A Three-Tiered Approach to Condition Based Asset Handling

Condition-based and predictive maintenance strategies are widely implemented throughout industry and the level of sophistication of the types of systems deployed will invariably depend upon budgets, asset criticality and resources. As the exclusive UK-based SKF Certified Maintenance Partner, ERIKS can provide services that include a preliminary assessment of your machines; the development of a database of machine related parameters; the deployment of appropriate data collection and analysis technologies, and the provision of recommendations on specific actions to avoid unplanned downtime and extend machine life.

More recently, this service offering has been further enhanced by embracing a novel approach from SKF that proposes a staged approach to condition-based asset handling. This three-tiered strategy allows users to adopt one or more of three levels of condition based asset handling – basic, better or best – dependent upon budgetary constraints and/or the criticality of individual assets. Let’s take a look at each of these in turn.

Where continuous vibration and temperature monitoring of non-critical machinery is desired, the permanently installed SKF Machine Condition Indicator is equipped with LEDs that illuminate when pre-set thresholds have been exceeded to warn operators that further investigation is needed. Internal sensors measure velocity, enveloped acceleration (bearing or gear impulsive vibration) and machine surface temperature.

Better asset handling

Operators work in close proximity to equipment, so they are usually the first to detect even the slightest changes in process conditions and machinery health. However, their observations often go unreported, or are not effectively acted upon, leading to machine failures, unplanned downtime and higher operating costs. Here, clients can make use of an SKF solution called the Operator Driven Reliability (ODR) programme, which enables this valuable source of machine health data to be easily collected, analysed and acted upon.

SKF QuickCollect is a good example of this process in action. More experienced operators can make use of a second app for this platform called SKF DataCollect. This is an ISO standard compliant maintenance and inspections program that extends the diagnostic capabilities of SKF QuickCollect, allowing trained and mentored users to manage and monitor their maintenance tasks and inspection data, as well as giving them the ability to register for, and connect to, the SKF Cloud for access to SKF’s and ERIKS’ remote expert services. 

The monitoring tool for the experienced user is the recently launched SKF Multilog On-line System IMx-8, a compact 8-channel version of its popular IMx machine health monitoring platform. This versatile, more compact system brings affordable machine health monitoring to a much wider industrial user base and even includes a useful Event Capture feature, which is of particular appeal to machine tool users requiring a cost-effective crash detection capability.

SKF’s three-level approach to condition-based maintenance serves a variety of circumstances and machine criticalities. Choose a level suited to your needs and you will be able to operate your assets more dependably, affordably, productively and profitably.