10 Steps Guide

8/11/2019 10 Steps Guide

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Steps ToCreate AWorld-Class

Oil Analysis Program


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InsightServices,Inc. | www.TESTOIL.com | @testoil1

2 www.TESTOIL.com

TableofContents

#1 IdentifyCriticalEquipment ...................................................................................................................... ............................................ 4

#2 DetermineTestPackages..................................................................................................................................................................... 5

#3 ConsiderTestingOptions ........................................................................................................................ ............................................. 6

#4

Choosean

Oil

Analysis

Lab............................................................................................................................ ....................................... 7

#5 InvestinTraining.................................................................................................................................................................................. 8

#6 LearnHowtoInterpretanOilAnalysisReport ......................................................................................................................... ........... 9

#7 UseProperLubricationStorageandHandling .................................................................................................................................. 10

#8 JustifyYourProgram ........................................................................................................................ .................................................. 11

#9 EstablishandMaintainCredibility ..................................................................................................................................................... 12

#10 ManageYourProgramUsingWebBasedTools .............................................................................................................................. 13

Conclusion ................................................................................................................................................................................................. 14

ContactUs ............................................................................................................................. .................................................................... 14


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3 www.TESTOIL.comInsightServices,Inc. | www.TESTOIL.com | @testoil1

WhyShouldIReadTenStepsToCreateAWorldClassOilAnalysisProgram?

Oilanalysiscanuncover,isolate,and

offersolutionsforabnormallubricant

andmachineconditionswhenusedas

apredictivemaintenancetool.These

abnormalitiescanresultinexpensive,

sometimescatastrophicdamage

causinglostproduction,extensive

repaircosts,andevenoperator

accidents.

Thegoalofaneffectiveoilanalysis

programistoincreasethereliability

andavailabilityofmachinerywhile

minimizingmaintenancecosts

associatedwithoilchangeouts,labor,

repairs,anddowntime.Accomplishing

thisgoaltakestime,training,and

patience.However,theresultsare

dramaticandthedocumentedsavings

andcostavoidancearesignificant.

Manyorganizationsthroughoutthe

worldhaveimplementedoilanalysis

programstohelpmanageequipment

reliability.Somehaveexperienced

substantialsavings,costreductions,

andincreasedproductivity,while

othershavereceivedonlymarginal

benefits.Asuccessfuloilanalysis

programrequiresadedicated

commitmenttounderstandingthe

equipment,thelubricant,the

operatingenvironment,andthe

relationshipbetweenthetestresults

andactionstobeperformed.

Themostsuccessfuloilanalysis

programsarethosethatare

thoughtfullydesignedaftercareful

evaluationand

development

of

clearly

definedgoals.Theemphasisshouldbe

ondesigningqualityandexcellencein

thebeginning,notforcefittingitin

alongtheway.

Thefollowing10stepswillprovidea

guidelineforimplementingan

effectiveoilanalysisprogram:a

programconsideredtobeoneofthe

criticaltechnologiestoincreasing

equipmentreliabilitywhile

maintainingasafeandcosteffective

plantoperation.


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#1 IdentifyCriticalEquipment

Whenyoustartimplementinganoil

analysisprogram,youneedtodecidewhich

equipmentintheplanttosample.Thiscan

beadaunting

task

but

it

cannot

be

overlooked.Supervisorsandmanagement

needtotakethetimetoidentifythe

targetedequipment,writedetailed

procedures,establishroutes,andsampling

schedules.

Equipmentcriticaltoplantoperations

shouldbeidentifiedfirst.Thisequipment

oftendoesnothaveabackupunitto

replaceitwhenitisnotinservice.In

addition,majorrepairsandoverhaulof

criticalequipmentoftenrequireacomplete

plantshutdown,substantialmanpowerand

subsequentlossofproductionactivities.

Criticalequipmentinplantstypicallyhave

thesecommoncharacteristics:

Theyrequire

very

high

capital

investmentandareexpensiveto

maintainandrepair.

Theyareengineeredforlongservice

liveswhenoperatedwithindesign

specificationsandinapredictable

environment.

Manyarequitelargeandaremadeup

ofseveralindividualcomponents.

Downtimeisquiteexpensive

sinceproductionisusually

haltedwhenunexpected

problemsor

asystem

failure

isexperienced.

