Steps To

Create A World-Class
Oil Analysis Program
 InsightServices,Inc.|www.TESTOIL.com|@testoil1

TableofContents

#1IdentifyCriticalEquipment .................................................................................................................................................................. 4
#2DetermineTestPackages..................................................................................................................................................................... 5
#3ConsiderTestingOptions..................................................................................................................................................................... 6
#4ChooseanOilAnalysisLab................................................................................................................................................................... 7
#5InvestinTraining.................................................................................................................................................................................. 8
#6LearnHowtoInterpretanOilAnalysisReport.................................................................................................................................... 9
#7UseProperLubricationStorageandHandling .................................................................................................................................. 10
#8JustifyYourProgram .......................................................................................................................................................................... 11
#9EstablishandMaintainCredibility ..................................................................................................................................................... 12
#10ManageYourProgramUsingWebBasedTools.............................................................................................................................. 13
Conclusion................................................................................................................................................................................................. 14
ContactUs................................................................................................................................................................................................. 14

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WhyShouldIReadTenStepsToCreateAWorldClassOilAnalysisProgram?

Oilanalysiscanuncover,isolate,and dramaticandthedocumentedsavings
Themostsuccessfuloilanalysis
offersolutionsforabnormallubricant andcostavoidancearesignificant.
programsarethosethatare
andmachineconditionswhenusedas
thoughtfullydesignedaftercareful
apredictivemaintenancetool.These Manyorganizationsthroughoutthe
evaluationanddevelopmentofclearly
abnormalitiescanresultinexpensive, worldhaveimplementedoilanalysis
definedgoals.Theemphasisshouldbe
sometimescatastrophicdamage programstohelpmanageequipment
ondesigningqualityandexcellencein
causinglostproduction,extensive reliability.Somehaveexperienced
thebeginning,notforcefittingitin
repaircosts,andevenoperator substantialsavings,costreductions,
alongtheway.
accidents. andincreasedproductivity,while

othershavereceivedonlymarginal
Thefollowing10stepswillprovidea
Thegoalofaneffectiveoilanalysis benefits.Asuccessfuloilanalysis
guidelineforimplementingan
programistoincreasethereliability programrequiresadedicated
effectiveoilanalysisprogram:a
andavailabilityofmachinerywhile commitmenttounderstandingthe
programconsideredtobeoneofthe
minimizingmaintenancecosts equipment,thelubricant,the
criticaltechnologiestoincreasing
associatedwithoilchangeouts,labor, operatingenvironment,andthe
equipmentreliabilitywhile
repairs,anddowntime.Accomplishing relationshipbetweenthetestresults
maintainingasafeandcosteffective
thisgoaltakestime,training,and andactionstobeperformed.
plantoperation.
patience.However,theresultsare

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#1IdentifyCriticalEquipment

Whenyoustartimplementinganoil Criticalequipmentinplantstypicallyhave Appropriatetestingforcritical
equipmentincludes,butisnot
analysisprogram,youneedtodecidewhich thesecommoncharacteristics: limitedto:

equipmentintheplanttosample.Thiscan
Wearmetalanalysis
beadauntingtaskbutitcannotbe Theyrequireveryhighcapital Moisturecontent
overlooked.Supervisorsandmanagement investmentandareexpensiveto
Viscosity
maintainandrepair.
needtotakethetimetoidentifythe Acidnumber
Theyareengineeredforlongservice
targetedequipment,writedetailed Analyticalferrography
liveswhenoperatedwithindesign
Particlecounting
procedures,establishroutes,andsampling specificationsandinapredictable
environment.
schedules.
Manyarequitelargeandaremadeup

ofseveralindividualcomponents.
Equipmentcriticaltoplantoperations
Downtimeisquiteexpensive
shouldbeidentifiedfirst.Thisequipment sinceproductionisusually
oftendoesnothaveabackupunitto haltedwhenunexpected
problemsorasystemfailure
replaceitwhenitisnotinservice.In
isexperienced.
addition,majorrepairsandoverhaulof

criticalequipmentoftenrequireacomplete
plantshutdown,substantialmanpowerand
subsequentlossofproductionactivities.

