There are a couple of piles of grease under the shaft area of my URAI, is there a problem?

This is normal for a URAI with grease lubrication on the drive end. There are two bearing cavities on the drive end, each containing a bearing. The bearings are lubricated via a “Zerk” fitting. The individual responsible for maintaining the blower should pump grease into each of the Zerk fittings weekly. Pump enough grease so that you see a small amount of grease come out the grease vent. When you operate the unit, the grease heats up and oozes out of the grease vent. This typically results in a pile of grease under each vent. You should grease the blower at least once a week. It is good house keeping practice to wipe up the grease that has been vented. This procedure holds true for the Sutorbilt California Series and Tuthill Competitor Series.