Appropriatetestingforcritical

equipmentincludes,butisnot

limitedto:

Wearmetalanalysis

Moisturecontent

Viscosity

Acidnumber

Analyticalferrography

Particlecounting


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#2 DetermineTestPackages

Oilanalysistestpackagesshouldbe

carefullyconsidered.Differentequipment

havedifferenttestprofilerequirements.

Whendetermining

what

test

packages

to

choose,theactualequipmentandthe

surroundingenvironmentshoulddictate

whattestsareappropriate.

Keepin

mind

that

with

oil

analysis

your

goal

istoincreasemachinereliabilitythrough

improvedfluidconditionandearly

detectionthatotherwisewouldnotbe

obviousunlessitcausesmachinefailures.

Havinganideaaboutwhatthevarioustests

are,whattheycanaccomplish,andtaking

intoaccountthemaintenancephilosophy

beingpracticed,testpackagescaneasilybe

drawnuptoaccomplishthedesiredresults.

Forexample,youmayknowthatsome

equipmentcanberuntofailuremuchless

expensivelythanthecostofperforminga

regularoil

analysis.

On

the

other

hand,

on

machineswithsmallerreservoirswhenoil

qualityisallthatwouldbemonitored,it

maybebesttocontinuewithregularor

evenincreasedfrequencyofoilchanges.

Ifyouarenotsurewhattestsarerightfor

yourequipment,itisbesttoconsulta

qualitylabforassistanceinthisarea.

Whendeterminingwhattest

packagesyouneed,askyourself

thefollowingquestions:

1. Whatisbeingmonitored,the

machine,thelubricant,or

both?Thesethreeitems

requireadifferentsetoftests.

Eachtypeofmachineshould

haveatestpackagetailoredto

itsneeds.Youshouldalsobegin

adialoguewithanoilanalysis

labtohelpyoudeterminewhat

testpackageswillhelpyou

reachyourgoals.

2. Howoftenwillsamplesbe

taken

from

each

machine?

Dependingonthecriticalityand

typeoftesting,frequencyof

samplingcouldrangefrom

onceaweektoannually.


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#3 ConsiderTestingOptions

Whendesigninganoilanalysisprogram,youhaveafewchoicesonhowtohaveyouroilsamplestested.Thissectionoutlinesthese

optionsandhelpsyouseewhichoneisbestforyourorganization:

Pros Cons

Maintainanonsitelab

Turnaroundtimeforresultscanbecontrolledinhouse.

Notdependentonanoutsideresource.

Testingpackagescanbeeasilychanged.

Quickresponseforemergencysamples.

Cost

of

purchasing

and

maintain

laboratory

instrumentation.

CostofLIMSsoftwareandupdates.

Labtechniciansmustbetrainedforeachtestprocedure

andinterpretationofresults.

Lackofcomprehensivetesting.

Useyourlubricationvendor

Theyhave

expertise

in

understand

and

knowing

lubricationformulations

Lubesuppliersoftenoffertoperformoilanalysisforfree

tolargevolumecustomers.

Convenienceofusingonesupplier.

Lubricantmanufacturers

are

in

business

to

sell

lubricant,

notanalyzeit.

Noaccesstoanalyststodiscusstestresults.

Turnaroundisnotapriority.

Notabusinesstheynecessarilyinvestresourcesinto.

Contractanoutsidelab

Fullcomplementoftestingservices

MostlabsmaintainISOcertification

Highlytrainedlabstaffperformingthetestsina

controlledenvironment.

Experiencedanalystsavailabletodiscusstestresults.

Continualinvestmentinresourcestomaintainthe

highestqualityofservices.

Thecostpersample.

Eachtestperformedonanoilsamplecostsmoney,so

somelabsmaylookatwaystosavemoneyand

potentiallycutcorners.

Someoutsidelabscanbecostlyandslowtodeliver

results.


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InsightServices,Inc. | www.TESTOIL.com | @testoil1

7 www.TESTOIL.com

#4 ChooseanOilAnalysisLab

Ifitisdeterminedthatcontractingan

outsidelabisthebestcourseforyouroil

analysisprogram,caremustbetakento

insurethatthelabisagoodfitforyour

company.Itisimportanttomatchalab

withthepredictivemaintenancestrategies

thatyourplantemploys.

