Electricity and Control January 2024

COVER ARTICLE

Customers save costs, boost productivity with WearCheck

T he fundamental goal of condition monitoring specialist company, WearCheck, is to ensure that industri al machinery operates at peak perfor mance with reduced maintenance costs. With many success stories and thou sands of happy customers – many of whom have been customers for dec ades – WearCheck enjoys its recogni tion as a leader in the preventive main tenance field, servicing a wide range of industries with an array of different mon itoring techniques. The company’s extensive network of 16 world-class laboratories in nine coun tries across Africa and beyond, services

data which enables our diagnosticians to accurately predict whether and when that component will potentially fail. “We identify a potential failure before it occurs and recommend a remedy. This way, catastrophic failure is avoided, en hancing machine availability and performance.

“Unplanned component failure can be prohibitively expensive and is preferably avoided. With forewarning about potential com ponent failure, our customers avoid unnecessary maintenance costs and maintain efficiency by upholding optimum production levels.” Transformer maintenance is a particular focus for WearCheck. Transformer division manager, Gert Nel, provides insight into getting the most out of a transformer. “The timely detection and diagnosis of potential issues in transformers are essential for en suring the efficient and reliable operation of any project. “Transformer oil condition monitoring involves analysing the physical and chemical properties of the oil, such as furanic components, dielectric strength, IFT (interfacial tension), acidity, moisture content, and dissolved gas content. These properties can provide insight into the condition of the transformer insula tion and other components, as well as potential issues that may be developing. “By analysing the oil properties over time, maintenance teams can detect changes in the oil condition and take appropriate ac tions, such as performing maintenance or replacing components before a failure occurs.” □

WearCheck managing director, Neil Robinson, is dedicated to helping customers avoid unnecessary maintenance costs arising from unplanned machinery failure.

clients that operate in power generation and renewable energy, mining, fleet management, aviation, the maritime sector and more. WearCheck’s business model is built around the scientific analysis of used oil, fuel and other fluids. This entails analysing fluid samples for trace particles, which indicate which component is suffering unusual wear patterns. This information is assessed by a team of specialised diagnosticians, who advise on a course of remedial action, where required. Additional predictive maintenance techniques offered – which are employed depending on the type of machinery being monitored – include asset reliability care (ARC) services, water analysis, transformer chemistry services and advanced field services (AFS) such as non-destructive testing, technical compliance and rope condition assessment. The company also offers lubrication enabled reliability (LER), providing clients with bespoke solutions to ensure that their lubrication systems are well managed, efficient and cost effective. WearCheck MD, Neil Robinson, outlines the concept of proactive maintenance: “By monitoring a component’s condition regularly over time, our scientific techniques provide reliable

Transformers can be prone to wear and aging, which can lead to unplanned failure. These hurdles are overcome with WearCheck’s transformer condition monitoring programme, which detects potential problems before they occur.

For more information contact WearCheck. Tel: +27 (0)31 700 5460 Email: marketing@wearcheck.co.za, Visit: www.wearcheck.co.za

WearCheck lab technicians at work, analysing used oil samples in WearCheck’s Durban laboratory.

JANUARY 2024 Electricity + Control

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