Condition Monitoring, is all about proactive/predictive maintenance. How we use gathered data such as maintenance history, visual inspection, oil sample history, etc, and generate backlog activity to prevent further damage
Condition monitoring is the process of determining the condition of machinery while in operation. The key to a successful condition monitoring program includes:
- Knowing what to listen for
- How to interpret it
- When to put this knowledge to use
successfully using a program enables the repair of problem components prior to failure. Condition monitoring not only helps plant personnel reduce the possibility of catastrophic failure, but also allows them to order parts in advance, schedule manpower, and plan other repairs during the downtime.
On-line monitoring is practiced by the installed supervisory instrumentation of the major plant equipment. This includes instrumentation such as vibration, pressure, differential pressure, temperature, flow, tank level, analyzers of critical process parameters. Trending the monitored parameters helps to determine the status of the equipment and schedule the maintenance work accordingly.
Off-line monitoring covers the measurements of wear, clearances& fits on various internal mating parts of the major equipment. These measurements are recorded during the scheduled inspection plans and compared with the allowable values specified by OEMs. This will help to decide when replacement is due and when to schedule the next maintenance prior to catastrophic failure occurs.