Vibration analysis in industrial machinery: main gains

Vibration analysis in industrial machinery is a technique that is constantly used to monitor and diagnose the behavior of assets during operation and assess their operating condition. This analysis is based on the detection and measurement of vibration variations. It can be carried out on a variety of equipment, such as motors, pumps, rollers, turbines, among others.

Through vibration analysis, it is possible to identify failures in the early stages, that is, still in the potential failure stage, and immediate action will prevent the asset from failing. This makes action for corrective measures faster and less impactful on the day-to-day running of the shop floor. It also reduces the chance of serious failures and optimizes maintenance intervals.

All these actions are directly related to reducing maintenance costs and increasing reliability and the useful life of assets. In other words, they have a direct impact on company turnover and employee safety. 

By using vibration analysis as a Predictive Maintenance technique, we can assertively apply the strategy known as CBM, or Condition-Based Maintenance. In other words, vibration analysis will give us parameters to assess whether an intervention is needed based on the condition of the asset. This factor is directly related, for example, to controlling operating costs for maintenance, since, by using this strategy, maintenance is carried out when it is actually necessary.

Now that we’ve understood a little more about the importance of vibration analysis and how it positively impacts the day-to-day management of predictive maintenance, it’s time to learn about its main benefits.

How to carry out vibration analysis on industrial machinery?

The first step when carrying out vibration analysis is to collect vibration data from the assets, and today we can use technology to our advantage. Data collection using triaxial sensors, for example, is the safest and most reliable way to assertively collect data.

Placed at strategic points on the machines, the sensors collect data both manually and automatically, identifying trends through vibration. 

Once collected, this data is transformed into frequencies and can be identified using spectral analysis. This analysis identifies the different frequencies present in the vibration data and determines whether there are abnormal peaks or parameters, which would be indications of potential failures such as misalignment, unbalance or other failure modes. 

Based on the data collected and analyzed, a comparison is made with the machine’s basic acceptance criteria, enabling a complete diagnosis of its condition to be made.

Main benefits

• Early failure detection:

Vibration analysis is a fundamental predictive maintenance technique. By regularly monitoring the vibrations of industrial machinery, it is possible to identify patterns and trends that indicate significant changes such as wear, misalignment and unbalance, which are responsible for the occurrence of failures. It is based on this information that teams can carry out maintenance in a planned manner, avoiding unexpected shutdowns and failures. 

• More reliable equipment:

Maintaining the reliability of equipment is an important benefit for the maintenance sector. This is because it consists of the premise that, in a given period of time and under pre-established conditions, the equipment will carry out the planned program without failing. Equipment reliability also has a direct impact on the health of the plant, since it varies according to whether or not maintenance events occur.

• More efficient routines:

One of the main benefits of vibration analysis is its ability to provide quick action to solve problems. This provides an opportunity for the maintenance team to work proactively, avoiding major problems that could compromise safety or operating costs. Today there are tools, such as DynaNeo, that can aggregate data from inspection routes and predictive analysis to generate dashboards that help provide a complete view of flows, making it clear where the team needs to act and the impact on the process as a whole.

• Reduction in maintenance costs:

The management of industrial maintenance costs is a determining factor in maintaining a company’s financial stability. This happens because when this process becomes inefficient, unnecessary expenses arise that can affect the budget and hinder the creation of new projects.

In this context, vibration analysis becomes an ally, as it is through the early detection of failures that maintenance can be carried out as planned. This avoids emergency repairs and allows parts or machines to be replaced only when necessary, enabling the use of the condition-based maintenance (CBM) strategy.

It is estimated that maintenance costs have a significant impact on the industry’s turnover, which can be reduced through preventive measures. 

By using the online Predictive Maintenance technique for vibration analysis, we are making an investment that brings feasible and tangible returns to the maintenance management process. Particularly in terms of managing maintenance costs when we talk about OpEx, for example. At Dynamox, we have proven that the cost of acquiring the monitoring system is paid back within 6 months of use.

Find out how the Dynamox solution prevented the loss of 30,000 tons of ore at Vale in just 3 months.

Following the benefits mentioned above, it is possible to measure the impact of implementing vibration analysis in the industry. It is a valuable tool, with relevant information on the operating condition of machines, that allows preventive or corrective maintenance to be carried out more efficiently. 

Want to know more about vibration analysis? Continue reading Vibration analysis metrics: Kurtosis and Skewness.