According to Tan Delta Systems, Sense-2 identifies when oil reaches the end of its life, superseding traditional time-based maintenance schedules, which can result in oil being discarded prematurely – with the potential of wasting up to 50 percent of its useful life.
For the manufacturing and lubrication industries, Sense-2’s ability to extend maintenance intervals by monitoring equipment in real-time is said to answer the actual equipment needs rather than maintenance being driven by time-based scheduling. This, in conjunction with reducing the business’s carbon footprint, is expected to support sustainability goals by reducing oil consumption by approximately 30% per year, as well as reducing parts consumption and extending equipment life.
Chris Greenwood, CEO at Tan Delta Systems said: “Our Sense-2 real-time monitoring utilises our world-leading sensor technology and associated analytics to detect any issues before the damage occurs, identifying subtle changes in equipment condition early. It can be fitted easily and efficiently to any existing equipment in any application and is configurable to any oil type.
“Although oil analysis is not new, traditional lab sampling is expensive and impractical with other sensors focusing on specific parameters while missing others. Our system ensures the industry has access to superior quality information in an easy-to-use format, preventing excessive wear of components resulting in increased productivity and reduced machine downtime and maintenance costs.”
The real-time aspect of the system is what sets it apart, utilising an active molecular-level analysis to detect all changes in oil conditions and any contamination. The Tan Delta sensor provides a full-spectrum holistic oil quality analysis, which continuously monitors the ratio of two key measurements, capacitance and conductance, to provide real-time insight.
This molecular analysis takes place every few seconds, enabling accurate tracking of oil degradation and detecting contamination and early signs of internal equipment problems. This allows for precise predictions of maintenance points, optimising maintenance scheduling, and reducing costs and downtime.
The OQSx-G2 oil quality sensor within the Sense-2 kit is also available as a Mobile Oil Tester (MOT) kit, created with workshops and mobile maintenance teams in mind. Any oil from any equipment can be sampled and tested on-site. The sensor is used in conjunction with the MOT software, which operates on any Windows-based laptop, tablet or PC. Users install the MOT app, connect it to the sensor, collect the sample in one of the bottles provided, and follow the steps in the software to test the sample.