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#2DetermineTestPackages

Oilanalysistestpackagesshouldbe Forexample,youmayknowthatsome Whendeterminingwhattest

packagesyouneed,askyourself
carefullyconsidered.Differentequipment equipmentcanberuntofailuremuchless thefollowingquestions:

havedifferenttestprofilerequirements. expensivelythanthecostofperforminga
1. Whatisbeingmonitored,the
Whendeterminingwhattestpackagesto regularoilanalysis.Ontheotherhand,on machine,thelubricant,or
choose,theactualequipmentandthe machineswithsmallerreservoirswhenoil both?Thesethreeitems

surroundingenvironmentshoulddictate qualityisallthatwouldbemonitored,it requireadifferentsetoftests.

Eachtypeofmachineshould
whattestsareappropriate. maybebesttocontinuewithregularor
haveatestpackagetailoredto
evenincreasedfrequencyofoilchanges.
itsneeds.Youshouldalsobegin
Keepinmindthatwithoilanalysisyourgoal adialoguewithanoilanalysis
istoincreasemachinereliabilitythrough Ifyouarenotsurewhattestsarerightfor labtohelpyoudeterminewhat

improvedfluidconditionandearly yourequipment,itisbesttoconsulta testpackageswillhelpyou

reachyourgoals.
detectionthatotherwisewouldnotbe qualitylabforassistanceinthisarea.
2. Howoftenwillsamplesbe
obviousunlessitcausesmachinefailures.
takenfromeachmachine?
Havinganideaaboutwhatthevarioustests Dependingonthecriticalityand
are,whattheycanaccomplish,andtaking typeoftesting,frequencyof

intoaccountthemaintenancephilosophy samplingcouldrangefrom
onceaweektoannually.
beingpracticed,testpackagescaneasilybe
drawnuptoaccomplishthedesiredresults.

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#3ConsiderTestingOptions
Whendesigninganoilanalysisprogram,youhaveafewchoicesonhowtohaveyouroilsamplestested.Thissectionoutlinesthese
optionsandhelpsyouseewhichoneisbestforyourorganization:
Pros
Turnaroundtimeforresultscanbecontrolledinhouse.
Maintainanonsitelab Notdependentonanoutsideresource.
Testingpackagescanbeeasilychanged.
Quickresponseforemergencysamples.
Theyhaveexpertiseinunderstandandknowing
lubricationformulations
Useyourlubricationvendor
Lubesuppliersoftenoffertoperformoilanalysisforfree
tolargevolumecustomers.
Convenienceofusingonesupplier.
Fullcomplementoftestingservices
MostlabsmaintainISOcertification
Highlytrainedlabstaffperformingthetestsina
Contractanoutsidelab
controlledenvironment.
Experiencedanalystsavailabletodiscusstestresults.
Continualinvestmentinresourcestomaintainthe
highestqualityofservices.
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Cons
Costofpurchasingandmaintainlaboratory
instrumentation.
CostofLIMSsoftwareandupdates.
Labtechniciansmustbetrainedforeachtestprocedure
andinterpretationofresults.
Lackofcomprehensivetesting.
Lubricantmanufacturersareinbusinesstoselllubricant,
notanalyzeit.
Noaccesstoanalyststodiscusstestresults.
Turnaroundisnotapriority.
Notabusinesstheynecessarilyinvestresourcesinto.
Thecostpersample.
Eachtestperformedonanoilsamplecostsmoney,so
somelabsmaylookatwaystosavemoneyand
potentiallycutcorners.
Someoutsidelabscanbecostlyandslowtodeliver
results.
 InsightServices,Inc.|www.TESTOIL.com|@testoil1

