Benefits of Having On-Site Oil Condition Monitoring Equipment

Team Minimac

Dec 12, 2024 · 2 min read

Introduction :

The successful operation of machinery is the very heart of industry. One of the numerous influences on machine reliability is oil condition monitoring. Contamination is the No. 1 reason for failure in lubricated systems, and with online oil condition monitoring, your operation will not be interrupted, downtime is minimized, and the machine's life is longer.
Advanced particle analysis technology has brought the benefits of on-site oil condition monitoring to the industries that depend on lubricated systems. The Top Few Benefits, Advantages, Best Practices, and Tech Solutions Behind Onsite Oil Condition Monitoring. Find out what makes onsite oil condition monitoring a necessity.

Oil Condition Monitoring Explained

Oil condition monitoring devices are developed to analyze the health of oils, always detecting contaminants, wear particles, and the condition of oils. This predictive action allows maintenance teams to be proactive and intervene before a catastrophic failure occurs.
One of the most fundamental aspects of oil condition monitoring is the particle counter, which is used to detect, count, and classify contaminants. This device is of importance for the interpretation of wear processes in the lubrication systems.

Advantages Of On-Site Oil Condition Monitoring

1.Real-Time Visibility for Instant Intelligence

Real-Time Analysis of On-Location Oil Monitoring. Thanks to regular maintenance sampling, this is possible in on-the-spot analysis for oil condition. Real-time data enables industries to identify problems before they become large ones and to address them quickly.

  • Monitors the level of contamination on tracks.
  • Gives you information on particle size and type distribution.
  • Laboratory independent.

2. Proactive Operation to Minimize Downtime

Early warning of oil contamination or degradation makes it easier for maintenance crews to plan interventions. This decreases surprise downtime and prolongs the service life of equipment.

  • Avoids unexpected breakdown through early identification of abrasive wear, gear wear, or filter flaws.
  • Confirms that maintenance efforts such as system flushing and repairs have been successful.
  • Reduces downtime, increasing your operational efficiency.

3. Improved Reliability of the Equipment

Particle measurement is designed to maintain critical equipment such as pumps, bearings, and filters at optimal performance. It aids industries in validating filters and filtration system efficiency.

  • Senses large amounts of corrosion or abrasives.
  • Verifies the correct operation of the pump and bearings.
  • Focuses attention on filter replacements or upgrades.

4. Cost Savings

Oil condition monitoring offers substantial savings by prolonging the life of machines and lubricants. But companies can eliminate expensive repairs, costly unanticipated downtime, and premature replacement of machinery and equipment.

  • It cuts the number of oil changes by just checking the trend of the lubricant waste oil.
  • Stopping the spread of contaminants that go unchecked and causing widespread damage.
  • Reduces costs of operation with reduced maintenance plans.

5. Environmental Benefits

Good monitoring practice of oil condition allows optimal utilization of the lubricants, ultimately minimizing downtime and environmental pollution. By keeping oil clean, industries reduce hazardous waste and ensure sustainability.

Six Common Mistakes in Oil Condition Monitoring

Even with the latest technology, some errors will produce false readings or bad decisions on maintaining equipment. Here are six critical pitfalls to steer clear of:

1. Poor Sampling Practices

The oil samples need to truly reflect the state of the lubricant. Samples can be ruined in various ways, for example, due to incorrect sampling methods or contaminated collecting instruments, which allows the results of the analysis to be falsified.

2. Incorrect Sample Division

If such samples are not properly split between analyses, the particle size can cause one result to be inaccurate and the corresponding contamination level to be wrongly assessed.

3. Particle Clustering

Agglomeration of particles can cause imprecise size and count measurements during the separation. An appropriate dispersion method is essential for meaningful results.

4. The Big-Particle Blind Spot

Large particles may be incorrectly identified or ignored, depending on the type of analysis. A complete literature review of the measurement techniques is necessary for accuracy.

5. Non-Standardized Procedures

Uneven sampling, processing, and analytical protocols yield data that cannot be relied on. Standardization is important to ensure that meaningful, reproducible data can be extracted.

6. Misinterpretation of Results

Percentage (by volume/volume, volume/mass, or mass/mass) analyses of particles are relatively common. Miscalculation of these numbers might result in wrongful maintenance.

