, focused videos that explain a specific point in approximately five minutes. It is true that it would be ideal to have more than five minutes to explain these points, but everyone is busy. So many cases, there may be a five-minute fact video and a more detailed video that may be 30 minutes or even an hour long. You can decide how much you need to know about that topic.

The Nine-Minutes of Knowledge (9MoK) are also brief, focused videos that explain a concept, theory, principle, or anything else that we believe you would be interested in, but don’t have time to explore in great detail at this time. These videos may provide refresher training on something you are already familiar with, and they may give you an introduction to a topic that you were previously unfamiliar with.

Q: What is a learning path?

A learning path is like a mini training course. When you subscribe you can access the first lesson. One week later you will receive an email notifying you that the next lesson is available. And that will happen every week until the learning path is complete.

Q: How do I register for a learning path?

You simply follow the link to the learning path, provide your details (which is very easy because it is taken from your subscription information), and then take the first lesson. One week later you can watch the next lesson.

Q: Why is some content available in multiple formats?

Some people like to read, some people like to watch, and some people like to listen. In an office environment, it may not be appropriate to watch a video. If it is a technical topic, a video may be a better way to learn. And if you are enthusiastic about this field, you may like to listen to the audio/podcast version of the content. It is especially convenient to listen while you drive to and from work.

Not all content is available in multiple formats, but that is our goal. We want to give you the choice to access content that suits your learning style and situation.

Q: What is the library for?

It was designed for two reasons:

1. If you see that there is an article or video (or any format of content) that will interest you, but you don’t have time to consume it at that moment, you should add it to your library. Also, if you happened to be notified about new content via your smart phone, you may like to add it to your library so that you can view it later when you are at your computer or on a tablet device. The next time you are in the library you will see that content there and hopefully that will be a good time to consume that content.
2. If you read an article, or watch a video, and feel that it would be useful for you in the future to easily access that content again, then simply add it to your library. It will stay in your library until you remove it.

Q: Who is creating the content for CBM CONNECT?

The content will come from multiple sources.

Staff: We have employed people within CBM CONNECT to create content. That content will include interviews of industry experts and practitioners who have experience and knowledge to share but who don’t have the time (or desire) to create an article or video.

IMVAC: Some of the content will come from the CBM conferences. In some cases we will simply make a video of a presentation available on CBM CONNECT. In other cases, we will create a shorter, summary version of the presentation, and if you feel you would like to learn more, you will then be able to watch the entire presentation.

Mobius: Content will be created by the staff of Mobius Institute. We have been creating webinars, videos, articles, and much more for many years, and now directed towards CBM CONNECT.

Paid Contributors: We will offer a fee to people who have knowledge or experience in the field that we believe will be of interest to CBMconnect.com visitors.

Solution Providers: The vendors of products used in the condition monitoring field, and the consultants and educators that work in this field, have a great deal of knowledge and experience to share. It is fair to say that some of that content will be related to their product or service. For example, they may provide case studies demonstrating where their customers were successful. The aim is always to ensure that this content is not simply a sales pitch; it must educate you so that you may be able to achieve the same results. But all content is vetted, and where necessary, validated, by our CBM CONNECT staff before it is published.

YOU: Yes, we would love you to work with us to create case studies that will share your experience and knowledge. We can do that in a lot of different ways, but don’t let your knowledge and experience go to waste; there are lots of people on CBMCONNECT.com who would love to learn from your successes (and your failures).

Q: How can I contribute to CBM CONNECT?

Thanks for asking!

There are two ways you can contribute your knowledge and experience to CBM CONNECT:

1. You can create articles or videos related to tips, important facts, knowledge you would like to share, and experiences you would like other people to know about. You can create the content yourself, or we can work with you to create the content; which could even include interviewing you.
2. You can answer people’s questions. Visitors can ask questions in the Q&A section and within the comments section or articles, videos, etc.

We really look forward to hearing from you!

Q: Will new content be added to CBM CONNECT?

Yes, forever. As long as people continue to visit CBM CONNECT, we will continue to create new content weekly.

Q: How do I share a post on LinkedIn or other social media sites?

Sites like LinkedIn are proving to be excellent ways to share knowledge. Therefore, when you find content that you think would be of interest to your network of friends and colleagues, feel free to use the icons along the left-hand side of the page to share the content you are viewing. Alternatively, you can simply copy the URL of the web-page and post that.

Is there anything specific I need to tell them???

Q: What should I do if I find mistakes or clear sales messages content?

Please contact us immediately. It is our goal to ensure that all of the content is suitable. It needs to be accurate. It needs be well written. It needs to be understandable. And it should not be overly biased. We will either improve or remove the content.