Machinery Lubrication magazine published by Noria Corporation
Issue link: https://www.e-digitaleditions.com/i/1487844
ML ML DRIVES DOWN MAINTENANCE COSTS ONSITE OIL ANALYSIS ML Lisa A Williams, Ametek Spectro Scientific | Rachel Li, Ametek Spectro Scientific | Dennis Uh, Novaspect, Inc. repairs relatively low. As the machine failure progresses, abnormal wear can be detected and still addressed early in the process to keep costs under control. Typically, the cost of repair goes up, and production time is lost the later in the process that failure occurs. Establishing Oil Analysis KPIs Strong reliability programs typically have Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) tied to company financial goals. KPIs are measurable values that demonstrate how effectively a company is achieving key busi- ness objectives. Understanding the company goals is typically going to come from the top down and likely will strictly be expressed in numbers. A manager may say maintenance costs are cut by 25% and end there. If cutting costs by 25% is the main goal of the year, it must be broken down into tangible goals that the maintenance department can achieve. Some tangible examples include increasing the production of machines by 25% and/or reducing oil consumption by 25%. However, these are still broad KPIs that need to be broken down even further to achieve the goal. e question then becomes, how do we reduce oil consumption by 25%? Extend oil changes? Sweeten oil when necessary instead of draining the entire reservoir?" Data helps drive these decisions. Data is powerful, but it must be the correct data that aligns with the KPIs to achieve company goals. If trying to increase production on a particular machine by 25%, it is necessary to reduce the chances of unex- pected downtime. Unexpected downtime can be related to several issues, some of which relate to either improper equipment instal- lation or lubricant contamination issues. A great place to start is lubricant contamina- tion issues and getting control of moisture and particle contamination. Typically, about 80% of machine failures can be traced back to particle contamination. By starting with filtration, the chances of increasing uptime are strong. Increasing bearing life can also be related to lubricant cleanliness. Reducing oil consumption can be related to contamination and preservation of the oil and additive chem- istry. Extending oil changes will be related to preserving and maintaining the integrity of the oil chemistry and keeping the oil clean. For additional assistance in developing test slates and choosing the correct parameters, ASTM Standards and ICML guidelines are available; ASTM D6224, ASTM D4378 and ICML 55.1 Section 7 can be used. www.machinerylubrication.com | November - December 2022 | 7