Thermography in predictive maintenance: how it can impact your financial results?

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The thermography technique in predictive maintenance uses technology to analyze the temperature of equipment, making it automatic and without interference in production.

In this article, you will understand how temperature measurement sensors identify equipment problems and check the benefits of using thermography to identify potential failures. Enjoy your reading! 

How is the detection of anomalies done with the measurement of equipment temperature?

Thermography is a technology that identifies possible problems in equipment using infrared sensors and cameras. The resource allows the temperature of the machinery to be analyzed and makes it possible to correct it before it becomes defective.

The anomalies are detected the moment the instrument recognizes minimal temperature changes.

In this process, contact or non-contact meters are used. In the first case, the resources must contact the system to identify the changes. On the other hand, non-contact meters evaluate using infrared radiation, which finds differences and sends alerts.

We can do this analysis on moving objects or even at high temperatures. Thus, non-contact thermographic measurement is essential for predictive maintenance since it can be done without interrupting production. 

Applications of thermography in predictive monitoring

The use of thermography in predictive maintenance can have the following applications:

  • Rotating equipment: thermography ensures that equipment does not heat up while running, decreasing failures and contributing to thermal balance.
  • Electrical installations: temperature measurement detects failures, such as corroded and oxidized connections.
  • Electric machines: generators, motors, and transformers must be carefully evaluated to prevent problems and keep up with aging.

Benefits of using thermography in predictive maintenance

Thermographic analysis in predictive maintenance is essential to ensure good industrial equipment maintenance. In order to be successful in anticipating failures, companies need this kind of technology.

Check out the main advantages of having this resource in your manufacturing plant.

Reduced Maintenance Expenses

Component failures during operation can lead to unexpected costs for organizations. In this sense, thermography checks the progress of components in the process to see if there is a risk of overheating.

In addition, by reducing the expenses for equipment maintenance, thermographic analysis also improves the financial predictability of your business.

Increase in machines’ useful life-cycle. 

The use of temperature sensors can increase the useful life of industrial plant equipment. With the reduction in the record of failures and accidents, the machinery must perform well for longer.

In this way, they also reduce the costs of acquiring new parts. Your company can have better stability and direct the financial budget towards investments that can guarantee the best positioning of your business in the market.

Improving productivity

Thermography in predictive maintenance allows the efficient progress of the production flow without the breakage of components. As a result, the technology improves the productivity of the manufacturing plant.

Count on Semeq to prevent failures.

Semeq has a vibration and thermography sensor that identifies abnormal movements and unusual temperatures. In addition, we have the expertise of being one of the leading companies in predictive monitoring, being a reference in the market. 

See below other points that make Semeq the main partner of companies.

Reference in the market for almost 30 years

Since 1994, Semeq has been providing technology and innovating in the market. The company was founded in the city of Limeira, in São Paulo, and today it operates in 40 countries. In all, around 500 industrial plants are monitored monthly.

A team committed to results

Our team has 300 employees to provide accurate results for your business. They are engineers, technicians, analysts, and data scientists who strive to increase the efficiency of your industrial plant and transform monitoring into financial results.

Complete line for predictive maintenance

Semeq has a wide range of systems for predictive maintenance monitoring, skilled labor, and technical support. Thus, you invest in the best performance of your production line.

Smart Sensors

Semeq inspects your machines automatically and uninterruptedly using its Intelligent Sensors. The data is collected with wireless technology, sending details about the equipment’s performance to a database.

The information collected by the sensors indicates vibration, temperature, pressure, or abnormal consumption of the equipment. Thus, you get the data through a platform accessible on different devices and can issue an action plan to get the machinery working at maximum performance again.

Be ahead of the unforeseen. Talk to us now!

Wireless sensors for online monitoring: why they are the best option on the market? 

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Wireless online monitoring sensors have changed how machine data is collected, transported, and analyzed.

They have been used by companies that want to have more effective control of the situation and performance of their machines since it is possible to obtain data collected with high frequency and precision by being done remotely.

