Actions

This section is currently under development with more content expected later in the year.

The idea is to have an easy to use list of actions and activities aimed at utilising the oil analysis results, improving lubrication practices and overall reliability.

These will cover some basic oil room and oil handling recommendations, filtration basics, discussion of oil changes (and of when not to do them), etc.

We would be happy to receive and publish any advice that our customers and colleagues may have. Please get in touch if you have any specific stories or recommendations to share.

Majority of gains can be achieved by getting the basics right.

A well functioning machine that is correctly sized for the job, has been installed and aligned correctly, is lubricated with an appropriate lubricant that is kept in good condition and free from contamination, should in theory operate reliably until its components start reaching their fatigue limits.

The reality is typically very different, with opportunity for faults and deviations at every stage. A poorly aligned machine may shake itself to bits within days of going into service. Oil that’s full of abrasive contaminants may wear the bearings out within weeks. An incorrectly selected lubricant or one topped up with the wrong oil may not have the necessary load carrying capacity (e.g. too low viscosity or unsuitable additive pack) or may not reach all of the surfaces requiring lubrication (e.g. too viscous) and lead to oil starvation and severe wear. A combination of adverse factors can lead to manifold reduction in useful life.

Oil analysis and other condition monitoring techniques can be used to identify any such deviations from the ideal and to achieve as close to 100% useful life as possible. The starting point can be as low as 10% of useful life or less – doubling remaining life from there is fairly easy with much larger gains also attainable. The basic actions are:

• Ensure the equipment is suitable for the job and has been fitted and aligned correctly. Oil analysis may be able to pick up wear debris generated due to poor alignment or overloading, but vibration monitoring would be a better tool for verifying satisfactory installation.

• Determine requirements for the lubricant (viscosity grade, additive package, performance characteristics) and source a suitable product. As well as cost consider availability – ideally you do not want to mix lubricants, so ensure that your choice can be procured years down the line and isn’t a one off end of line special offer from your supplier. Meeting the basic requirements correctly is more important than chasing the best possible specific lubricant, although to an extent you get what you pay for, so beware very cheap products.

• Rationalise lubricant use by reducing the number of brands and items to a suitable minimum. This makes it easier to track and maintain sufficient stock and minimise mix-ups and cross-contamination during storage, handling and subsequent filtration. It will also be easier to find out if lubricants are compatible, as this data should be readily available from the manufacturer for their own products. It may be more efficient to use an over-specified lubricant for a few different applications rather than carrying several different less universal lines. You may be able to get better bulk pricing and would require less storage space for a drum or two of a single lubricant than for three or four half empty drums of multiple products. Finally, it is easier to ensure that the lubricant shelf life is observed and that lubricants are efficiently utilised under the First In First Out system.

• Record and label everything that relates to which lubricant should go where.

• Invest into your oil stores and oil handling equipment to prevent contamination and reduce errors (see the relevant section below).

• Invest time and effort to properly establish your oil sampling programme. Discuss your needs with the lab, write up sampling schedules and procedures, train staff and feed back any activities to help improve analysis quality. Do not hesitate to get in touch with the lab with any questions – you get more out of oil analysis the more you put into it.

• Monitor your virgin oil stock and deliveries. Virgin oil can rarely be considered clean on delivery and should typically be pre-filtered before entering service.

• Prevent contamination ingress as this is more cost effective than subsequent filtration. Consider desiccant breathers and other basic equipment. Review your practices with oil cleanliness in mind – slight changes to basic house-keeping may have profound effects (it is not unheard of to have machinery pressure washed with lances pointing directly at seals!). This may involve employees who are not normally associated with machinery operation or maintenance (e.g. cleaning staff or those working on other kit in the vicinity, especially above oil filled equipment).

• Remove contamination from the lubricant – in some cases contamination ingress is inevitable but its effects can be mitigated with suitable in line or additional filtration. A variety of filter carts is available – be mindful when using the same cart for different lubricants. Make sure the filter cart is right for the job – for example varnish removal will not be effective with conventional filters – use electrostatic, depth media or resin-type systems as appropriate.

• Address developing faults where indicated by oil analysis and other condition monitoring techniques. Take additional oil samples at reduced intervals or from secondary sampling points, perform vibration analysis or use thermography and other methods to pin-point the origin of the fault. Use each incident as an opportunity to identify and study the cause and take measures to prevent re-occurrence. Do not blindly change oil to remove contamination without also identifying its origins.

• Do nothing when appropriate – i.e.where oil condition and other indicators remain satisfactory. This is a significant stream of savings afforded by oil analysis – save on fresh lubricant and disposal charges, deploy manpower to other pressing tasks, and avoid the risks of introducing contamination and other faults into the system during unnecessary maintenance.

Improving your oil stores may not seem a very important task in the great scheme of things, but it is a fairly low cost and straightforward way to improve reliability throughout the plant.

Focus on cleanliness, order and clarity. There are big gains to be had from preventing contamination and avoiding oil mix up.

Rationalise your lubricant use. Dozens of lubricants from multiple suppliers may be reduced to a fraction of that from a single source. Increased discounts from larger order quantities may help fund use of higher quality lubricants, each suitable for more tasks.

Build up an arsenal of oil handling tools and store them safely and securely, and away from contamination.

For more advice on designing the optimum lubricant storeroom see this article from Machinery Lubrication Magazine.