Things you need to know about condition monitoring

Condition monitoring is the process of managing a particular condition in machinery like vibration and temperature to identify changes that indicate a specific fault that needs correction. It is a significant part of predictive maintenance as implementing condition monitoring allows regularly scheduled maintenance. Such preventative actions safeguard machines against failure and allow for subsequent unplanned downtime.

Condition monitoring is used for several types of equipment, including rotating machinery, auxiliary systems, and other machine parts like compressors, pumps, motors, and presses. Traditional condition monitoring was based on measuring vibration to check for faults and issues; however, modern condition monitoring uses sensors to measure different parameters in real-time. In today’s world, innovative condition monitoring sends an alert whenever a usual activity is detected.

How does condition monitoring work?

Unlike previous times when engineers measured machine vibration using wooden sticks to check if the equipment is running correctly or not, condition monitoring has evolved much since then. However, times have changed considerably since then. Modern real-time monitoring allows engineers to schedule planned maintenance as required to schedule maintenance for a fixed date and time simply.

Condition monitoring allows for efficient maintenance, leading to less downtime and better machine productivity. In addition, it prevents other machine components from failing due to the knock-off effect from one machine part breakdown. Such predictive maintenance is a massive advancement from reactive maintenance, which risks machine failure and replaces all ineffective components.

That said, condition monitoring can be broken down into three steps:

● Install the monitoring system

● Practice baseline data measurement

● Engage in ongoing monitoring