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Justifying an Oil Analysis Program
Art Durnan, Manager Maintenance and Reliability,
Kennecott Energy Company
The first answer is "How would you know you never experienced
poor oil quality if there was no analysis." Put this one
to bed really quick. Anyway the reason to do oil analysis or for
that matter any other predictive technology is two fold in my
mind - First to avoid those catastrophic failures and second to
extend equipment life.
A good analysis program can save big dollars for a really small
investment. We can learn to predict those conditions that are
the precursor of failure, through spectrographic analysis and
trending as well as wear debris analysis. Fluid cleanliness can
be tested and compartment targets maintained. Clean fluids make
machines last longer. My choice has always to be a little smarter
than the machines in my care.
If the strategy at this mill was time based change outs then
it could be assumed components were being changed either too early-costing
more or too late from failure. A solid analysis program results
in making conditioned based decisions both on the state of the
equipment and the lubricant. Time based drain frequencies are
wasteful for the same reasons.
A good analysis program looks at contamination and properties
and additive package levels. Knowing this allows lubricants to
be drained only when required. In some cases disposal costs are
as much or more than the cost of the lubricant. All of these benefits
can be entered into a spread sheet or an economic evaluation model.
I am a miner and don't know much about the paper industry. In
mining return on investment for oil analysis is around 30-40%.
I would gladly take that sort of return.
The biggest challenge in my career has been getting upper management
to understand the benefits of condition assessment. But the accountants
do understand money.
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