No matter which company you are in, the collective goal is to achieve as much uptime as you possibly can. However, that comes at a cost, and typically, the cost of sustaining 100% uptime counterbalances the benefits it has. Hence, some companies resort to the “run to fail” approach – but that approach is unreliable due to the many risks involved. Instead, what you could implement in your company is condition monitoring.
It is essentially the measuring of the various parameters involved in your machinery. For example, the temperature, condition and level of oil a piece of machinery has. The constant monitoring of the machinery allows you to catch any impending breakdowns or malfunctions and perform generator overhauling before it happens. This saves your company from significant monetary and productivity loss in cases of breakdowns and downtime. Additionally, it also saves you money by preserving the health of your assets and even extends it in some situations.
Therefore, if you’re planning to implement condition monitoring, these 5 considerations are vital to have in mind to prevent failures.
Picking the wrong measurement tools and technology
One common mistake many make after identifying the correct asset characteristics of their equipment to measure is not choosing the best technology for the job. A simple solution to prevent this mistake is partnering with an OEM-agnostic partner.
This allows you to be sure that you are making use of the best technology for every vital data-gathering point of your machinery. If you are monitoring the health of your equipment, it is critical that you take advantage of offline test data.
Choosing the wrong condition indicators
In larger organisations, it is likely that you have a complex system of machinery and equipment. Hence, there could be over 50 different parameters and up to 150 data points that you can monitor. However, with this many parameters, the overwhelming amount of data can actually confuse and hinder an accurate assessment of your equipment’s health.
Hence, you should work closely with your engineers. Their experience and guidance will aid you in identifying all the key indicators, giving you a full understanding of your system assets. Doing so gives you a feeling of confidence, knowing that you are minimising the potential for any unforeseen failures.
Not monitoring enough
The effectiveness of your condition monitoring is heavily dependent on how much of the right data you are gathering. Most companies make the mistake of collecting too little data. This increases the risk of running into a surprise failure and holding your operations back by hours. The team of engineers you work with are the go-to professionals in advising you on the frequency and amount of data required to be predictive as well as cost-effective.
Neglecting proper data analysis
In order to execute perfect condition monitoring, it has to be done on multiple levels. This includes setting aside some time to look at the data collected and do an analysis on it. Only by doing so will you be able to experience the effect of successful condition monitoring.
In fact, failing to set aside some time to analyse the data collected from your condition monitoring efforts defeats the purpose of implementing condition monitoring in your company.
Ignoring the results of condition monitoring
Astonishingly, some companies have all the required data collection and analysis procedures implemented but still choose not to perform the maintenance. Hence, this negatively impacts the equipment’s state of health, preventing the organisation from operating business smoothly.
It is crucial to take action as soon as you see signs of a change in the data collected. Only by doing so will you have a highly productive and fast-growing operation.
Whether it’s going for motor generator or electric motor rewinds, conducting condition monitoring can help significantly in identifying the condition of your equipment, informing you when is the right time to go for maintenance.