Diagnostic Solutions

I want to become a condition monitoring service provider in the UK; would Diagnostic Solutions supply me?

dsoladmin — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 17:06:55 +0000

Of course, we are not trying to build a service company. We realise that the end customers’ needs are best served by a local company and are happy to support any service provider in any country.

Can I lease purchase or hire a system?

dsoladmin — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 17:06:32 +0000

Yes, please contact the office for details +44 (0)1244 571411

How much is an entry level system, and what are the year two costs?

dsoladmin — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 17:06:08 +0000

An entry level portable system costs less than £1300, after three months you can subscribe to the PDA route firmware and SmarTrend web application for £900, or just use the system for spectral vibration and stand alone plant condition assessment. The annual subscription costs for year two and subsequent years are £900 per annum (includes two logins and all upgrades). An entry level on-line system would be under £1000 for a small machine and around £1500 for a large machine (includes sensors, cables, DiagPod and software licence for three months).

How does the USB-Vib detect bearing problems?

dsoladmin — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 17:05:47 +0000

Amplitude demodulated acceleration spectra (enveloping) is used to detect bearing problems. This system is accepted as the most accurate and reliable means of rolling element bearing and gear defect detection. The USB-Vibe uses 3 band pass envelope filters (1kHz-2kHz, 2kHz-4kHz and 4kHz-8kHz).We are also working on an enveloped acceleration wavelet symptom set as an even more accurate transient detection too (expect the upgrade in Q4 2007)

What about acoustic emission/SPM?

dsoladmin — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 17:05:27 +0000

Acoustic emission is like a vibration/SPM meter, and it has the major benefit of working very well at low rotational speeds. Its drawbacks are based on the inability to be specific about a problem. Vibration, if properly applied can detect specific faults like low-lube, bearing faults, rotor faults, gearbox faults, unbalance, looseness, misalignment etc. A well implemented vibration monitoring system will always provide more consistent and more accurate plant condition information than any ‘single value/ overall’ method or technology.

What other methods are effective for condition monitoring?

dsoladmin — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 17:05:05 +0000

First, get your lubrication right; oil and grease are the life blood of any rotating machine and should get the main focus before considering ANY condition assessment tool. Plant inspections (gauge levels, temperatures, oil levels, noises, safety issues)Oil analysis (on all key gearboxes, minimum 6 monthly)Thermographic analysis/ screening (mainly on electrical panels/main boards, minimum 6 monthly)

Why use vibration as a condition assessment tool?

dsoladmin — Thu, 26 Apr 2007 17:04:34 +0000

It is internationally accepted as the most powerful and most consistent rotating plant condition asessment tool.