Editorial

Monitran’s Group I intrinsically safe sensors are awarded ANZEx for use in mining applications in Australia and New Zealand.

All of Monitran’s Group I intrinsically safe accelerometers and velocity transducers have been approved by certification body Simtars to ANZEx for use in mining applications throughout Australia and New Zealand. This certification is in addition to the (EU) ATEX and (International) IECEx approvals Monitran’s Group I sensors already possess.

Andy Anthony, Monitran’s Operations Director, comments: “Many countries, whilst acknowledging international standards like IECEx, still impose their own standards for certain applications. We sought ANZEx in response to requests from end-users based in Australia and New Zealand, and companies based elsewhere wishing to supply machinery into these countries.”

By:  Ernesto Wiedenbrüg, Baker Instrument Company, an SKF Group Company

Introduction:
Gone are the days when a MegOhm meter and a digital multi-meter were the main tools in electrical maintenance.  Advances in technology now offer engineering professionals both off-line and on-line (real time) instruments to verify the health of rotating machinery.  

Modern on-line technologies permit assessment of the ‘whole motor system’, which is comprised of three components:  power, motor & load.  By focusing on these three components, troubleshooting now becomes truly predictive!

The contribution of maintenance to an organisation is unfortunately too often not fully understood until something goes wrong e.g. a failure of a significant plant item or asset.This will inevitably result in a consequential loss through the inability to produce or provide a service or the occurrence of an environmental health, safety or quality incident.

It is common knowledge that a range of Condition Monitoring (CM) techniques are available such as Vibration Analysis, Oil & Wear Debris Analysis, Thermography and Acoustic Emission. Each of these techniques has its own particular areas of strength and in this regard the Acoustic Emission (AE) technique has the noted advantage of giving real time information with early sensitivity to faults and applicability to a wide range of rotational speeds including slowly rotating (source : ISO 22096).

It follows that on-line monitoring systems should be capable of integrating the required mix of CM technologies for each particular spread of machine types in an installation. However the use of AE for machinery condition monitoring has historically been viewed as a separate specialist field and it has not been easy to integrate it into third party or industry standard monitoring and control systems.

Sonatest are proud to launch the new Corrosion Wheelprobe, which has been specifically designed for Pipeline Corrosion Mapping applications.  Continuing the proven success of Sonatest’s WheelProbe range, this new model is proving to be unrivalled in the field of corrosion mapping in terms of speed and ease of use, in addition to achieving excellent results.

Ergonomically designed, the Corrosion Wheel Probe offers smooth handling, good control and comfortable grip positions for scanning around pipes and for easy overhead work.  Circumferential and Longitudinal scanning are both completed rapidly and can be performed on pipes with diameters between 3 and 32 inches.

Problem: Wind turbines by their nature are located in remote locations. Daily monitoring of systems is often an impractical solution.

The October edition of EMS magazine is now available to read online in page turning digital format or PDF format. This edition contains articles on achieving best practice in condition monitoring and plant maintenance as well as the latest products, news and case studies.

SPM Instrument, now presents a new portable instrument for on-site vibration measurement and assessment. VibChecker is a cost-effective and user friendly addition to the SPM line of entry-level instruments for condition monitoring, where BearingChecker for bearing measurement is already a successful member.

Vibration monitoring is the most widely used preventive maintenance technique in industry. Regular vibration measurements give early warning of developing machine problems and help prevent premature replacement of machine parts.

Send for your free pocket guide to TPM and see how you can greatly improve the condition and performance of your company assets and operational processes using shop floor based teams. The guide has been produced by Roy Davis, probably the most experienced TPM implementer in the UK.  

MPI  have specialised in the implementation of TPM for over 14 years and provide a range of top quality training and support services to meet your specific requirements. Attend  our ‘An Introduction to TPM’ training workshop on 15th September 2009 and find out how we can help to make sure that your TPM programme is practical, achievable and successful.  

Artesis, a leading supplier of intelligent predictive maintenance solutions, has recently partnered with marine specialists James Fisher Mimic to integrate its Motor Condition Monitor (MCM) solution with the marine company’s industry leading Mimic condition monitoring system. The powerful combination of technologies has resulted in a highly efficient and unparalleled maintenance solution that is specifically targeted at inaccessible, high cost, critical assets in the marine sector.

James Fisher Mimic (JFM), providers of reliability engineering and condition monitoring solutions to the International Shipping Industry, has fully integrated the Artesis MCM solution to analyse motor current performance within their Mimic predictive maintenance product. This detailed information, in conjunction with other maintenance data, then provides an in depth analysis and overall picture of machine health and performance.