During the hot weather, it can be easy to overheat.
Environmental temperatures of 40C (104F) can make it difficult to keep the body at its ideal 37C.
The advice - be sensible and slow down to stay cool.
While heat exhaustion is not usually serious, as long as you can cool yourself down, heatstroke is a medical emergency.
Here's what to look for and what to do.
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Now available from industrial process heating specialist Babcock Wanson is the Navinergy digital platform for 24/7 boiler room performance monitoring. This innovative system allows customers to monitor their boiler room from any device, anywhere in the world, to optimise energy and water efficiency, and ensure regulatory compliance. The Navinergy platform integrates all the components needed to supervise and operate the boiler room, including control, regulation, recording, visualisation and communication. Using a local Modbus TCP network, Navinergy gathers, records and stores field data from all the connected boiler room equipment. The data is presented in the form of graphs or a performance report, which can be customised to customers’ precise needs. These are sent to customers at regular intervals, but can also be easily generated whenever required, for up to date information. Where deviations in the operation of boiler room equipment are identified by Navinergy, alerts are sent to customers directly to enable them to assess the situation and decide if action is required. Alert levels are customisable to best manage and prioritise them. In this way, Navinergy not only delivers information to be acted upon and periodically reviewed, but also provides customers with complete traceability. Several modules are available with Navinergy, including a module to list actions to be taken in the boiler room, a drift alert module, and the eWater module which monitors water quality to prevent boiler breakdowns. eWater enables operators to determine whether the water quality is in line with Babcock Wanson’s recommendations, in order to ensure equipment longevity. Where water quality dips below predetermined levels, Navinergy proposes corrective actions. In case of a major problem, a Babcock Wanson expert can also be notified to take proactive measures to address and solve the issue. Navinergy is available with all Babcock Wanson firetube boilers and is fitted as standard with Babcock Wanson’s BW7DAYS seven day unattended boiler operating system. Babcock Wanson offers a complete range of products and services for boiler houses and other process heating needs, including firetube boilers, coil type steam generators, thermal fluid heaters, hot water boilers, VOC and odour treatment by thermal oxidation, water treatment and process air heating solutions. The company aims to help optimise customer’s energy production with high quality products and efficient service. For more information, please contact Babcock Wanson on 020 8953 7111 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or go to www.babcock-wanson.com this article can also be found in issue below.
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A campaign which shone a light on the high cost of wasted energy in compressed air systems has put Thorite in the running for two major awards.
The compressed air and fluid power specialist created the ‘Behind Closed Doors’ campaign to raise awareness in the manufacturing sector about unseen compressed air inefficiencies which lead to high energy bills and have a negative environmental impact.
The campaign has now been shortlisted for Best Marketing Campaign in the national Instrumentation Excellence Awards and for the Creative for Good Award in the Prolific North Creative Awards.
Thorite’s Marketing Manager, Carl Davenport said: “We're very proud that our small in-house team has been recognised amongst some of the biggest and best creative agencies in the country.
“Our aim with the campaign was not only to highlight the financial and environmental impact that wasted energy has on UK manufacturing when it goes unmonitored, but also to provide energy saving solutions to manufacturers who need to rein in costs during this tough economic climate.
“The response to the campaign has been incredible and we’re delighted that ‘Behind Closed Doors’ has been recognised not just by the engineering industry and the environmental & sustainability press, but also by our creative peers.”
The Prolific North Award winners will be announced on June 29th and the Instrumentation Excellence Award winners on October 19th.
this article can also be found in the issue below.
MiB is a product/service that builds in diagnostic support for multiple assets via machine learning and Artificial Intelligence.
Where it would be difficult for non-experts to diagnose complex data or where there are multiple assets with multiple data feeds, human decision making can be limited and error prone..
Conventional AI systems base advice upon the identification and verification of outliers. They do not then normally offer a diagnosis of cause, but instead point the user to carry out further investigations and analysis and then update the system with the outcomes, such that if similar events are witnessed then the system can then respond with suggested outcomes. The problem with this is that the system is born naive and requires many learning events to become truly useful.