Smart Solutions with Online Oil Condition Monitoring

The application of IIoT to oil condition monitoring has changed the game in relation to how one maintains lubrication systems in many different industries. Real-time data acquisition, interpretation, and actionable responses are now feasible thanks to internet-based monitoring with smartphones.

How Online Monitoring Works

Online oil condition monitoring (OCM) is a new and innovative method to monitor the condition of the oil online and in real-time. Rather than being based on offline lab tests, which are performed periodically at locations such as drilling sites and require a degree of guesswork, OCM includes sensors aimed at continuously achieving the monitoring of the quality of the oil and providing early warning of possible causes of concern, such as contamination.

Benefits of Oil Condition Monitoring:

  • Immediate Contamination Detection: Identify contamination events as they happen, minimizing risks to your equipment.
  • Real-time Contamination Alerts: Catch contamination as it occurs to help reduce the risk to your equipment.
  • Monitoring the Degradation: Detecting a trend in the evolution of oil quality, and taking action before failure incidents.
  • Trend Analysis: Keep a close eye on key parameters such as soot, base number, relative humidity, and additive depletion to track oil performance.
  • Early Issue Detection:  Solve developing problems before they become an expensive failure.
  • Less Downtime: Ensure fewer breaks in equipment operation, since you’re catching and solving problems early.
  • Extended Machine Life: Protect your machinery and extend its lifetime with continual oil wellness monitoring.
  • Save Costs: By minimizing the cost of repairs and maximizing operational efficiency, you enjoy the savings on lifetime cost.

Utilize OCM to make sure your machinery is running at optimum levels of efficiency, minimizing the cost of maintenance and prolonging the life of your assets.

Key Advantages of IIoT-Enabled Monitoring

  • Allows for predictive maintenance through trend analysis of historical data.
  • Increases system operators' awareness of equipment status.
  • Improves operational agility and responsiveness.

Why Industries Should Adopt On-Site Oil Condition Monitoring

On-site oil condition monitoring is a strategic decision for industries that strive to be the best. Innovative technology, including Particle analyzers and IIoT-enabled devices, enables many benefits to businesses:

  • Improvement in equipment durability and reliability.
  • Lowering Maintenance Cost and Reducing Downtime
  • Making decisions driven by real-time data.
  • Improved Sustainability of the Environment.

Through the use of preventing lubrication contamination and wear particle monitoring, the industries can enjoy high operational efficiency, whilst also reducing the risks and costs.

How Minimac Systems Changes the Game in Oil Condition Monitoring

Minimac Systems specializes in lubrication reliability solutions and manufactures world-class oil condition monitoring equipment for industrial applications. Their solutions are designed for a wide range of industries, including but not limited to power generation, oil and gas, manufacturing, and mining.

Features of Minimac Oil Condition Monitoring Equipment

  1. Real-Time Monitoring: Gives 24*7 oil cleanliness insights and discovery of contamination in real time.
  2. Enhanced Particle Counting: Quantifies and classifies particles by size, shape, and concentration to identify initial wear indicators.
  3. IIoT-Enabled Technology: Connect to background systems to collect all data in one place for predictive analytics
  4. Versatility:Can be used with weak, medium, strong, and high-pressure hydraulic systems, with approaches in various industries.
  5. Quick Installation: Custom-designed for easy and fast installation into existing lubrication systems.

For More Information About Oil Condition Monitoring - Click Here.

Applications of Minimac Oil Condition Monitoring Equipment

  • Control hydraulic-oil cleanliness in heavy equipment.
  • Condition Monitoring for Transformer Oil Systems. Maintaining the health of your transformer is very important.
  • Preserving turbine and compressor systems against abrasive impurities.
  • Testing the performance of diesel fuel filtration systems.

IIOT’s role in Oil Condition Monitoring

Minimac Systems has utilised technology available from IIoT to improve the efficiency of oil monitoring. IIoT-connected assets continually collect and analyze data, laying the foundation for predictive maintenance.

