Bearing Failure

Bearing failure is a primary cause of unplanned, mechanical breakdown in rotating plant equipment. Although the bearings used in many industrial applications are often relatively inexpensive to purchase, it is the cost of production downtime resulting from the effect of the breakdown which presents the most expense.

Causes of Bearing Failure

There are a number of factors that can contribute to Bearing Failure:

• Shaft Misalignment - A third of all Bearing Failures can be attributed to Shaft Misalignment. Misalignment increases the stresses placed on bearings and causes bearings to wear prematurely. If plant assemblies (such as pumps, motors, gearboxes, etc) are incorrectly installed and not precisely aligned when coupled together, the stresses created by an eccentrically spinning shaft are directly transferred to the weakest component in the chain - i.e. the bearings.
  

• Incorrect Lubrication - This is another primary cause of bearing failure. It is estimated that 36% of bearing failures are a result of inadequate or incorrectly specified lubrication, and a further 14% of bearing failures are the result of contamination (dirt or water ingress, or the mixing of lubricant types) affecting the lubricant.

The the most common reasons for Bearing Failure in rotating plant are:

• Misaligned Shafts
• Incorrect Lubrication

If a bearing fails on a critical plant item causing the machine to cease production, and particularly if there is no standby equipment available to take the failed item’s place, then the cost of downtime can be measured in thousands of pounds an hour.

Monition provide Bearing Failure and Plant Reliability Services which help Engineering and Maintenance teams to monitor and understand the condition of their critical plant items so that when components such as bearings begin to show signs of failure, appropriate corrective measures can be planned to prevent an unscheduled breakdown in service.

Preventing Bearing Failures Caused by Shaft Misalignment

Laser Shaft Alignment Systems are the professional tool for ensuring the correct alignment of shafts and couplings.

 

Monition provide two systems for Laser Shaft Alignment and Bearing Failure Prevention:

Fixturlaser GO Shaft Alignment System - Bearing Failure Prevention

The Fixturlaser GO Shaft Alignment System is a mid-priced laser alignment system that is an ideal tool for day-to-day shaft alignment applications of equipment including pumps, motors, gearboxes, compressors etc. The system is simple to use by all levels of technicians with on-screen icons to guide the user through the process of taking alignment measurements and correcting any misalignment.

Fixturlaser XA Shaft Alignment System - Bearing Failure Prevention

The XA System is the professional tool of choice for engineers who need to tackle complex alignment jobs and ensure that critical plant maintains high levels of reliability. Featuring a colour touch screen interface and with Bluetooth wireless connectivity of the laser transmitters, the XA system can tackle horizontal, vertical and softfoot alignment jobs as standard.

The XA can be upgraded to include the following applications:

• Offset Running - For measurement and alignment of cardan shaft applications OL2R (offline to running - thermal growth) or measurement of dynamic movements in critical machines where large temperature differences or other disturbing factors exist.
  
  
• Machine Train Alignment - For the measurement and alignment of power train or multiple drives (three or more) with rotating shafts connected to each other.
  

Preventing Bearing Failures Caused by Lubrication Issues

Monition operate one of the UK’s largest independent Oil Analysis Laboratories, analysing thousands of oil samples each week for customers in industry sectors including: food processing, manufacturing, aggregates and mining, rail, mobile plant and general industry.

Our laboratory can process oil samples from Engines, Gearboxes, Compressors and Hydraulic Systems.

We provide customers with a detailed report for each sample analysed, which includes recommendations for any corrective actions that may be required, and a colour-coded system for quick interpretation of oil condition.

Our suite of tests includes:

• ICP Spectrographic Parts Per Million elemental analysis
• ISO Cleanliness test to 4406 (for hydraulic oils only)
• Ferrous Wear Analysis
• 5100 Chemical Dielectric Analysis
• Water Content Analysis
• Viscosity at 400C
• TIM (Total Insoluble Matter)
• TAN (Total Acid Number
• TBN (Total Base Number)
  

 

Further Information
Send EnquiryFor further information, please email sales@monition.com or call 01909 722 000. Why not send a link to a colleague or bookmark this page using the links below.