Itshouldbeunderstoodthatsomelabs

catersolelytoindustrialapplicationswhile

othersareprimarilyfocusedonengineoils.

Youshouldbeawareofthis,asitisbestto

contractwithalabthatfocuses100%of

their

time

serving

the

industrial

sector.

The

labthatfocusessolelyonindustrial

applicationswillbefamiliarwithyourtype

ofequipmentandtheanalystswillhave

muchmoreexpertiseinanalyzingyourtest

results. Whileanylabwillagreetoperform

yourtesting,thequestionthatmustbe

askedisDoesthelabhavetheexperience

requiredtobemyoilanalysisproviderand

willIreceivethecorrecttests?

Customerserviceisanotherimportant

aspecttoconsiderwhenchoosingalab.In

ordertoresolveissuesquicklyyourlab

shouldbeavailableonyourfirstcall.Itis

importanttonotethatsomelabshave

limitedaccesstoanalystandrelyheavilyon

voicemailservices.

Whenevaluatingalab,consider

thefollowingquestions.

Whatisturnaroundtimeon

samples?

Whatdoespricinginclude?

shippingcost

sitevisitsfromlab

training

rushsamples

supplies

lubeaudits

Willtechnicalhelpbe

available?Doesitcostextra?

Howlongwillthecontract

last?Isthereachargetobreak

thecontract?

Howwillmyresultsbe

communicatedtome?

Doesthelabofferunlimited,

onlineaccesstomydata?


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#5 InvestinTraining

Oneaspectofareputable,selfsufficientoil

analysisprogramthatisoftenoverlookedis

training. Trainedtechniciansthat

understandhow

important

quality

lubricationproceduresarewillbekeyin

maintainingaprogram.

Staffingofalubricationprogramis

extremelyimportant.

You

may

consider

hiringsomeonewithaproventrackrecord

ofsuccess,howeverdonotoverlookthe

talentyoualreadyhaveinyourplant.There

arelikelyseveralpeoplealreadyinyour

organizationthatwouldbegoodfits.

Onceyourstaffisinplaceyoucanlookat

outsideresourcestoassistwithtraining.

Thereareseveralcompaniesthatoffer

excellenttraininginlubrication

fundamentalsandpracticesandmostwill

bewillingtocometoyoursiteifyouhave

enoughpeople

to

fill

aclass.

Do

not

forget

toincludesupervisorsandmanagers.They

needtobeonboardandbeawareofwhat

isrequiredandthebenefitsthatcanbe

achievedbyimplementinganoilanalysis

program.

Oilanalysisisaneverchangingtechnology

andtoreapitsbenefits,onemust

continuallyreceivequalitytraining.

Trainingoptionsmayinclude:

Classesand/orcertifications.

Tradeshowsandconferences

areanother

way

to

help

personnelstayontopof

recentadvancesintheirfield.

Departmentbudgetshould

reflecttheseeducational

opportunitiesfromyearto

year.

Foroilanalysistrainingoptions

visit:www.testoil.com


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#6 LearnHowtoInterpretanOilAnalysisReport

Theoilanalysisreportisavitaltoolfora

smoothrunningoperation.Goingdeeper

thanthereportsummariesandknowing

howto

analyze

the

oil

analysis

report

can

helppreventequipmentbreakdownand

unnecessaryequipmentteardowns.

Typicaloilanalysisreportsfeatureproblem

summaries,lubricant

and

machine

conditionstatus,andcriticalalerts.They

shouldalsoincludegraphicaldepictionof

varioustests,aswellasothervisual

elementstoassistintheinterpretationof

thetestresults.

Readinganoilanalysisreportcanbe

overwhelmingunlessyouknowwhatyou

arereading.Tooofteninlubeanalysisthe

failureofaprogramcanbeattributedto

thelackofinterpretationoftheconditions

reportandaninappropriateresponsetothe

results.When

this

happens,

valuable

informationislost. Thereasonforthiscan

largelybeattributedtothelackoftraining

ofyourmaintenanceprofessionals.

Withoutasolidunderstandingofthe

purposeof

lube

analysis

and

the

ability

to

interprettestresultstheycannotbe

expectedtocarryoutthisduty.