#4ChooseanOilAnalysisLab
Ifitisdeterminedthatcontractingan
outsidelabisthebestcourseforyouroil
analysisprogram,caremustbetakento
insurethatthelabisagoodfitforyour
results.Whileanylabwillagreetoperform
yourtesting,thequestionthatmustbe
askedisDoesthelabhavetheexperience
requiredtobemyoilanalysisproviderand
Whenevaluatingalab,consider
thefollowingquestions.
Whatisturnaroundtimeon
samples?

company.Itisimportanttomatchalab willIreceivethecorrecttests? Whatdoespricinginclude?

shippingcost
withthepredictivemaintenancestrategies
sitevisitsfromlab
thatyourplantemploys. Customerserviceisanotherimportant
training
aspecttoconsiderwhenchoosingalab.In rushsamples
Itshouldbeunderstoodthatsomelabs ordertoresolveissuesquicklyyourlab supplies

catersolelytoindustrialapplicationswhile shouldbeavailableonyourfirstcall.Itis lubeaudits

Willtechnicalhelpbe
othersareprimarilyfocusedonengineoils. importanttonotethatsomelabshave
available?Doesitcostextra?
Youshouldbeawareofthis,asitisbestto limitedaccesstoanalystandrelyheavilyon
Howlongwillthecontract
contractwithalabthatfocuses100%of voicemailservices. last?Isthereachargetobreak
theirtimeservingtheindustrialsector.The thecontract?

labthatfocusessolelyonindustrial Howwillmyresultsbe
communicatedtome?
applicationswillbefamiliarwithyourtype
Doesthelabofferunlimited,
ofequipmentandtheanalystswillhave
onlineaccesstomydata?
muchmoreexpertiseinanalyzingyourtest

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#5InvestinTraining

Oneaspectofareputable,selfsufficientoil excellenttraininginlubrication Trainingoptionsmayinclude:

analysisprogramthatisoftenoverlookedis fundamentalsandpracticesandmostwill Classesand/orcertifications.

training.Trainedtechniciansthat bewillingtocometoyoursiteifyouhave Tradeshowsandconferences

areanotherwaytohelp
understandhowimportantquality enoughpeopletofillaclass.Donotforget
personnelstayontopof
lubricationproceduresarewillbekeyin toincludesupervisorsandmanagers.They
recentadvancesintheirfield.
maintainingaprogram. needtobeonboardandbeawareofwhat Departmentbudgetshould
isrequiredandthebenefitsthatcanbe reflecttheseeducational
Staffingofalubricationprogramis achievedbyimplementinganoilanalysis opportunitiesfromyearto
year.
extremelyimportant.Youmayconsider program.

hiringsomeonewithaproventrackrecord

ofsuccess,howeverdonotoverlookthe Oilanalysisisaneverchangingtechnology
talentyoualreadyhaveinyourplant.There andtoreapitsbenefits,onemust

arelikelyseveralpeoplealreadyinyour continuallyreceivequalitytraining.

organizationthatwouldbegoodfits.


Foroilanalysistrainingoptions
Onceyourstaffisinplaceyoucanlookat visit:www.testoil.com
outsideresourcestoassistwithtraining.
Thereareseveralcompaniesthatoffer

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#6LearnHowtoInterpretanOilAnalysisReport

Theoilanalysisreportisavitaltoolfora failureofaprogramcanbeattributedto YourLabsResponsibilities

smoothrunningoperation.Goingdeeper thelackofinterpretationoftheconditions
Yourlabshouldalsobeadeptat
thanthereportsummariesandknowing reportandaninappropriateresponsetothe interpretingresults.Manylabs
howtoanalyzetheoilanalysisreportcan results.Whenthishappens,valuable advertisethattheiranalystshave

helppreventequipmentbreakdownand informationislost.Thereasonforthiscan degrees,butwhenitcomesto

unnecessaryequipmentteardowns. largelybeattributedtothelackoftraining
ofyourmaintenanceprofessionals.
Typicaloilanalysisreportsfeatureproblem Withoutasolidunderstandingofthe
summaries,lubricantandmachine purposeoflubeanalysisandtheabilityto
analyzingtestresults,experience
inthefieldisparamount.Make
suretheanalystseducationis
relevantandnotetheexperience
ofthetechnicalpeopleinthelab

conditionstatus,andcriticalalerts.They interprettestresultstheycannotbe aswell.