MiB incorporates the diagnostic knowledge of expert diagnosticians in the conventions of mature condition monitoring techniques and aligns this with AI functionality to identify true outliers and then offer meaningful diagnostic advice.
As more assets are managed remotely and fewer onsite personnel are sufficiently experienced to deal with all scenarios, it is becoming clear that a marriage of technology and experience is needed to balance the equation.
MiB have this as our objective, this is why we exist.
We have the tools to deliver it in a simple software platform that we can place within your existing workflow for maintenance planners in any industry, world-wide.
Be sure to come visit us at the Autonomous Ship Expo, we will be at stand number AS252.
The conference program is available here:
https://www.autonomousshipexpo.com/conference-program.php
Condition monitoring is a crucial aspect of equipment maintenance that involves tracking the health of machines in real-time to prevent potential breakdowns and unplanned downtime. Traditionally, condition monitoring has been carried out through manual inspections and routine maintenance checks. However, with the advancements in technology, artificial intelligence (AI) is being increasingly used in condition monitoring to automate the process and improve the accuracy of the results.
AI can be used in several ways to perform condition monitoring, including:
Overall, AI can significantly improve the accuracy and efficiency of condition monitoring, leading to reduced maintenance costs, increased equipment uptime, and improved safety. However, it’s essential to ensure that the AI algorithms used in condition monitoring are properly trained and validated to ensure that they provide accurate results. Additionally, human experts must be involved in the process to provide oversight and interpret the results.
In conclusion, AI is an increasingly important tool in condition monitoring that can help to improve the reliability and performance of equipment. As technology continues to evolve, we can expect to see even more advanced AI applications in this field, providing greater insights and value to businesses
this article can also be found in issue below.
Manufacturers face a £20,000 fine and, at worst, imprisonment, for failing to comply with regulations which cover the disposal of compressed air condensate. Yet many companies are unaware of the regulations and their responsibilities under it, warns Steve Boults, of compressed air and fluid power specialist Thorite. Here he explains how you can avoid putting both your finances and reputation at risk.
Almost all manufacturing processes use compressed air in their operations and condensate is a by-product of the compression process.
It is caused when the compressed air temperature decreases and turns back into a liquid, which contains contaminants such as lubricants, solid particles and airborne micro-organisms which were present in the compressed air.
Compressed air condensate is classified as hazardous waste and the legislation relating to its disposal is stringent. Companies which fail to comply can face fines of £20,000 and, in worse case scenarios, directors can face a prison sentence.
The solution to safely disposing of condensate – an oil/water separator - is simple and relatively low cost. Yet the number of compressed air users who do not employ one is surprisingly high.
We estimate that as many as 40% of compressed air plants fail to employ an oil/water separator, and a further 5% to 10% have one but fail to maintain it properly. This can apply to SMEs and multinationals alike.
The result is that toxic waste from their processes is draining to the ground and potentially making its way into waterways.
The legal ramifications and environmental implications alone should give companies pause for thought. But additionally, a compressor without an oil/water separator is also a compressor which is very likely to be performing inefficiently, as the build-up of oily condensate will eventually cause damage, leading to downtime and repair costs.
With the penalties for breaching the legislation so high it is essential that both company managers and operatives on the factory floor understand the regulations that govern condensate treatment and the steps they must take to meet them.
Safe disposal of condensate
Companies must handle all condensate and associated materials, from filters to spillage mats, in compliance with the Hazardous Waste (England and Wales) Regulations 2005.
This is as simple as installing an oil/water separator to separate the emulsified oil and waste water. Separators can cost as little as £100 and even at the larger end of the scale will only cost a few thousand pounds. They can also be retrofitted.
With relevant permissions, the waste water can then be drained to the foul sewer, while the oil collected must be removed by a registered Hazardous Waste Producer or Licensed Waste Carrier, usually on an annual basis.
If an oil/water separator is not fitted, this mix of pollutants is discharged into the compressor house drain and eventually makes its way into the nearest waste water system or, worse still, directly onto the compressor house floor where it drains to the ground outside. This activity is illegal.
The cost of failing to comply
If you have a compressed air system producing condensate, you are governed by a further two key pieces of legislation.