This type of sensor is especially interesting for large industrial parks, which have continuous or intermittent production, or those located in difficult access points or far from large centers, thus avoiding installing large and wired networks.

In this article, we will show the benefits of using wireless sensors for online monitoring and why it has been the best choice for those who want to maintain high performance in industrial plants.

Technology in predictive maintenance: software’s help has changed how we do the monitoring. 

Predictive maintenance began in the 1940s in the US air force. In the 1970s, the use of offline data collectors increased, but today we know that they demand much manpower.

Traditional predictive maintenance consisted of making collections with data collectors, also called datalogs, through a single sensor attached to the end of the equipment from a cable. It was a portable instrument that required the presence of a person to collect data at the factory, usually on a monthly basis.

With Industry 4.0, as of mid-2015, the wireless sensor system for online monitoring began to emerge; at that time, the installation involved investments in infrastructure, with large cable networks to transmit the information.

The quality of remote monitoring of the machines has improved significantly since the cadence of collection, which was monthly, can now be 700 times greater.

In this way, online inspection became much more accessible. It began to be carried out in bulk, always with the same objective: to guarantee the proper functioning and availability of the machines.

Nowadays, remote monitoring with wireless sensors has virtually no limitation in its expansion, changing the amount of monitored equipment from hundreds to thousands. One of Semeq’s customers will install around 50,000 sensors in the next few years in its manufacturing plants.

Benefits of using wireless sensors for online monitoring

Wireless networks dramatically reduce the costs of installing, maintaining, and performing asset monitoring systems.

Check out some benefits of using wireless sensors for online monitoring.

Association of vibration sensors with analysis of electrical circuits.

Vibration analysis and electric motor circuit analysis sensors cover 100% of faults; 67% of failures are covered by vibration analysis, and 33% by circuit analysis of electric motors.

Prescriptive insights 

The most modern approaches to preventive maintenance use machine learning and AI to discover valuable insights from data. With these capabilities, sensor solutions identify potential failures and predict how long a machine or process may have before it fails.

It is important to note that artificial intelligence and machine learning systems need much historical data to learn.

Thus, unlike other predictive monitoring companies, Semeq has the largest database on the market, around 70TB, allowing the application of AI and ML to be more accurate and application development to be faster. 

Companies that do not have a robust database will have to wait for machines to break down numerous times before they can “train” their AI systems, exposing their equipment to failure.

Spectral Analysis

When capturing frequencies, they are transmitted in grouped (mixed) form. In Semeq’s algorithms, they are classified mathematically, which allows interpretation of the various failure modes leading to accurate determination of potential failures.

Our algorithms also rely on Artificial Intelligence and Machine Learning based on our extensive databases, as mentioned above.

Prescriptive analytics report

MySemeq, our report delivery platform, allows viewing the diagnoses of all predictive techniques and performing results management in a single place.

Integration with the ERP allows for automatic service orders with fast and consistent feedback. It also improves the follow-up of work orders and ensures the execution of reports.

Wireless sensors for online monitoring: online vibration and temperature analysis.

Due to technologies such as Bluetooth, many more wireless sensors can now be connected to machines. These wireless sensors for predictive monitoring service capture critical data online that is transmitted to a central cloud server via a wireless gateway.

Our online vibration sensors detect numerous potential failure modes in equipment. By associating vibration and temperature analysis, they broaden the detection possibilities, significantly increasing system reliability.

Learn about some advantages of our wireless sensors for online monitoring.

Early-stage failure detection

When a limit determined by our algorithms is reached, an alert is generated, and analysts have access to the machines’ condition data. In addition, SEMEQ’s algorithms allow forecasts leading to the estimation of the time available for the execution of the maintenance.

Quick Setup

Wireless sensors for online monitoring can be installed very quickly, without wires, compared to traditional wired monitoring. After all, the energy for its operation comes from replaceable batteries.

