(September 12, 2011)
Effective, fit-for-purpose lubrication is integral to moving surfaces in almost all industrial and machinery applications, from conveyors, chains, shafts and cables, to steering axles, pivot arms and lift points. Although a large number of systems and component sets are supplied as 'maintenance free' or 'sealed for life', there are many more that require regular lubrication to ensure effective long term operation.
SKF's Lubrication Application Centre (LAC), part of the SKF Solutions Factory Africa in Witfield, is fully equipped to present complete lubrication solutions to diverse industry applications and to address the demands of maintenance professionals responsible for modern machinery and associated components. Confronted with a continuum of maintenance strategies ranging from run to failure up to fixed schedule, preventative replacement of components, the chosen maintenance strategies are often implemented in a segment of operation, across a whole plant, or even company wide. However although the intention is perfectly sound and the savings often tangible, this frequently results in a "one size fits all" approach to maintenance and, more specifically, to lubrication requirements of application points.
When too much lubricant is present inside a rolling element bearing and its housing, it results in the rolling elements having to either pump the lubricant through the bearing, or to push the lubricant out of the rolling element pathway. This churning of the lubricant results in the bearing consuming additional energy and a sharp increase in bearing temperature.
In grease lubricated applications specifically, this often leads to premature onset of grease and bearing failure due to the accelerated degradation of the grease under elevated operating temperatures.
A further concern of too much lubricant inside a bearing and housing is related to the fluctuation in bearing temperature between operating and standing periods.
During these periods the air and lubricant in the free space around the bearing also fluctuate in temperature. The accompanied change in volume, combined with tight sealing arrangements, result in a pressure build up, housing deformation and even permanent damage due to sealing elements bursting outwards.
Lubricant also frequently spills into the surrounding area, but even more detrimental to the bearing life, is the onset of contaminant ingress into the bearings which leads to premature bearing failure.
When maintenance ownership is decentralised, as is typically done through Operator Driven Maintenance strategies, complex relubrication specifications, requiring different lubricants, intervals or amounts is often carried out inefficiently. Operators are usually measured on components or services produced per unit of measurement and rarely on wasted maintenance materials or the effect on pollution of the surrounding area.
SKF's new generation automated lubrication systems are developed to address these problems and include centralised systems for mobile plants and forklifts, combined oil and grease systems for materials handling robots, and dry lubricant sprays for conveyors and guide rails surfaces.
Centralised lubrication systems from SKF are specifically designed to supply multiple lubrication points, or groups of points, with varying amounts of precisely metered lubricant from one central reservoir. This type of system ensures that every lubrication point, particularly those in hard to reach areas, receives an exact and carefully programmed level of oil or grease at appropriate intervals and, if necessary, in the appropriate sequence, to eliminate the risk of over lubrication.
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