shouldalsoincludegraphicaldepictionof expectedtocarryoutthisduty.
varioustests,aswellasothervisual
elementstoassistintheinterpretationof Maintenanceprofessionalsshouldreceive
thetestresults. trainingandeducationinlubeanalysis.In
fact,trainingandeducationshouldoccurat
Readinganoilanalysisreportcanbe severaldifferentlevelsandwitheveryone
overwhelmingunlessyouknowwhatyou whocontributestomachinereliability,from
arereading.Tooofteninlubeanalysisthe managementallthewaytocraftsmen.

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#7UseProperLubricationStorageandHandling

Havinglubricationstorageandhandling surenottoexposelubricantsto Reasonsforusingproper
lubricationhandlingandstorage:
systemsinplaceisimportantaswell. contaminationinroutetotheequipment.

Lubricationproductsareexpensive,sothey Protectlubeproductsfrom
environment
needtobehandledinafashionthat Testallyouroilforacceptancebefore
Protectfromplant
maximizesthereturnoninvestment. placingitintoyoursystemforuse.Doingso
dirt/moisture/sunlight
isespeciallyvaluablewithbulkshipments, Filternewlubesorlubesas
Makesureyourstorageandhandlingareas becauseyouneverknowwhatwasinthe youusethem
areclean,wellorganized,andclimate tankerbeforeyourloadofoil. Keeplubesseparatefrom

controlled.Youareresponsibleforensuring otherplantchemical/products

thenewoilandgreaseplacedinyour
equipmentiscleananddry,andhasnot
beenexposedtoextremetemperature
variations.

Ifyouhaveoilstorageracks,consider
separatepumpsandfiltersforeach
differentlubricant.Furthermore,makesure
yourtransfercontainersarecleanandbe IFHgroup.com

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#8JustifyYourProgram

Asyouputtogetheranytypeofpredictive involvedwiththeoilanalysisprogram,but Considerthefollowing
justificationsforoilanalysis
maintenancetechnology,likeanoilanalysis alsoforthewholeplant,sendingaclear
Somereasonstouseoilanalysis
program,youneedtojustifytheprogram. messagethatlubricationandoilanalysisare
are:toavoidcatastrophic
animportantpartoftheplantsstrategyfor failures,extendlubricantlifeand
Onecommonwayofjustifyingoilanalysisis achievingbothmaintenanceandproduction toextendequipmentlife.
keepingrecordsofallpredictiveoilchanges, objectives. Agoodoilanalysisprogramcan

filtrationrequests,dehydrationrequests, savebigdollarsforareallysmall
investment.Youcanlearnto
andsoon.Forexample,thegoalmaybeto Youalsoneedtoannuallyevaluateyouroil
predictconditionsthatarethe
improvetheoverallfluidcleanlinesslevels analysisprogramseffectiveness,which
precursoroffailurethroughoil
intheplantshydraulicpressbyusing includesacostbenefitevaluationofmoney analysisandtrending.
improvedfiltration.Inthiscase,oilanalysis savedbyavoidingmaintenanceissuesor Asolidanalysisprogramresults

andspecificallytheparticlecountdata machinedowntimeduetooilanalysis. inmakingconditionbased

decisionsbothonthestateof
becomesaperformancemetricthatcanbe
theequipmentandthelubricant.
usedtomeasurecompliancewiththe Evaluationallowsforcontinuous

statedreliabilitygoals. improvementoftheprogrambyrealigning
theprogramwitheitherpreexistingornew
Themetricsprovidejustificationand reliabilityobjectives.
accountability,notjustforthosedirectly