Maintenanceprofessionalsshouldreceive

trainingandeducationinlubeanalysis. In

fact,trainingandeducationshouldoccurat

severaldifferentlevelsandwitheveryone

whocontributestomachinereliability,from

managementallthewaytocraftsmen.

YourLabsResponsibilities

Yourlabshouldalsobeadeptat

interpretingresults. Manylabs

advertisethat

their

analysts

have

degrees,butwhenitcomesto

analyzingtestresults,experience

inthefieldisparamount. Make

suretheanalystseducationis

relevantandnotetheexperience

ofthe

technical

people

in

the

lab

aswell.


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IFHgroup.com

#7 UseProperLubricationStorageandHandling

Havinglubricationstorageandhandling

systemsinplaceisimportantaswell.

Lubricationproductsareexpensive,sothey

needto

be

handled

in

afashion

that

maximizesthereturnoninvestment.

Makesureyourstorageandhandlingareas

areclean,wellorganized,andclimate

controlled.You

are

responsible

for

ensuring

thenewoilandgreaseplacedinyour

equipmentiscleananddry,andhasnot

beenexposedtoextremetemperature

variations.

Ifyouhaveoilstorageracks,consider

separatepumpsandfiltersforeach

differentlubricant.Furthermore,makesure

yourtransfercontainersarecleanandbe

surenottoexposelubricantsto

contaminationinroutetotheequipment.

Testall

your

oil

for

acceptance

before

placingitintoyoursystemforuse.Doingso

isespeciallyvaluablewithbulkshipments,

becauseyouneverknowwhatwasinthe

tankerbeforeyourloadofoil.

Reasonsforusingproper

lubricationhandlingandstorage:

Protectlubeproductsfrom

environment

Protectfromplant

dirt/moisture/sunlight

Filternewlubesorlubesas

youusethem

Keeplubesseparatefrom

otherplant

chemical/products


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#8 JustifyYourProgram

Asyouputtogetheranytypeofpredictive

maintenancetechnology,likeanoilanalysis

program,youneedtojustifytheprogram.

Onecommonwayofjustifyingoilanalysisis

keepingrecordsofallpredictiveoilchanges,

filtrationrequests,dehydrationrequests,

andsoon.Forexample,thegoalmaybeto

improvethe

overall

fluid

cleanliness

levels

intheplantshydraulicpressbyusing

improvedfiltration.Inthiscase,oilanalysis

andspecificallytheparticlecountdata

becomesaperformancemetricthatcanbe

usedto

measure

compliance

with

the

statedreliabilitygoals.

Themetricsprovidejustificationand

accountability,notjustforthosedirectly

involvedwiththeoilanalysisprogram,but

alsoforthewholeplant,sendingaclear

messagethatlubricationandoilanalysisare

animportant

part

of

the

plants

strategy

for

achievingbothmaintenanceandproduction

objectives.

Youalsoneedtoannuallyevaluateyouroil

analysisprograms

effectiveness,

which

includesacostbenefitevaluationofmoney

savedbyavoidingmaintenanceissuesor

machinedowntimeduetooilanalysis.

Evaluationallows

for

continuous

improvementoftheprogrambyrealigning

theprogramwitheitherpreexistingornew

reliabilityobjectives.

Considerthefollowing

justificationsforoilanalysis

Somereasonstouseoilanalysis

are:toavoidcatastrophic

failures,extendlubricantlifeand

toextendequipmentlife.

Agoodoilanalysisprogramcan

savebigdollarsforareallysmall

investment.Youcanlearnto

predictconditionsthatarethe

precursoroffailurethroughoil

analysisandtrending.

Asolidanalysisprogramresults

inmakingconditionbased

decisionsbothonthestateof

the

equipment

and

the

lubricant.


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11 22 33

#9 EstablishandMaintainCredibility

Probablyoneofthemostessentialelementstoanysuccessfuloilanalysisprogramiscredibility.Afteryouestablishcredibilityina

program,youmustmaintainthecredibility.Anyknowledgeablepredictivemaintenancepersonwillagreethathowinternal

customersviewtheprogramcandetermineiftheprogramisaheroorazero. Whenestablishingcredibilityinanyoilanalysis

program,considerthesepoints:

Credibilityinanyoilanalysis

programissomewhatpolitical.