Some companies offer sensors with non-replaceable batteries, leading to the need to completely replace the sensors, which ends up being financially unsustainable. For example, imagine a plant with thousands of sensors discarded every time the batteries run out; ultimately, the budget becomes impractical for many companies.

With a configurable and scalable system, you can add hundreds of wireless sensors and configure each individually.

Flexibility in applications

The most diverse equipment benefits from online monitoring. The predictive maintenance service can be applied to engines, power systems, boilers, steam system components, gearboxes, bearings, etc.

Find out how we carry out online monitoring of machines in industrial plants.

SEMEQ cares about machine health, while other companies care about disease. SEMEQ’s significant role is to bring this predictive and preventive culture, allowing potential machine breakdowns to be identified early enough for interventions to be more effective.

Installation of sensors for data collection

With the online system, sending a person to collect data is unnecessary, as it is done automatically. With these remote monitoring features, around 720 data collections are made monthly, a much more significant number than the offline collection, usually done only once or twice a month. In this way, the chances of a failure occurring are drastically reduced.

Results Management

Semeq’s wireless sensors for predictive service and our team collect data, and our labs analyze these algorithms. Then, our engineers manage the results, presenting the best machine maintenance solutions.

Diagnosis

Our predictive service and remote monitoring of plants identify gaps in industrial parks, suggesting actions and corrections that should be prioritized.

Choosing the most suitable technique depends on the type of machine and the needs of each company. Our team of professionals with expertise in predictive maintenance performs this analysis.


We are a reference in online predictive maintenance monitoring.

SEMEQ has 300 employees and over 500 monitored factories, with a presence in 40 countries. To meet customer needs, our predictive monitoring company has teams to advise on installing and improving maintenance models distributed worldwide. In contrast, the analysis team is concentrated in our control rooms.

Talk to our consultants and avoid surprises at your industrial plant!

Industry predictive service: increase the useful life of your machinery with SEMEQ 

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Predictive, preventive, and corrective maintenance services are crucial for properly functioning industrial parks with uninterrupted production. That is why monitoring has advanced over decades regarding production and data accuracy.

In SEMEQ, we have developed technologies with our professional team to offer better and better predictive monitoring services. Nowadays, we have control software, smart data collection sensors, oil analysis laboratories, and a team of experts to create advanced algorithms with artificial intelligence.

This article presents the benefits of predictive services for industries and why SEMEQ is the best choice for those who want industrial plants free of contingencies.

What are the impacts caused by equipment wear in industrial plants?

For a company to be efficient in its production process, it needs to have maximum control over the factors that affect its production. After all, machine failures can compromise their useful life and lead to downtime in the production process, generating huge losses for companies.

When equipment presents wear in parts or mechanical failures, this causes a series of losses, such as

  • Expenses with replacement parts;
  • Expenses with repair labor;
  • Unexpected production stops;
  • Machine downtime;
  • Decrease the productive potential of the industrial plant;
  • Expenses with more energy consumption;
  • Compromised final product quality;
  • Lack of machine availability.

How does the predictive monitoring service work around these challenges?

According to consultancy McKinsey & Company, predictive maintenance service increases the availability of a production line by up to 15% and can also reduce maintenance costs by up to 25%.

An efficient predictive service for industries helps to avoid unnecessary downtime, thus increasing operational efficiency and productivity and reducing costs. In addition, it helps to prevent further damage, extend component life, and improve machine reliability.

To make this possible, sensors installed on the machines or data collectors are used, which can work offline and online. These sensors and collectors can measure the equipment’s vibration, thermography, and ultrasound conditions, ensuring that any abnormal movement is identified before failure occurs.

In addition to smart sensors, predictive monitoring in Industry 4.0 also uses software capable of storing large amounts of data, providing valuable information for analyzing machine conditions.

Perform predictive monitoring of your equipment with SEMEQ

SEMEQ is a prestigious predictive monitoring company in the market. We monitor equipment online or offline, ensuring the availability of machines in your industrial plant.

Based on our experience of almost 30 years, we know the exact requirements for remote monitoring of your machines and ensuring the continuity of your production line.