Benefits of IIoT-Powered Monitoring:

  • Improved predictive maintenance: Long-term data trends forecast the health of the equipment tomorrow.
  • Enhanced System Visibility: Operators receive complete system visibility regarding the performance of the lubrication system.
  • Asset optimization: Smart equipment optimizes the utilization of your assets, minimizing machinery downtime.

Why Choose Minimac Systems for Oil Monitoring?

Having specialized in lubrication reliability for decades, Minimac Systems is an industry partner you can rely upon. This is why industries trust Minimac PureComponent:

  • Specialized Products: Items customized to cater to industry-specific requirements.
  • Unparalleled Expertise: A professional advisory team at your service.
  • Proven Results: Gear that produces gains in machine performance and operating efficiency.

Conclusion

On-site oil condition monitoring applications: No longer a cost-effective option … it is a necessity for industries with a dependence on lubricated systems. The return on investment in advanced monitoring tech like AI-enabled platforms is justified by the virtues of real-time, fact-based awareness, cost reduction, machine uptime, and sustainability.
Leveraging technologies such as online particle analysis and IIoT-enabled monitoring is a must-have to remain competitive in today’s industry. Drive productivity and reduce downtime with more intelligent maintenance strategies and better operational insight.

Learn more about our services and industry insights by visiting our official LinkedIn page: Minimac Systems

FAQs

A: To monitor health and performance of machinery in real-timeIndustries can detect early warnings, avoid failures, plan maintenance schedules, and ensure continuous and reliable operations.

A: To monitor health and performance of machinery in real-timeIndustries can detect early warnings, avoid failures, plan maintenance schedules, and ensure continuous and reliable operations.

A: Real-time monitoring of the health of a lubricant and the related oil condition, proactive maintenance and reduced downtime, improved reliability of machinery, cost savings, and environmental benefits are all Oil condition monitoring advantages. It enables industries to identify contamination, wear, and oil degradation at an early stage for uninterrupted operations.

A: This test is beneficial as it helps detect contamination, excessive wear and/or oil degradation and gives you the power to intervene before it is too late. In turn, the regular testing of oil helps mitigate catastrophic failures, extends equipment life, and minimizes operational expenses by allowing the optimization of maintenance strategies.

A: Oil levels must be checked to prevent wear due to the lack of proper lubrication. Insufficient lubrication can arise from low levels of oil, resulting in overheating, excessive friction, and ultimately, equipment breakdown. Keeping oil levels in check enables the machinery to run smoothly and efficiently.

A: Condition monitoring is one of the important parameters needed to be inspected in different industries to conserve machine reliability, avoid expensive and unexpected breakdowns, enhance equipment life, and efficiency. It is imperative for sectors that heavily depend on heavy machinery, such as manufacturing, oil and gas, and power generation.

A: Condition monitoring is important in many industries because it helps maintain the reliability of machinery, prevents costly breakdowns, extends equipment lifespan, and optimizes performance. This is crucial for industries that rely on heavy machinery, such as manufacturing, oil and gas, and power generation.

A: Condition monitoring usually consists of five elements:
  • Vibration monitoring
  • Temperature monitoring
  • Oil condition monitoring
  • Pressure monitoring
  • Performance data analysis

A: There are four pillars of condition monitoring:
  • Measurement (for example, vibration, temperature, oil quality)
  • Analyzing data (Recognizing/Searching trends and anomalies)
  • Figure out (diagnostics — getting to the root cause)
  • Predicting future equipment health and failure (prognostics)

A: Below are some of the drawbacks of the condition monitoring:
  • The one-time cost of setting up monitoring equipment
  • Involves regular maintenance and adjustment of monitoring tools
  • Data interpretation often doesn't come easily; it needs expertise
  • Does not catch all failures, such as human error or external influences

A: There are five criteria for monitoring and evaluation:
  • Relevance (the monitoring goals match to business objectives)
  • Efficacy (how good is the detection, how to make processes more efficient)
  • Economy (the costliness of monitoring both in terms of money and resources)
  • Effectiveness (the actual benefits of successful condition monitoring)
  • Sustainable (making sure tracking practices are practical in the long run)

Recent Posts

Best practices for maintenance of FRF in turbine EHC system

Are you trying to make your oil look better than it is?

Types of water contamination in oil

Enabling net-zero commitments into actions

Email us