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#9EstablishandMaintainCredibility

Probablyoneofthemostessentialelementstoanysuccessfuloilanalysisprogramiscredibility.Afteryouestablishcredibilityina
program,youmustmaintainthecredibility.Anyknowledgeablepredictivemaintenancepersonwillagreethathowinternal
customersviewtheprogramcandetermineiftheprogramisaheroorazero.Whenestablishingcredibilityinanyoilanalysis
program,considerthesepoints:

1 2
Credibilityinanyoilanalysis Havingpersonnelwhocan
programissomewhatpolitical. communicateclearlyisofutmost
importance.
Oneofthebestwaystoavoidthis Whensomeoneasksaquestion
phenomenoniseducation.Management, concerningtheprogram,givetheman
operations,maintenance,andothersmay answerthattheycanunderstand.Most
viewtheprogramdifferently.Theoil managersdontwantalessoninoil
analysisprogrammaybeforcedonthem analysis,theyjustwanttoknowiftheiroil
justbecauseitspartofthecurrent isgoodandiftheirequipmentisgoingto
maintenancestrategy.Asaresult,you failorbereliableuntilthenextsample
wanttoeducateeveryoneonwhatoil frequency.Forexample,simplystating,
analysisisandisnt.Tailoryourmessage Contaminationlevelofforeign
toeachlevelwithinthecompanyto particulatesexceedsourdesiredleveland
reduceanypoliticalissues. oxidationhascausedtheviscosityofthe
oiltoraisepastasafelevelforthis
machineismucheasiertounderstand
thanatechnicalexplanation,suchas,The
PCis21/19/16andtheVIShasraised20
percent.
3
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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#10ManageYourProgramUsingWebBasedTools

Onceasampleistestedandthedataisin thedataisinoneeasytouseinterface, Ideally,thewebbasedprogram
shouldoffertoolstoquickly
placetheremustbeawayforthelabto whichallpartiescanaccessatalltimes. managesampleresultsand
monitorequipmentinthese
communicatethedatatoyou. importantways:

Reviewequipmentsampling
Manylabsnowofferwebbasedtoolsthat history
enablecustomerstoeasilyprocessthe Analyzemachinecondition

informationcontainedintheiroilanalysis Accessandreviewrecentand
pastreports
reports.
Graphtrendsand

inconsistenciesthrough
Webbasedprogrammanagementcanhelp interactivegraphs
yourstaffmakebetter,moreinformed
decisionsaboutyouroilanalysisprogram
andtakenecessarystepsrequiredtoavoid

catastrophes.


Byusingawebbasedmanagementtool,
Formoreinformationonwebtools
youandyourmaintenancestaffcan goto:www.testoil.com/datasight

collaborateandmanagereportsbecauseall

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Conclusion

JustsendinganoilsampletothefirstlabfoundontheInternetmaynotguaranteeaqualityoilanalysisprogram.Simplytakingafew
precautionary,wellplannedstepsshouldminimizeanyunforeseenproblems.Withagoodvision,correctcommunication,andan
understandingofwhattoexpectfromoilanalysis,aprogramcanbeestablishedthatwillbecredibleandamerittothereliabilityof
anycompany.

AboutTESTOIL
ContactUs
Call:2162512510 TESTOILisafullserviceoiltestinglaboratoryownedby
InsightServices.Since1988thelaboratoryhasbeen
Email:info@testoil.com providingfastandreliableoilanalysisresultsacrossall
industriesthroughouttheAmericas.
VisitourWebsite:www.testoil.com

Visitourblog:http://oilanalysis.testoil.com/ Thefirmscomprehensiverangeofoilanalysisservices
assistsreliabilityengineerswithconditionmonitoring
Tweetusat:@testoil1 andidentificationofmachinewear.

TESTOILemploysasophisticateddiagnostictechnology
thatassiststheirMachineConditionAnalystsinmaking
equipmentandlubricationconditionassessments.

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