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Device introduced to monitor efficiency of pumps saving costs

30th August 2013

  

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Global industrial manufacturer and service provider SKF in February introduced the SKF TKSA 40 energy-monitoring device onto the South African market, which was designed to assist pump operators track efficiency, as well as actual operating efficiency relative to a pump’s best efficiency point (BEP).

“For most process industries, including the mining industry, rotodynamic pumps are a key component of their business processes. Too often, however, facilities will take a fit-and-forget approach to maintenance of these vital pieces of equipment – at least until a critical repair is needed,” states SKF.

SKF warns that there can be serious prob- lems associated with this approach, most significantly the reduced productivity and higher-than-necessary energy and main-tenance costs.

“A carefully planned and implemented efficiency programme can help alleviate these unnecessary costs,” says SKF, adding that improved efficiency leads to reductions in energy use, thereby resulting in lower operating costs.


For example, shaft misalignment is respon-sible for up to 50% of all costs related to rotating machinery breakdowns. Accurately aligning shafts can prevent pump breakdowns and reduce unplanned downtime that results in a loss of production.

The BEP of the pump is the point at which the highest proportion of energy from the shaft of a pump is transferred to the fluid being pumped. At this point, internal forces in the pump are reduced. As the operating point of a pump moves away from the BEP, this energy transfer efficiency falls and axial and radial forces increase.

“Some energy loss is inevitable, particularly energy that is not being transferred from the shaft to the fluid, which is essentially wasted. This wasted energy, some of which is lost by internal recirculation within the pump and some by the heat or vibration of the pump, is a destructive force, and so the relationship between reliability and energy efficiency is clear. The more the energy is wasted, the more the destructive forces increase in intensity, severly reducing the reliability of the pump,” SKF cautions.

Case Study

SKF reports that a customer experienced high vibration levels on 12 pumps, resulting in excessive consumption of both spare parts and energy. An SKF condition monitoring programme, in conjunction with the SKF Microlog Analyser, showed that the high vibration levels were clearly a result of misalignment.

Using the SKF TKSA 40 shaft alignment device, system technicians corrected the mis- alignment and efficiency of the electric motor. Measuring energy consumption before and after alignment for the 12 pumps demon-strated an average of 8% total kilowatt hours a year in energy savings – with a 20% energy saving in some cases – along with reduced vibration levels and increased reliability.

In addition to higher maintenance costs, the costs of unreliability resulting from forced shutdowns can be high.

“During a one-year survey by a major paper manufacturer at several of its mills, 101 pump reliability incidents were reported, costing a total of $5-million. Although the [costs associated with] each of these breakdowns varied, the average cost of each breakdown was almost $50 000,” states SKF.

Edited by Megan van Wyngaardt
Creamer Media Contributing Editor Online

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