Is your plant heating up? Mechanical IR can help!

One of the most under-utilized and overlooked reliability tools we see in a lot of our plants we partner with is Mechanical Infrared (IR). This is an exceptional technology for assets and critical components that aren't a good fit or easily accessible for a vibration analysis program. Here are some examples of Mechanical IR and areas of the plant we found that benefit from a mechanical thermography route to help your maintenance team be proactive rather than reactive.

 

IR-conveyor

Conveyor System - Notice the small linear hot spot on the far side of this belt? The plant was seeing rapid degradation and failure on this particular belt. We identified the hot spot immediately and traced the source back to a damaged component that was destroying the belt from the underside, behind a protective shield.

Bearings - This line moved cans from one side of the plant to the other. Each side consisted of 2 bearings, one upper and one lower. The lower bearing wasn't being greased and was in a failure mode, resulting in increased friction and drag on this unit.

Belt/Sheaves - This image is a great example of a belt/sheave issue. Belt slip and/or misalignment is creating additional friction. Mechanical IR is a great tool to ensure air movers, overhead units, and equipment that is heavily guarded isn't about to fail without notice and cause costly repairs and downtime.

To learn more about Mechanical IR and how to implement a program in your plant, contact your local RILCO sales representative or contact us directly.

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