Water Resources Act 1991
This states that it is an offence to knowingly permit entry of toxic waste to surface or ground water. The penalty is a fine of £20,000 or more in a Crown Court.
Water Industry Act 1991
This sets out the administrative requirements relating to the discharge of the treated condensate water, such as gaining consent from the local sewerage service provider and provision of analysis data and records if requested.
It also states that under no circumstances can treated condensate water be discharged to open water such as rivers and streams, ground water or storm/rain water drains and that penalties for breaching the Act can result in fines of up to £20,000 and potential imprisonment for company directors.
The solution is straightforward - so why is the number of companies failing to fit an oil/water separator so high?
The main reason appears to be a genuine lack of awareness of the legislation, at all levels.
Management are unfamiliar with the law and consider oversight of the compressor house as belonging to the engineering or maintenance teams, while operatives might have inherited legacy equipment which never had a separator fitted, and have no cause to question the status quo. Therefore, responsibility falls between two stones.
Failing to comply with the regulations around condensate disposal presents a very real cost in terms of equipment efficiency, potential fines and professional reputation, not to mention the ethical implications of polluting the local environment.
Is that risk really worth the price of an oil/water separator?
Birmingham, UK | June 07, 2023 | Global automotive and industrial supplier Schaeffler has supplied a fruit processing company with its ProLink condition monitoring system to monitor the condition of trolley bearings on stacker cranes, which operate in cold and frozen storage areas.
Zentis GmbH & Co. KG, with its headquarters in Aachen, Germany, is one of Europe’s leading fruit processing companies, producing jams and fruit preparations for the baking, confectionery and dairy industries.
The Aachen site uses large stacker cranes for storage, transfer and retrieval. In order to monitor the large and difficult-to-access moving components in the cold and frozen storage areas and to avoid unplanned downtime, the logistics team at Zentis was looking for a predictive maintenance solution.
Previous CM success
Zentis had previously implemented Schaeffler’s SmartCheck condition monitoring devices on gearboxes and cable reels to monitor the health of a critical pallet lifter. The devices have helped to prevent unplanned downtime and optimise production. If the pallet lifter fails, the first production stoppages occur around two hours later. The SmartCheck devices measure the vibration, speed, temperature and imbalance of various rolling bearings in the gearbox, as well as the gear teeth/mesh. The CM solution has enabled an early warning period of several weeks which allows Zentis to carry out repairs and remedial action as part of planned maintenance work, thereby avoiding costly unplanned downtime.
A cold challenge
In the cold and frozen storage areas at Aachen, a different kind of CM solution was required. The stacker cranes constantly move around the 30-metre tall racks in different directions. The trolley bearings, in particular the non-driven bearings, are highly stressed. The fact that constant measuring conditions do not exist during regular operation posed an even greater challenge. In addition, temperatures in the frozen storage area are as low as -20°C, which presented yet another challenge for the new measuring system, for example, how to attach the sensors to the measuring points.
Michael de Ben, Head of Internal Logistics at the Aachen site, comments: “We were looking for a monitoring solution for our stacker cranes that could reliably take measurements despite inconsistent measuring conditions and ultra-low temperatures in order to protect us from unplanned downtimes.”
A smart solution
After approaching one of Schaeffler’s local authorised sales partners the Schaeffler ProLink condition monitoring system (CMS) was chosen. This intelligent measuring concept was adapted to suit Zentis’ unique requirements.
To monitor the stacker cranes, a Schaeffler ProLink CMS and five sensors (bearing guards) were installed on each stacker crane unit. In order to perform meaningful vibration monitoring, the original measurement concept had to be changed in the multi-channel CMS. Schaeffler achieved this by breaking down the short, slow travel times into many short measurements. Any extreme impacts could then be determined from these measurements.
To solve the temperature challenge in the cold storage area, the ProLink CMS was installed in the switch cabinet. In the frozen storage area, the ProLink system was placed in heated control cabinets that escort each stacker crane run. The sensors were attached to the measuring points using a special, cold-resistant adhesive compound.
