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The Importance of Oil Analysis

By Myles Pryor

One of the most important aspects of lubrication and preventive maintenance of rotating equipment is oil analysis. An effective lubrication program with oil analysis can provide longer equipment life, detect early signs of contamination and degradation, reduce equipment downtime and ultimately save you money.

Oil contamination is one of the greatest factors that can reduce the effectiveness of your oil. In addition, having contaminated oil in your equipment can significantly increase the rate at which the fluid deteriorates. Contaminated or poor quality lubricants can ultimately increase wear, which will eventually lead to equipment failure, unplanned downtime or lost production. Oil analysis can detect increased levels of contamination before it can lead to a problem.

However, an oil analysis program is not only effective at saving money on equipment life, it can also show how oil change intervals can be extended, which minimizes premature oil changes and repeated downtime.

Facts supporting the use of oil analysis and its economic impact on companies are extremely important and should not be overlooked. In the POLARIS Laboratories OUTLOOK 2015 Benchmark Study for the Oil Analysis Industry, the following facts were determined by companies utilizing oil analysis in their preventive maintenance program:

  • 80% maximized equipment uptime by using oil analysis
  • 77% found that information gathered from oil analysis results improved their maintenance program and helped their equipment become more reliable
  • 69% optimized oil drain intervals up to twice that of standard drain intervals

Overall, an effectively executed oil analysis program will provide correct maintenance scheduling, minimize unscheduled downtime, extend equipment life, reduce maintenance costs, minimize installation errors, verify and honor warranty and service agreements, determine optimum oil drain intervals and improve equipment reliability.

Setting up an oil analysis program is just one of the many services Breaux Petroleum can provide your company. Contact us today for all of your lubrication inquiries and needs.