A CM essential

EFFECTIVE ASSET management is a significant consideration across industry in the quest to find the Holy Grail for minimising potentially costly downtime, particularly when it’s unscheduled. Performance in Focus, a report by RS, into the state of maintenance engineering, highlighted an average hourly cost of downtime standing at £5,471.95. It’s therefore an area many can’t afford to overlook.

All organisations execute a maintenance strategy of some sort, even if that is simply running to failure, but amid the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and digital transformation focus, firms must not forget the basics: the foundations on which any robust maintenance strategy should be built.

Condition monitoring techniques lie at the heart of this and an often-overlooked area is lubrication. While we cannot understand what we don’t measure, there’s no point in measuring (condition monitoring) without action (lubrication).

The importance of lubrication

Poor or incorrect lubrication can result in mechanical failure, which is the second biggest cause of unscheduled downtime, according to RS’ report, with 21 per cent pointing to this. Often programmes are weak, ineffective, or even non-existent.

Regardless of industry, any equipment or machinery with components like valves, bearings, gears or any other rotating parts, should be adequately lubricated appropriately for the application.

In the food industry, NSF-rated lubricants are vital to food safety while compromising on performance as little as possible. While harsh and inhospitable environments like mining might need heavier duty lubricants, or to consider frequency of changeout more closely.

In a world where data collection and analysis are important factors in understanding machine health, there is often a surprising lack of focus on root cause. These include poor fitment, operation, lubrication and cleanliness, which can all greatly compromise a machine’s ability to function properly.

Well trained and accountable

Lack of awareness combined with knowledge gaps contribute to firms not having adequate lubrication programmes in place within maintenance strategies. Additionally, the lack of collaborative working or understanding of other job roles can be counter-productive. A wash-down operative may not understand the true impact of jet-washing an exposed bearing and washing out grease there for a reason. Therefore, in executing their job, they could cause a bigger issue further down the line.

A lack of accountability, where teams share lubrication responsibility with not much in the way of a plan, can be problematic at best. Whether over or under-greasing a component, in either case, it is detrimental to asset function.

Even with sensors becoming ever more advanced and accessible, there is still something to be said for the value of the human sensory system. The lack of resource leading to less bodies on the factory floor critically assessing assets using sight, sound and smell to identify anomalies, again contributes to lubrication issues.

Thankfully, the fundamentals of lubrication best practice aren’t difficult to learn and there are many providers offering training and support. This should be embraced by businesses as a key part of preventative maintenance. Using providers with specialist knowledge of products and those offering training or solutions for those looking to outsource their lubrication and oil analysis, is a good way for firms who don’t have the skills or resources to ensure they don’t omit this vital area.

Reaping the rewards

A recent poll at MachineryLubrication.com highlighted 60% of lubrication professionals do not use any metrics or key performance indicators (KPIs) to measure their lubrication programme. This is a missed opportunity to make significant savings.

A good lubrication programme should be cost neutral or better, with ROI for a well-implemented programme having the savings potential of several 100%  to more than 1000%, based on reduced wear and tear on machinery, extended equipment lifespan and improved energy efficiency. A metric we work to at RS is that customers should be able to save £8 for every £1 spent, although this can be even higher in sensitive industries like petrochemical and pharma.

Oil analysis can also contribute to real cost savings, simply by avoiding unnecessary oil changes or scheduled outages, simply because of lack of equipment knowledge.

Rob Webster is head of onsite condition monitoring and asset management at RS UK & Ireland

uk.rs-online.com