Permanent benefits
The implementation of the ProLink CMS, has benefitted Zentis in several ways. With early warnings of any change in the condition of the stacker crane trolley bearings, the site has also seen an improvement in the planning of maintenance activities, as well as improved safety and transparency. The ProLink CMS is also fully integrated into the sites own control system.
As Michael de Ben states: “The ProLink CMS monitors heavily strained moving components on the stacker cranes that, due to their size or mounting position, cannot be repaired promptly in the event of an unplanned malfunction. By using bearing guards, the vibration pattern of this equipment can be permanently observed and any deviation can be detected at an early stage. In this way, the ProLink CMS makes a crucial contribution to safeguarding the production supply at Zentis KG Aachen.”
ProLink is part of the Schaeffler Lifetime Solutions portfolio, which offers a comprehensive range of products, services and solutions for industrial maintenance. It is designed to support maintenance engineers over the entire lifetime of a machine.
This article can also be found an issue below.
IFS Ultimo and InfoConsulting, one of the fastest growing consulting companies specialized in digital transformation have signed a reseller agreement designed to support customers in the implementation of the IFS Ultimo Enterprise Asset Management (EAM) platform. In the first stage, sales will be developed in Europe and Australia where InfoConsulting has a well developed customer maintenance and sales network.
Global growth strategy
This partnership allows InfoConsulting to add the IFS Ultimo EAM solution to its portfolio, and offer customers a better solution for the evolving needs of their business through rapidly improving cross-team collaboration, boosting productivity, maximising asset availability, controlling costs and securing health and safety requirements.
InfoConsulting serves its customers globally in industrial and asset-intensive verticals like manufacturing, construction and mining but also in many others. IFS Ultimo provides a SaaS EAM solution, focused on maintenance & safety with an unparalleled time to value.
InfoConsulting had noticed an increased demand for EAM solutions, advancements in technology and changes in the business landscape, alongside the need to meet customer requirements, such as reducing costs and improving efficiency. This partnership provides them with a comprehensive EAM solution and addresses the evolving needs of businesses. IFS Ultimo’s EAM portfolio enables customers to have the tools needed to harness real value and achieve business goals faster and with more efficiency.
Integrated solutions
Mirosław Kamiński, Head of InfoConsulting commented: “We are enthusiastic about the Introduction of IFS Ultimo to our offerings, as it is a complementary solution to the IFS ERP System. Above all, we see a number of benefits for our customers. By improving maintenance, safety and cross-team collaboration, they can increase their efficiency. One of the benefits of the product is also the rate and speed at which customers obtain value and an ROI.
Freddy Vos, Vice President International Sales & Channel at IFS Ultimo said: “With the years of experience that InfoConsulting has in industrial markets, this is a perfect partnership for us to explore the European and Australian markets. I’m convinced that we can offer value for the customers of InfoConsulting, supporting them with their maintenance and safety challenges. InfoConsulting’s experience in solutions that are connected to EAM, like ERP, also offers an opportunity for us to provide solutions in a more integrated way together.”
This article can also be found in the issue below.
Fourteen Rotary Lobe Pumps made by Borger have been installed for a membrane filtration application at a water treatment plant.
Achieving a total output of up to 10,000 m³/h, the Borger pumps extract water so that it can be purified through the membranes.
In addition to being extremely stable and practically wear-resistant, the pumps were chosen to suit the cleaning of the membranes by back-flushing with filtered water. This made it essential for the operator of the plant to have pumps that could be operated in reverse. The rotary lobe pumps from Borger also have a high suction capacity that allows the treatment plant to vary the quantity of water during the back-flushing phase.
Regulated by a frequency converter, the Borger Rotary Lobe Pumps (which have a rated capacity of 450 - 720 m³/h),
are designed with maintenance-in-place for easy servicing, requiring only basic tools to keep downtime and costs to a minimum.
Borger UK
01902 798 977
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Facilities maintenance operations can face different circumstantial challenges which require modern solutions. Particularly for hazardous environments such as the oil & gas and petrochemical industries, cold-curing polymeric repair and protection materials can provide a novel means of bypassing these challenges.
