What is Condition Monitoring (CM)?
CM primarily involves the continuous analysis of operational equipment and the identification of problems before component breakage or machine failure. CM has mostly been associated with the analysis of rotating and reciprocating equipment. Almost any equipment, be it electrical, hydraulic, mechanical, or thermal, generates characteristic signals or signature during optimal performance. A change in this signal, even if marginal, could be an early warning regarding potential equipment failure. It includes, but is not limited to, technologies such as: • Vibration analysis • Infrared thermography • Oil analysis CM is most frequently used as a predictive or condition-based maintenance technique. However, there are other predictive maintenance techniques that can also be used, including the use of the human senses (look, listen, feel, smell, and so on), machine performance monitoring, and statistical process control techniques. Nevertheless, these would not be considered to be CM for the pu
