Prevention of 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 leads to the greatest 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.
So based on what we have explained above 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.