In addition, we also practice traditional monitoring with equipment oil analysis, and we count on an internal team of experts to build highly competitive sensors integrated with the most advanced machines in the market.

Learn about the differentials which make SEMEQ a leader in the market.

Detection of all failure modes

SEMEQ’s intelligent online vibration sensor detects more than 50 potential modes of electrical and mechanical faults. Vibration analysis and temperature analysis can cover 100% of potential failure modes.

Integrated monitoring (online and offline)

SEMEQ performs the integrated monitoring of equipment, combining online monitoring through smart sensors and offline monitoring with traditional data collection for laboratory analysis.

So, we can monitor your equipment 100% for the predictability of potential failures, keeping the machine at its maximum efficiency.

Experts with experience in detecting failures. 

With more than 29 years of experience, SEMEQ has the expertise of professionals specialized in detecting failures and generating insights to increase the productivity of your equipment.

Presence in 40 countries

SEMEQ has over 300 employees and more than 500 monitored factories in its portfolio, with a presence in 40 countries.

Experience in more than 10 segments

Industries from the most diverse sectors significantly gain from online and offline monitoring. The predictive service can be applied to engines, electrical power systems, boilers, steam system components, transformers, gearboxes, and refrigeration systems, among other equipment.

Find out how we carry out predictive monitoring in your industrial park

Screening

In the lab, Artificial Intelligence technology sifts and points out the probability of some parts failing in the machines. Remote and traditional monitoring techniques, such as vibration studies and lubricating oil analysis, are used to evaluate the condition of the equipment.

The choice of the most appropriate technique depends on the type of machine and the needs of each industry. Based on this diagnosis, it is possible to map which equipment will most likely fail in the customer’s plant.

Fusion of techniques

Another differential of SEMEQ is the possibility of working with several combined techniques. This is because each use of multiple techniques allows better detection of failures.

Therefore, we use a combination of predictive approach techniques to increase the accuracy of our analyses.

For example, to identify the problem in a gearbox, we can do a vibration analysis and combine it with an oil analysis. This mixture of techniques further enhances the ability to detect problems.

Talk to our consultants and avoid failures 

SEMEQ helps your industry to define which equipment should be monitored, which predictive techniques should be applied, and what monitoring cadence should be used.

Talk to our consultants

Remote predictive monitoring: more efficiency and savings in machine maintenance

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Remote predictive monitoring is an evolution of traditional methods since using intelligent sensors makes it possible to inspect machines over long distances and full-time.

Nowadays, industrial parks of large companies already use the resources of Industry 4.0 to improve the performance of their equipment and ensure uninterrupted production, providing competitive advantages in the market.

In this article, we will address how remote predictive maintenance works, its benefits compared to on-site maintenance, and for which factories it is the most indicated.

On-site monitoring challenges

Until recently, traditional predictive maintenance consisted of collecting data using a single sensor attached to the end of the equipment from a cable. This portable instrument required a person to be present in the plant to collect the data, usually on a monthly scale. In traditional predictive monitoring, half the cost of an online system was spent on infrastructure.

In addition, the main challenge of face-to-face monitoring was accessing factories and industrial parks that were difficult to access, especially when collections had to be carried out at high intervals.

Remote predictive monitoring: how it works

Remote predictive monitoring is done by installing sensors on equipment previously chosen by the technical team and the maintenance manager. As it is wireless, it is possible to install the sensors in several machines without the impediment of cabling.

From this, data is collected and sent to a bank that gathers information about the performance of the equipment. When an unusual vibration, temperature, pressure, or oil consumption is identified, no matter how small, the maintenance manager has access to this information through a platform that can be accessed on several devices.

Thus, drawing up an action plan to get the equipment working again at maximum performance is possible.

Benefits of Remote Sensing

Data analysis with AI

Big data and artificial intelligence resources make monitoring different types of data remotely possible. This information is processed according to each specific condition, predicting failures and damage from full-time trend curves and criticality level classification.

