Rotating machinery is exposed to a variety of stresses and high levels of wear, which can affect its performance, service life and reliability over time. Premature failure due to wear and tear can lead to significant financial losses due to unplanned production downtime and damage. Proper maintenance of rotating machinery is therefore important to ensure reliable operation of fans or pumps and minimize the risk of breakdowns. With our predictive maintenance, you can detect and rectify potential defects at an early stage.
Maintenance basics
Rotating machines form the backbone of many industrial processes and applications. They include a variety of components that are characterized by their rotating movements, including motors, pumps and fans. These machines play a crucial role in production processes as they convert energy, move or circulate fluids, gases or air.
Maintenance of rotating machinery is essential if you want to ensure the efficiency and reliability of your equipment. This strategic measure aims to prevent potential breakdowns before they occur through regular inspections and maintenance measures – with the aim of keeping the equipment in optimum condition and maximizing its service life. By identifying and rectifying potential problems at an early stage, unplanned downtime can be avoided and maintenance costs reduced.
Make the maintenance of rotating machinery an integral part of your plant management and benefit from smooth and reliable operation with our services from Serafima.
Maintenance strategies for rotating machines
Rotating machinery can be maintained using various maintenance strategies, including reactive, preventive and predictive maintenance. In reactive maintenance, parts are only repaired or replaced when they are defective or close to failure. Although this strategy requires the least amount of work, it can lead to unexpected failures and consequential damage, which is why it is only recommended in rare cases. Preventive maintenance, on the other hand, involves planned maintenance work at fixed intervals and thus proactively addresses system failures and difficulties in system operation. This strategy is more cost-effective in the long term, but initially requires higher costs and maintenance capacity.
Predictive maintenance uses modern technologies such as the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and machine learning to continuously monitor systems and detect and rectify problems at an early stage. Thanks to timely intervention, failures can be avoided and parts do not have to be replaced prematurely.
The maintenance strategies at a glance
- Reactive maintenance: The rotating machine is only repaired in the event of a defect.
- Preventive maintenance: To avoid breakdowns, rotating machines are regularly serviced and overhauled.
- Predictive maintenance: Malfunctions in the operation of rotating machines are predicted and rectified in good time.
Predictive maintenance of rotating machinery
Predictive or proactive maintenance is an essential part of operations management, especially for critical systems such as industrial production machinery. It aims to avoid unexpected downtime and limit maintenance efforts to ensure efficient operation and save costs. By continuously monitoring and analyzing machine data, this maintenance strategy detects patterns that indicate impending failures. In this way, repairs or replacements can be planned precisely before a breakdown occurs and, in view of demographic change, the already limited capacities in maintenance are not unnecessarily strained or wasted.
However, predictive maintenance is not only about maintaining systems and system components, but also about making effective predictions about the condition and service life of rotating machinery. It is therefore particularly important for proactive maintenance management. The result: reliable and optimally functioning rotating machinery.
Advantages of predictive maintenance
- Higher productivity
- Less unplanned downtime
- More effective maintenance
- Reduced need for maintenance capacity
- Lower costs in the event of breakdowns
- Reduction in repair costs
- Safer working environment
- Early detection of problems
- Prevention of expensive repairs
- Increased efficiency
- Extending the service life of rotating machines
Rotating machines should therefore be maintained
Due to the high loads and stresses to which rotating machinery is exposed, untreated problems can lead to serious damage, which in the worst case can result in expensive downtime and repairs. Thorough maintenance allows you to identify potential problems at an early stage and rectify them before major difficulties arise. This helps you to extend the service life of the machines, optimize operational efficiency and guarantee optimum safety in the workplace.
Regular maintenance of rotating equipment is also important in another respect, as it reduces costs in the long term. On the one hand, this is because a proactive approach can largely prevent major repairs and the replacement of expensive components. On the other hand, efficient machines significantly reduce energy consumption and you can plan operating costs more precisely.
Ultimately, regular maintenance ensures that your machines work reliably and productively, resulting in improved overall operational performance and cost efficiency.
Challenges and solutions for the maintenance of rotating machinery
Proper maintenance of rotating machinery is very important for continuous operation. Due to the high pressure and torsional load points at the connection points, seals, belts, brakes and bearings in particular are subject to heavy loads and wear. To minimize these loads, precise alignment of the machine components is essential. Technologies such as laser alignment help to minimize alignment errors, which in turn improves the efficiency and service life of the equipment.
Another challenge is to limit cyclical forces on bearings and shafts, for which balancing standards such as ISO 21940-11 must be observed. Poorly balanced or unbalanced rotors, combined with high vibrations, significantly shorten the service life of bearings. By monitoring vibration data, imbalances can be detected and corrected. Proper lubrication of bearings and gears is also necessary if you want to minimize frictional resistance and avoid premature failure.
Predictive maintenance can use IIoT sensors and AI-supported analyses to detect potential problems at an early stage and prevent costly damage. With our unique Reliability as a Service (RaaS) concept, we have the right answer and will be happy to advise you and find the right maintenance strategy for your needs.
Serafima: Your expert for the maintenance of rotating machinery
Rely on Serafima for the maintenance of your systems: We ensure your system availability in the long term and maintain your production quality at predictable costs. With us, you get service from a single source, individually tailored to your needs. Based on regular maintenance of your rotating machines by our maintenance specialists, you can maintain optimum machine condition, produce reliably and prevent unexpected breakdowns.
Whether it’s the reconditioning of system components, the balancing of impellers or a vibration analysis – with us as your permanent service partner, you have maximum cost transparency and can plan your expenditure in the long term. Contact us now and secure reliable, professional support for your rotating machinery.
Frequently asked questions (FAQ)
Who carries out the maintenance of machines?
The maintenance of machines is usually carried out by specialized technicians or maintenance teams. These can either be internal employees of the company or external service providers who specialize in machine maintenance and repair. Our Serafima maintenance team will be happy to carry out regular inspections and repairs on your systems at fair maintenance costs.
What is meant by the term “machine maintenance”?
Machine maintenance involves a series of regular inspection, cleaning, lubrication and repair tasks that are carried out to ensure that machines function properly, optimize their performance and minimize unplanned downtime. This helps to maintain operational safety, extend machine life and maintain production quality.
What is important when carrying out maintenance work on a machine?
Several aspects should be taken into account when maintaining machines, including
- Compliance with safety regulations and standards
- Use of suitable tools and equipment
- Planning and organization of maintenance work
Careful documentation of the work carried out and the problems identified in a maintenance log in order to obtain an overview of the machine’s condition and plan future maintenance activities.