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Save to read list Published by David Bizley , Editor World Cement, Monday, 10 October 2022 10:30

Farrukh Yaqub and Thibaut Leconte, SKF, explain how predictive maintenance with online monitoring systems can make drive lines last longer and increase overall equipment efficiency.

To meet the estimated 2 – 4% CAGR increase in demand for cement by 2026 and improve margins, a lot must be done simultaneously. The increasing energy costs, demands to lower CO2 emissions, and an ever-increasing focus on sustainability have necessitated heavy investments in ageing cement plants, worldwide.

For many actors in the industry, investing in digitalisation is the way to improve productivity in many areas. According to a 2020 McKinsey report, advanced analytics in the cement industry might save 5 – 8% of maintenance, repair and overhaul costs.

Digitalising and automating tasks that used to require manual labour also solves the dual problem of finding skilled personnel for the heavy engineering tasks who are also able to reach the often remote locations of cement mills.

As a supplier to many of the world’s cement grinding mills, SKF sees many companies struggling with the same challenges with the motors, gears, and drives of HGMs. Some are unique to the motor – e.g. stray electric currents and overload due to sole plate condition and bolting – but most drive line failures originate from the same root causes: misalignment, contamination, or failing lubrication.

Misalignment of the drive line can cause premature coupling wear, gearbox failure, and gear drive overload. Contamination from water and solid particles causes corrosion and abrasive wear on gearboxes, bearings, pinion assembly, gears and motors, especially when combined with leaking seals and the subsequent loss of lubrication.

Lubrication can fail in several ways. Components may leak lubricant from seals and worn shafts, or incorrect lubrication practices may be used. It may also be the lubrication system itself that malfunctions due to a lack of maintenance or inspection.

The first step to prevent these failures is to ensure that all components meet the standards required for today’s high productivity and throughput demands for HGMs.

But even using the best components is not enough. Many faults can be traced to incorrect mounting, handling, maintenance, lubrication, or even parts storage. Sometimes the root cause is that the wrong component has been chosen in the design stage. These problems must be addressed with proper training and tools, or by expert services.

A third way to prevent failure is by installing a condition monitoring system. SKF has developed a new mill monitoring system to meet the pain points that they see customers struggling with.

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