28/6/23, 10:27 Clean is Green: Profit from Equipment Cleanliness

Clean is Green: Profit from Equipment

Cleanliness
Bernie Hall
Tags: green manufacturing, energy management

Maintaining clean oil is one of the most valuable investments a company can make,
especially for those focusing on higher profitability and sustainability. Oil cleanliness
has a direct impact on machine reliability, productivity and uptime — three factors
that directly contribute to a company’s bottom line.

Clean oil also increases a company’s sustainability and reduces its equipment’s oil
consumption rates, leading to more efficient machines. For example, studies have
found that companies that upgrade their lubricants can reduce their power
requirements by nearly 15%.

One way to measure power improvements is by tracking the machine’s operating

temperature. Proper lubrication reduces the friction between two surfaces. When
friction is reduced, less electricity is required to operate the machine, decreasing
the machine’s temperature. These reductions will often give companies the biggest
return on investment and significantly reduce their carbon footprint.

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Did You Know?

Manufacturing consumes 54% of the world's total energy each year.
Source: U.S. Energy Information Administration
In a competitive market, companies that maintain machine reliability and uptime
can keep their costs at a more stable level. These clean machines consume less,
produce more and break down less frequently — all factors that lead to increased
profits.

Get Clean
Set Targets
The first step to getting clean is to set goals for target lubrication cleanliness. ISO
4406:99 is the reporting standard for fluid cleanliness. A code number is assigned
to particle count values derived at three different micron levels:

Greater than 4 microns

Greater than 6 microns
Greater than 14 microns

The ISO 4406 cleanliness code should be clearly recorded and coded for all
lubricated equipment.
Here is an ISO code of 19/14/12 as an example:

While the ISO code is a simple way to understand particle counts, it is important to
note that for each unit increase in the code number, the number of particles
typically doubles. Although ISO cleanliness is helpful, there are other factors, based
on the equipment and its operating temperature, that should be considered.

You can base cleanliness targets on:

Equipment type
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Sensitivity to contamination-induced failure

Criticality
Operating environment

The more sensitive a component is to contamination, the cleaner the system should
be. Likewise, the more critical a system, the cleaner the oil should be. You should
also be mindful of Original Equipment Manufacturers’ (OEMs) cleanliness
guidelines, which must often be met to maintain warranty terms.

The table below outlines target cleanliness levels for common component types.

Even with targets set, remember that oil cleanliness is not achieved through any
one practice. Most plants will need to revise or upgrade their lubricant storage and
handling methods as part of a holistic contamination control strategy.

New and Stored Oil

Ensuring oil cleanliness starts at the source — new oil delivery. Remember, no
manufacturing or delivery process is perfect; human error and cross-contaminated
delivery trucks, drums and totes can all be responsible for introducing contaminants
into your machine. If you’re not actively checking your lubricant before putting it into
service, you’re risking your machine.

While inspecting new oil deliveries, consider using a sampling adapter, which draws
a sample directly from the lines of bulk fluid deliveries. Additionally, invest in drum
and totes mounts, which allow you to sample, monitor, filter and transfer oil from

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storage containers without introducing contaminants. Other potential investments to

consider include:

·         Flush face quick connects: Connect drum tote mount to filtration system.

·         High-flow sampling valve: Check on oil without opening the drum.

·         Desiccant breather: Protect against moisture and particle contamination.

It’s important to ensure your drum and tote storage areas are clean. A properly
designed lube room must be functional, safe and expandable. Oil drums and
containers should be stored indoors and away from temperature variations
whenever possible. You may also consider period filtration and agitation to prevent
additive settlement.

Finally, lubricants should always be properly labeled and easily identifiable through
labels and a color coding system. This ensures the right oil goes from the correct
storage container into the appropriate machine every time, effectively preventing
cross-contamination.

Oil Transferring
It’s critical to transfer oil to machines or other containers cleanly. If shortcuts are
taken during this stage, all the time, effort and money spent building your bulk
storage system and ensuring the quality of your new oil will be wasted.

With that in mind, here are some tips for transferring oil:

·         Remove plastic funnels, which attract dirt and moisture.

·         Keep transport containers clean and away from dirt.

·         Consider installing flush face quick connects on drains and breather adapters
for adding re-filtered oil to the machine without opening the system to airborne
contaminants.

Maintain Cleanliness

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Oil Analysis and Oil Sampling

Maintaining cleanliness and controlling contamination is a top priority.
Contamination continues to be one of the biggest causes of component failure and
declining productivity, and it’s estimated that it costs ten times more to remove
contaminants from equipment than to exclude them.

Investing in oil analysis and improved oil sampling will help you achieve and
maintain oil cleanliness. For example, while particle counting determines the
number and size of the particles being generated, it doesn’t reveal what type of
particles are present. Fortunately, additional oil analysis testing can provide this
information.