Ease data visualization

Another benefit of remote sensing is to have access to the collected data practically and transparently.

In SEMEQ, we have an online platform that can be accessed on different devices, in which the data of each monitored piece of equipment is available. Thus, it is possible to have significant insights to improve the performance of your industrial park.

Full equipment coverage

A significant difference between traditional and remote monitoring is the possibility of monitoring equipment online every day of the week.

To have an idea, in manual collections, the data is usually extracted only once a month. With wifi sensors, the reader is done once an hour, which means 720 groups per month.

For which styles of factory plants is remote predictive monitoring indicated?

Plants far from urban centers

Remote monitoring can connect hundreds or thousands of points in industrial plants, extending the network connection to larger areas.

Plants with difficult access

Online monitoring proves to be particularly useful in plants installed in difficult-to-access locations since it is unnecessary to go to the site to collect data.

Multiple plants

Companies with multiple plants need great efforts to monitor each of their equipment. With the facilities of wireless sensors, it is possible to watch all of them simultaneously, every day.

Plants with uninterrupted operation

Plants that cannot stop their production for maintenance benefit from remote monitoring, as the sensors identify potential failures with a high degree of sensitivity, ensuring the resolution of the problem before it even happens.

Learn how we perform remote predictive monitoring of your equipment

SEMEQ’s predictive monitoring process involves several online and offline steps and techniques. With extensive experience, we collaborate with more than 300 employees monitoring 500 factories in 40 countries.

With an in-house R&D team, SEMEQ develops and manufactures intelligent wireless vibration sensors, artificial intelligence algorithms, and applications dedicated to predictive monitoring.

Find out how we perform remote monitoring of your equipment:

  • We conducted a study to understand which equipment needs to be monitored.
  • We install wireless sensors.
  • Our technical team monitors the results.
  • We generate a report with information and insights.
  • We trigger the maintenance orders.

Our differences

* Expertise in fault detection: with nearly 30 years of experience, SEMEQ technicians know the exact requirements to wirelessly monitor your machines and ensure the continuity of your production line.

* Technology domain: Our online predictive maintenance monitoring company has a Research and Development department. We can produce our own sensors according to customer needs with these resources.

* Practice with various equipment: the predictive service can be applied to motors, power electronics, boilers, steam system components, transformers, capacitors, and fuses, among other equipment.

* Experience in more than ten segments: we have already worked with the most different industrial niches, such as beverages, food, mining, automotive, etc.

Talk to our consultants and remotely monitor assets in your Industrial Park.

Smart sensors in Industry 4.0: learn how they remodeled predictive monitoring

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Many American industries are undergoing a digital transformation, with the implementation of technologies such as artificial intelligence, the Internet of Things (IoT), advanced robotics, and cloud computing. These technologies are helping companies to optimize their operations, improve productivity, and create new business models and revenue streams.

In predictive monitoring in industries, one of the most innovative technologies in Industry 4.0 is smart sensors, which can generate a significant volume of data and constantly monitor the equipment.

Using this technology in industrial plants makes the machines maintain high performance throughout their use, which leads to a highly productive park and competitive advantage for the company.

In this article, learn more about the role of smart sensors in Industry 4.0 and its benefits in industrial parks.

Evolution of predictive monitoring and Industry 4.0

With the concept of predictive maintenance in the mid-1970s, software development allowed better planning, control, and monitoring of maintenance services.

However, despite these advances, the lack of interaction between the engineering, maintenance, and operation areas prevented the best results. Therefore, premature failure rates were still high.

From the 2000s on, with the consolidation of maintenance engineering activities, failure analysis was established to improve equipment performance.

In this context, predictive maintenance started to be increasingly used in the so-called Industry 4.0 – concept used for the first time in 2011, by the German government, in its quest to promote the computerization of manufacturing and data integration.

Industry 4.0 and the Internet of Things (IoT)

Also called the fourth industrial revolution, Industry 4.0 is characterized by intelligent technologies such as Artificial Intelligence, Machine Learning, Robotics, and Analytics based on big data. 