Oneofthebestwaystoavoidthis

phenomenoniseducation.Management,

operations,

maintenance,

and

others

may

viewtheprogramdifferently.Theoil

analysisprogrammaybeforcedonthem

justbecauseitspartofthecurrent

maintenancestrategy.Asaresult,you

wanttoeducateeveryoneonwhatoil

analysisisandisnt. Tailoryourmessage

toeachlevelwithinthecompanyto

reduceanypoliticalissues.

Havingpersonnelwhocan

communicateclearlyisofutmost

importance.

Whensomeoneasksaquestion

concerningtheprogram,givetheman

answerthattheycanunderstand.Most

managersdontwantalessoninoil

analysis,theyjustwanttoknowiftheiroil

isgoodandiftheirequipmentisgoingto

failorbereliableuntilthenextsample

frequency.Forexample,simplystating,

Contaminationlevelofforeign

particulatesexceedsourdesiredleveland

oxidationhascausedtheviscosityofthe

oiltoraisepastasafelevelforthis

machineismucheasiertounderstand

thanatechnicalexplanation,suchas,The

PCis21/19/16andtheVIShasraised20

percent.

Youearncredibilitybyhavinga

programthataddsvaluetothe

companyanditsusers.

Youwanttoensurethatbenefitsare

ongoing.Iftoomuchtimelapsesbeforea

managerseesvaluefromoilanalysis,trust

intheprogrammaydecline.Ontheflip

side,makesurethateverymaintenance

actionrequestedfromoilanalysisresults

bebackedupwithdata.

Theprogramneedstostandonitsown

merit.Theprogramsmanagermustalso

havemeritofbeingknowledgeable,

truthful,andeasytoworkwith.Without

this,theprogrammanagerisnomore

thananoutsideconsultanttryingtosella

solutiontoaproblemthatmayormaynot

exist.


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#10 ManageYourProgramUsingWebBasedTools

Onceasampleistestedandthedataisin

placetheremustbeawayforthelabto

communicatethedatatoyou.

Manylabsnowofferwebbasedtoolsthat

enablecustomerstoeasilyprocessthe

informationcontainedintheiroilanalysis

reports.

Webbasedprogrammanagementcanhelp

yourstaffmakebetter,moreinformed

decisionsaboutyouroilanalysisprogram

andtakenecessarystepsrequiredtoavoid

catastrophes.

Byusingawebbasedmanagementtool,

youandyourmaintenancestaffcan

collaborateandmanagereportsbecauseall

thedataisinoneeasytouseinterface,

whichallpartiescanaccessatalltimes.

Ideally,thewebbasedprogram

shouldoffertoolstoquickly

managesampleresultsand

monitorequipmentinthese

importantways:

Reviewequipmentsampling

history

Analyzemachinecondition

Accessandreviewrecentand

pastreports

Graphtrendsand

inconsistenciesthrough

interactivegraphs

Formoreinformationonwebtools

goto:www.testoil.com/datasight


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Conclusion

JustsendinganoilsampletothefirstlabfoundontheInternetmaynotguaranteeaqualityoilanalysisprogram.Simplytakingafew

precautionary,wellplannedstepsshouldminimizeanyunforeseenproblems.Withagoodvision,correctcommunication,andan

understandingofwhattoexpectfromoilanalysis,aprogramcanbeestablishedthatwillbecredibleandamerittothereliabilityof

anycompany.

ContactUs

Call:2162512510

Email:[email protected]

VisitourWebsite:www.testoil.com

Visitourblog:http://oilanalysis.testoil.com/

Tweetusat:@testoil1

AboutTESTOIL

TESTOILisafullserviceoiltestinglaboratoryownedby

InsightServices. Since1988thelaboratoryhasbeen

providingfast

and

reliable

oil

analysis

results

across

all

industriesthroughouttheAmericas.

Thefirmscomprehensiverangeofoilanalysisservices

assistsreliabilityengineerswithconditionmonitoring

andidentificationofmachinewear.

TESTOILemploysasophisticateddiagnostictechnology

thatassiststheirMachineConditionAnalystsinmaking

equipmentandlubricationconditionassessments.

10 Steps Guide

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