Last week we have concluded the installation of a monitoring system on the 2nd of 2 overhead cranes operating in the same hall with one of our customers. The focus of this monitoring system is to detect early stage issues with the drive train, rails and integrity of the main structure. Data is collected from 22 sensors as well as from the in-plant Historian system. As from this point on 2 cranes operating on the same rail track are monitored, and the associated algorithms provide even more insights as the behavior of both assets on the same location or under the same operational conditions is compared. This allows for even earlier detection of unwanted phenomena. The aim remains a maximal uptime for both assets, a goal we are dedicated to contribute to.
Overhead cranes often represent an essential part of the production chain in a plant. When operating such an asset the goal is thus to achieve a maximal availability at a minimal maintenance cost with zero impact on safety. In the past few years, Zensor has built up an extensive experience in continuously and automatically monitoring the integrity of rolling bridges in the metal industry. This has resulted in a dedicated, modular product, where the client can select and combine the relevant aspects to be followed-up.
When tracking this type of asset it is essential to approach it with a Systems View. Other than more simple components such as a ventilator or a pump, an overhead crane consists of and relies on a multitude of individual components that mutually interact. Therefore our monitoring products always take into account the various aspects of relevance in a combined manner. Our modular monitoring solutions are built up of different sensor types installed on the relevant individual components or subsystems of the overhead crane, like the wheels, beams, bearings, motors, rails... The platform is continuously ingesting different types of data such as vibrations, temperatures, electrical currents, deformations... Together with operational parameters such as weight and position, this datastream forms the basis of the follow-up.
All these measurements are subsequently processed in our automatic algorithms to predict degradation and detect deviations in an early stage. The same platform tracks various aspects of relevance to the state-of-health of the asset: bearing degradation, rail damage, hoisting gearbox health, crack formation, motor damage, guide wheel wear, structural fatigue...
Check out https://www.zensor.be/overhead-crane for more information!