“To ensure that the ARC team is always well versed in the very latest asset reliability care techniques, team members regularly undergo training, particularly on courses offered by the Mobius Institute – a worldwide provider of reliability improvement, condition monitoring, and precision maintenance education”.
Condition monitoring specialist company, WearCheck, has established itself as a leading figure in the asset reliability care (ARC) sector, serving as an all-in-one reliability solutions hub and backed by ISO accreditation. For 30 years, the company specialised in tribology and the scientific analysis of used oil samples, expanding its service offering more than a decade ago to include a host of additional predictive maintenance monitoring techniques to cover all the facets of asset care.
Some of the ARC services offered by WearCheck include vibration, thermography, on-line remote monitoring diagnostics, alignment and balancing, as well as other specialised techniques such as motion amplification, ODS (operational deflection shape) and resonance tests using transient and impact analysis.
ARC services
The value-added ARC services have not only been widely adopted by long-term tribology customers of WearCheck’s but have also brought in a whole new set of clients for the company. Heading up the ARC division for the past ten years is Philip Schutte, who is widely experienced in specialist condition monitoring services, including implementation and optimisation of ARC programmes.
Says Schutte, “Our ARC programme, coupled with the oil analysis services, gives WearCheck customers the option of a truly 360° view of their assets, allowing maintenance teams to make informed plant maintenance decisions based on highly accurate, intelligent, advanced analysis in conjunction with reliable data. We have completely removed the guesswork in the maintenance game!
“Our specialised testing and innovative investigative technologies ensure that our customers’ assets reach their projected life expectancy and beyond, and plant availability is optimised. We also perform precision maintenance services such as laser-alignment, in-place balancing and gear profiling – on both pinion and girth gears of large or small mills – to reduce premature failure due to incorrect gear tooth loading, spalding and incorrect pressures.”
Tailored condition monitoring services for plant and mining equipment are enhanced through the ARC division, using advanced methods such as structural resonance, transient analysis and motor current signature analysis, in-situ balancing, alignment and ultrasonic services. The ARC team also specialises in thermal monitoring of electrical equipment, reticulation and building wiring circuits. Schutte firmly believes in the value of investing in the correct technology to optimise the returns of a managed condition base maintenance programme.
“The introduction of one such technology – infrared monitoring – has been shown to significantly reduce electrical maintenance costs by preventing catastrophic failures and unplanned down time caused by electrical and mechanical faults or unusual operating conditions.
“For example, an inefficient transformer cooling system can be costly to maintain – thermography can address this by identifying blockages in the cooling system, which must function properly to enable the transformer to maintain its ideal operating temperature. Inefficient heating or cooling systems use too much energy – a cost which can be reduced through effective thermographic monitoring,” he said.
Condition monitoring can identify malfunctions – such as faulty electrical connections, misalignment early detection of bearings and gear problems, blockages and leaks in the circulation systems – and thereby remove unnecessary extra costs from the maintenance budget.
Using known data of the machinery, such as normal operation, heat generation and vibration levels, technicians are able to pinpoint electrical, mechanical or flow-induced problems which may lead to premature or catastrophic machine failures.
Schutte explains, “Certified and experienced WearCheck technicians analyse variations in machine and equipment data such as intelligent vibration parameter profiles and stress waveforms, and compare parameter profile trends against “baseline” trends such as PeakVue and specific frequency bands i.e., bearing, gear and electrical frequencies – also known as frequency bands or parameter profiles – instead of variances in demodulation or envelope levels.
“Ongoing monitoring of these signatures or parameters can indicate problem areas in their very early stages, enabling planned action to be scheduled to avoid catastrophic breakdown or downtime.
Schutte asserts the importance of understanding why the variation in the data occurs, to prevent over-maintaining or unnecessary downtime of plant and equipment. ‘Our philosophy of reporting on each and every fault and the required action makes us a leader in this field.”
WearCheck’s leading ARC technicians have amassed 100+ years’ experience in condition-based maintenance techniques as they process 10,000+ machines every month. To ensure that the ARC team is always well versed in the very latest asset reliability care techniques, team members regularly undergo training, particularly on courses offered by the Mobius Institute – a worldwide provider of reliability improvement, condition monitoring, and precision maintenance education.
WearCheck is itself an accredited Mobius course provider in Africa, offering courses to customers and staff alike, and entrenching itself as a firm champion of asset reliability care excellence. Furthermore, WearCheck in South Africa interacts regularly with members of the International WearCheck Group (IWCG) – an international network of WearCheck companies from around the globe – to share insights and information on the latest global condition monitoring techniques.
In addition to ARC and oil analysis, WearCheck offers further services in the condition monitoring arena. These include transformer analysis, water analysis and the company’s advanced field services (AFS) division, which offers rope testing, technical compliance (TC) and non-destructive testing (NDT), among other techniques.
WearCheck operates an extensive network of 14 laboratories in South Africa, Namibia, Zimbabwe, Zambia, Mozambique, Ghana, DRC, Dubai and India, supported by regional offices in several other African countries. The company’s ARC services are available throughout its operational footprint.