This application demonstrates a Customer’s use of Belzona’s cold-curing epoxy two-part structural adhesive, Belzona 7311, to navigate these challenges in the petrochemical industry to fulfil their maintenance needs.
This metal tank needed maintenance to both the base and the roof
The structural epoxy adhesive, Belzona 7311, provided a cold bonding solution for the metal substrate
What was the Problem?
A metal storage tank in a Chemical Plant containing concentrated sulfuric acid required maintenance to both the base and the roof. The Customer needed to bond pipe supports to the top of the tank to reinforce the pipes directly above. However, the tank was installed with a rubber lining, ruling out hot work such as welding as a means of attaching the pipe supports.
Meanwhile, the existing tank base coating had been exposed to chemical attack and needed to be replaced with a suitable chemical-resistant coating to protect the tank from future chemical spills.
The tank base had been exposed to chemical attack
The internal rubber linning made welding inappropriate to bond the metal pipe supports
Belzona 7311: A New Cold Bonding Solution
Belzona’s first ever structural adhesive, Belzona 7311, proved to be the optimal cold bonding solution for the Customer’s requirements due to its high mechanical strength, cleavage and shear resistance. By using this technology, the supports could be cold bonded to the top of the metal tank without the associated risks of welding such as damage to the rubber lining and metal distortion known as Heat Affected Zones (HAZ). HAZ can be the result of the intense process of heating and cooling the substrate, leading to weaknesses in the metal and compromising the integrity of the weld joint.
Bonding of the Pipe Supports
The Contractor specified that the best way of attaching pipe supports was to cold bond six 254 mm by 254 mm (10 inch by 10 inch) metal plates to the top of the tank, which could then be cold bonded to the pipe supports. The chosen areas were marked with tape, before being prepared using handheld surface preparation tools. The application areas were prepared to SSPC-SP11 standard, producing a bare metal surface and a minimum 25 μm (1 mil) profile for a high level of adhesion.
The two-part epoxy adhesive, Belzona 7311, was then mixed and applied to both the substrate and the underside of the metal plates, before being held in place with no additional weight or pressure
while the product was allowed to cure. Once the plates had been cold bonded to the metal tank, the pipe supports were subsequently attached to reinforce the pipes in operation above the tank.
The metal surface was prepared to allow the plates to adhere
The epoxy 2-part adhesive, Belzona 7311, was applied to both the tank surface and the plates
The cold bonding solution was allowed to cure with no extra weight or pressure
Application of the Chemical Resistant Coating
Belzona 4311 (Magma CR1) was specified to protect the tank base due to its chemical resistant qualities, having encountered no significant deterioration after a year of immersion in up to 98% sulfuric acid at 40°C (104°F), when tested in accordance with ISO 2812-1.
The previous tank base coating was removed and the concrete surface was prepared with an ATEX-rated power tool and conditioned using Belzona 4911 (Cleaner/Degreaser) to ensure maximum adhesion for the new coating.
Two coats of Belzona 4311 (Magma CR1) were applied to provide long-term protection to the tank base, avoiding the harmful financial, safety and environmental consequences of a future leak.
Belzona 4311 (Magma CR1) was applied to the tank base
The chemical resistant coating will provide protection in the case of chemical spills
Results of the Repair
The sulfuric acid tank base will be protected against chemical attack for the long term due to the chemical resistant properties of Belzona 4311 (Magma CR1). Meanwhile, the Customer was impressed by the ability of Belzona 7311 to solve the challenges caused by the tank’s rubber lining, cold bonding the metal pipe supports securely without the need for welding. The Customer was also very satisfied by the high mechanical strength, cleavage and shear resistance demonstrated by the cold bonding solution during the application.
The strength of the cold bonding solution allowed the pipe supports to be seamlessly attached to the top of the tank
Cold Bonding Solution in Action
This application presented an example of the opportunities provided by the epoxy two-part structural adhesive, Belzona 7311 as a cold bonding solution, offering an effective and safe alternative to welding. The solution can be used for structural bonding applications requiring high mechanical strength, cleavage and shear resistance, including ladders, handrails and plate bonding, and is suitable for harsh service environments.
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