Latest Case Studies & White Papers

By Andrew Normand, UptimeAI partnership lead for Encora Energy

In today’s intensely competitive trading environment, it has never been more important to get the most out of your assets. In this context, using technological innovations such as artificial intelligence (AI) can maximise the efficiency and productivity, not only of individual pieces of equipment, but also entire process systems and networks of equipment.

If you engage in any maintenance, you will want to ensure your technicians can make the replace-or-repair decision before complete system failure of key components takes place. The easiest way to manage this risk is with vibration analysis.

Vibration analysis allows you to detect early signs of machine failure/deterioration. This allows your technicians to replace or repair machinery before catastrophic system functional failure takes place.

Electrical Vibration Problem

This is the first of five video case studies on Enhanced System Reliability by James Sylvester.

In this first case study James shows how vibration analysis can be used to diagnose electrical vibration problems. In this case a VFD driven Motor. Over the next few weeks James is going to share a selection of interesting vibration analysis case studies. Enjoy, and please share if you found it useful.

Abengoa, a major multi-national infrastructure company working in the energy and water sectors, has contracted Ingersoll Rand’s Engineering Project Solutions team to design a tailored compressed air system for the Agadir-Chtouka desalination plant in Morocco, with the latest CompAir technology providing the perfect solution.

Water plants depend on high-quality instrument air and service air to be exceptionally clean and free of contaminants such as moisture and particles. The Agadir-Chtouka desalination plant required instrument air to power pneumatic equipment, valves and some electrical controls, as well as service air for the industrial processes at the facility, including seawater intake, the re-distribution of salt to the sea, storing drinking water in tanks, and cleaning these tanks too.

Ontex, a leading international personal hygiene group, wanted to achieve a high level of safety and efficiency for machine maintenance interventions. Read how Brady Corporation has helped Ontex to implement efficient Lockout/Tagout-procedures that deliver optimal maintenance safety and speed for a wide range of machinery in Buggenhout, Belgium.

NSK, a global supplier of motion and control solutions for industrial markets, has created a new white paper about the added value that can be provided by partnering with a proven specialist in aftermarket parts. This insightful and free-to-download white paper sets out the benefits of developing a strong supplier relationship, the competitive advantages it brings and the pathway to machine optimisation.

Although aftermarket items such as bearings, lubricants, tubing and couplings have historically been warehoused as expendable commodities, the smart, lean manufacturers of today are increasingly aware that any machine or system is only as successful as its weakest component. A sub-standard bearing, for example, can therefore prove extremely costly in the event of premature failure.

Rittal was approached by Powerfish, a Scottish-based panel builder and electrical engineering business, with a brief to design and deliver robust, flexible, and easy-to-install panels for a renewable energy customer.

All the consultations, as well as the design work on the panels, were done remotely, in accordance with COVID-19 restrictions. 

The copper connections were created in-house from drawings produced by Rittal’s online configurator, saving the client both time and money. 

The project was turned around quickly while still maintaining Rittal’s high standards across engineering and customer service.

Powerfish is a progressive electrical engineering and panel building company based in Perth, Scotland.  Its engineering and manufacturing facility delivers a full range of engineering capabilities for the power generation and controls industry. The company’s G99 control system provides clients with a remote monitoring and a web interface for control and automation systems; access is provided through proprietary Powerfish® monitoring and datalogging software.

Creating an integrated advanced analytics program to improve the performance and reliability of pumping systems.

Incorporating machine learning or artificial intelligence (AI) in the monitoring of industry assets is becoming increasingly common, especially in industries where downtime causes profit loss. However, statistical modelling alone can be susceptible to producing false positives, cultural resistance and ineffective actions. Building a more robust and flexible solution that can validate real-world anomalies and adapt to changing IT policies requires an end-to-end approach that combines technology knowhow, equipment expertise, and operating experience.

Why heat exchanger maintenance is a whole system issue

Much like throwing a stone into a pond creates a series of ripples in the water, heat transfer fluid deterioration can have knock-on effects on the components in the system. Here, Dr Chris Wright, head of research and development (R&D) at thermal fluid specialist, Global Heat Transfer, explains why heat exchanger maintenance is a whole system issue.

When considering how to maintain a heat exchanger, it might seem logical to start with the component itself. However, the plant manager should consider the whole system and in fact, the whole plant, to keep the heat exchanger in good condition.

 As part of United Utilities water quality improvement programme, JMC North West Ltd, on behalf of NMCN, recently completed works to bury the above ground timing loop at the Pex Hill Service Reservoir. The challenge was to provide a durable, reliable corrosion prevention solution to protect over 90 double flanged joints prior to full encapsulation. To provide this high level of protection, JMC North West Ltd turned to Winn & Coales (Denso) Ltd for their services.