Schaeffler’s OPTIME Ecosystem providing an easy-to-use lubrication monitoring solution

When you talk with as many mining or service and support companies as we do, you hear numerous times that while they enjoy bringing new technologies, they don’t enjoy some of the issues they face in adapting that technology to their daily operations.

That is certainly not the case with Schaeffler Australia’s state-of-the-art OPTIME Ecosystem.

As the company’s Industrial Services Manager Mark Ciechanowicz explained to Australian Mining Review recently, the OPTIME system was designed to be integrated into a client’s operations as easily as possible.

Mr Ciechanowicz said the system is particularly special in the sense that straight out of the box it is very easy to use.

“It is really a plug-and-play system that can be set up in a matter of minutes. The simple installation, means a quick return on investment for entire plants and production facilities.”

In developing OPTIME, Schaeffler has combined smart condition monitoring and lubricant management to form one predictive maintenance solution.

Its intuitive operation via a mobile app ensures smooth operation of machines and facilities.

Schaeffler’s OPTIME Ecosystem combines the company’s OPTIME Condition Monitoring system with the sensor variants OPTIME 3, OPTIME 5, and OPTIME 5 Ex for wireless condition monitoring and its intelligent, interconnected lubricator OPTIME C1 for automated lubrication to form one solution.

Cost-effective solution

This has created a cost-effective predictive maintenance solution, which effectively and sustainably minimises downtimes and high maintenance costs in production facilities.

Mr Ciechanowicz said the ease of use of the system ensures operators do not require any prior knowledge of the system and condition monitoring as there are algorithms and expert diagnostics built into the platform.

Client input

OPTIME was designed and refined over a number of years with significant input from Schaeffler’s clients.

The versatile and flexible platform not only monitors vibration temperatures, it also includes an automatic lubrication system.

“So where in the past automatic lubrication systems would be set and forget, now this is no longer the case and customer can have visibility as to the amount of lubrication that is left in their automatic lubrication system,” Mr Ciechanowicz said.

It can also assess if there’s any blockages in the system, while another incorporation in the system monitors the high-end critical assets that are not suitable for wireless technology.

Continual growth

Schaeffler has continued to build on the capacity of the OTIME Ecosystem since it was launched in 2020.

“We continue to investigate opportunities to add to what is already a state-of-the-art solution,” Mr Ciechanowicz said.

“At the moment we are looking at the potential of developing a bigger automatic lubrication system with a larger canister for lubrication. We are continually utilising this platform to develop more front-end technologies such as motor current analysis.”

As with the product’s development, Schaeffler continues to assess input from client requests and feedback.

The system has also undergone a rigorous evaluation programme, and prior its official release it was tested in a large number of plants including cement, timber and pulp and paper mills.

“We have had nothing but positive responses in terms of the simplicity of implementing the system, right down through to the accessibility of the data that are provided via an app on your mobile device – like a phone or a tablet – or viewed via a web user interface on a computer or PC.”

The company recently released a version that is being adopted by the oil and gas sector and customers operating in hazardous environments.

The OPTIME Ecosystem is proving to be simple, cost-effective, and scalable. In addition, the predictive maintenance solution improves the sustainability of facilities by reducing material waste and energy consumption through reduced unplanned downtimes.

The system combines Schaeffler’s long-standing expertise in the fields of bearing technology, vibration analysis, and lubrication with a product design that is consistently geared towards the day-to-day tasks of maintenance teams.

The system is also able to be easily expanded. Thanks to the plug-and-play function, hundreds of OPTIME elements can be installed and integrated within a very short time period.

“An expansion can be carried out quickly and reliably at any time. Low investment costs, savings due to reduced machine downtimes, and increased efficiency in scheduling maintenance procedures guarantee a rapid return on investment.”

Mr Ciechanowicz said the OPTIME Ecosystem will continue to optimally support the smooth operation of machines and facilities in the future by providing all relevant information at a glance.

That can be a key element if you want to maintain a safe and reliable operation.