One common contaminant that causes catastrophic damage to your machines is

water. Water can:

·         Form rust

·         Increase wear rates

·         Create acids through chemical reactions between the additives and base oils

·         Create biological formations and growth in low-temperature applications

·         Weaken critical additives and additive function

There are several methods for testing for water, such as a hot plate tester (crackle
test) or Fourier transform infrared (FTIR) spectroscopy. Regardless of your test
slate, oil samples are the key to a successful oil analysis program. It is critical to
take a relevant, data-rich oil sample when measuring particle counts to properly
determine the contamination level. Incorrect oil sampling can adversely affect the
cleanliness of the sample and sample bottle, which skews results and leads to
incorrect insights.

Oil sampling valves make it possible to take reliable oil samples while the
equipment is running, ensuring the sample is a direct representation of the
equipment’s condition. Because sampling valves are installed on the equipment,

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they ensure each sample comes from the same location and that the sample will
contain information-rich oil that can be trended against previous samples. Sampling
valves are typically faster and cleaner than other sampling methods.

Clean Profits
Extend Equipment Life
Cleaning your lubricants by as little as one ISO cleanliness code can increase your
equipment’s life by 35%.

The Noria Life Extension Chart demonstrates the relative life of a component based
on its cleanliness. Let’s take hydraulic systems as an example. If you improve oil
cleanliness levels from an ISO 21/18 to an ISO 15/12, component life can be
increased by a factor of five. It’s important to remember that actual savings will vary
depending on:
Lubricant performance
Oil sample frequency
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Equipment type
Previous and current equipment condition
The ability to keep fluids clean

Extending equipment life can also bridge the time gap needed to receive a
replacement part. For example, a chemical manufacturer installed condition
monitoring equipment on gearboxes to help meet their cleanliness target. As
reports came in, they saw the gearboxes trending higher in iron levels. Upon further
investigation, they found the gearbox operating outside its original design envelope.
While they still had to order a new gearbox, they made the necessary adjustments
and prolonged its remaining life until the replacement came in.

Reduce Unnecessary Maintenance

Contamination is a leading cause of component failure and reduced productivity. Oil
analysis is an early predictor of impending machine failure on the PF curve
(potential to functional failure). The PF curve represents the behaviors of an asset
before functional failure occurs; this decline may last days, weeks or even months,
depending on factors such as the equipment’s condition.

When used effectively, its early warning capabilities can provide a significant
amount of time for maintenance members to plan and execute the necessary
maintenance activities before functional failure occurs.

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Optimize Drain Intervals

A thorough oil analysis program is essential for optimizing drain intervals. Without
analysis information, you don’t know the condition of your oil or if it’s fit for service.
Utilizing oil analysis information can extend drain intervals, reducing not only oil
disposal costs but your company’s carbon footprint. According to the United States
Energy Information Administration, each gallon of lubrication contributes nearly 24
pounds of CO2. By reducing your carbon footprint, you can become more efficient,
reducing operating costs and bolstering your bottom line.

For example, a plastics manufacturer wanted to optimize their drain intervals. With
their previous preventive maintenance strategy, they were performing automatic oil
changes semi-annually. These oil changes cost the company over $12,000 in oil
disposal costs, and they were discarding nearly 1,000 gallons of oil a year.

To resolve the issue, they installed a closed monitoring system on their gearboxes,
improving their overall sampling practices and giving them a better representation
of their equipment’s oil condition. This new system moved them from time-based oil

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changes to condition-based changes. By filtering more efficiently and adjusting their

oil change practices, they only discarded 160 gallons of oil in a year and
significantly reduced both their oil disposal costs and their carbon footprint.

What You Need to Do

Adjusting your lubrication program will move your company toward a more
profitable and sustainable future.

To start, invest in quality lubricants. Remember to double-check with the lubricant

manufacturer and distributor to ensure the right oil is in the right machine.
Next, invest in an oil analysis program with condition-based monitoring and
maintenance strategies to maintain lubricated equipment. With oil analysis,
companies can monitor oil health, contamination and machine wear. When
abnormal conditions are identified, immediate action can be taken to prevent
functional failure.

Representative Sampling is Key

Oil analysis results are only as good as the submitted sample. In fact, labs often
report that over 20% of submitted samples are not representative of their system. A
sample taken randomly, often in “dead zones” or the bottom of the barrel, can
create a false positive. Another cause of false positives includes the introduction of
airborne contaminants or moisture into the sample.

However, a false negative sample, which equates to missing a problem, is worse.

This can occur if samples are taken cold, after particulates have settled, from the
top zone, or after fresh fluid has been added. False negatives threaten to
undermine the confidence of any lubrication program.

Repeatable Sampling is Vital

To trust your reliability decisions, you must eliminate variability. Taking hot, active
samples of the actual lubricating fluid from the same location every time is vital to
fully understanding the changing dynamic of that specific piece of equipment, the
lubricant, and the operating conditions.
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Conclusion
By taking care of and monitoring your lubricants during storage, use, and testing,
you not only take care of your critical assets and your profitability, but the
environment around you.
Through the maintenance of your lubricants, you can effectively reduce your waste,
decrease your spending, and reduce your carbon footprint. Focusing on the health
of the lubricant allows us to build a solid foundation for the facility to thrive.

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