With these resources, it became possible for much greater interaction between machines, which gained greater integration capacity and autonomy. Thus, with the Internet of Things, devices are monitored through smart online sensors, allowing maintenance to be carried out more consistently and in the shortest possible time to predict and avoid unwanted occurrences.

In turn, Big Data resources enable the management of a large amount of data, contributing to the fact that machine maintenance decisions can be made before real problems occur.

Since then, thanks to the development of new technologies, predictive maintenance has been improving, indicating equipment failures with increasing accuracy and richness of detail.

Understand how smart sensors have changed the predictive market. 

The predictive monitoring of machines was done on-site until some time ago, which required the presence of technicians in factories to collect data. For this, a cable attached a sensor to the end of the equipment. The problem is that this process was much more laborious and expensive and therefore was usually only done on a monthly basis.

With smart sensors, predictive maintenance eliminates the need for in-person inspections. Data collection is done online and automatically, without disassembling and reassembling machines to determine if they are running well.

The sensors connected to the machines generate data that is captured and transmitted via the internet. This information is then analyzed to predict maintenance needs and limit the time this equipment will remain idle.

Benefits of using sensors for industries

* More accurate and frequent remote monitoring, which enables greater predictability of failures and avoids unnecessary repairs;

* Previously determines the need for maintenance, eliminating the need to disassemble the machines for inspections;

* Avoids problems that may generate the need for corrective maintenance, which is more complex and expensive;

* Decreased machine downtime, ensuring production continuity and increasing efficiency and safety on the production line;

* Increased useful life of equipment parts, reducing the need to stock spare parts;

*Generating a large amount of data can be combined to indicate the right moment to carry out predictive maintenance, increasing decision-making agility.

Applications of smart sensors in Industry 4.0

The use of wireless sensors in predictive maintenance enables the detection of wear and bearing defects, misalignments, imbalances, looseness, and other deficiencies that lead to machine failures and unexpected stops in the production line. This service can be applied in engines, electronic and power systems, boilers, steam system components, and transformers, among other equipment.

Industries from the most diverse sectors can benefit from this monitoring, even in dangerous places with difficult access.

What are the main types of smart sensors used in industry?

* Vibration: sees mechanical failures by analyzing the vibration of the equipment, such as unbalance, lousy bearing, or coupling.

* Temperature/Humidity measures the equipment’s temperature and humidity.

* Oil: analyzes the oil/lubricant viscosity present in the equipment.

* Ultrasound: Monitors leakage of compressed air, steam, and vacuum, detecting failures in bearings, valves, and electrical substations and saving energy.

Get to know the smart sensor we use in SEMEQ. 

The SEMEQ online vibration smart sensor can detect numerous potential electrical and mechanical failure modes. By analyzing temperature, vibration, electrical current, and other process variables, it is able to cover 100% of the potential failure modes in electric motors.

Besides, SEMEQ’s wireless sensors have high sensitivity, one of the most reliable in the market for detecting minimal vibrations indicative of potential failures.

This happens because we maintain an internal Research & Development department to produce sensors with the most advanced technologies in the market. Thus, we can guarantee efficient and reliable sensors for our customers.

SEMEQ wireless sensor features

  • 10kHZ sensitivity – detects bearing and gear failures.
  • Durable battery for up to three (3) years and replaceable.
  • No need to discard the sensor when the battery runs out.
  • 3G/4G connection and independent operation.
  • Triggers and variable charges.

Transform your industrial park: talk to our consultants.

Semeq has nearly 30 years of existence and has extensive expertise in monitoring wireless predictive maintenance in many industrial segments and small, medium, and large plants.

We are present in 40 countries and have more than 500 plants monitored with our technology. We have offices in North America, South America, Asia, and Europe.

Your company can also benefit from the effects of Industry 4.0 and the use of smart sensors in predictive monitoring.

Count on us to help you optimize production processes, reduce equipment failures, and increase plant performance.

Contact us now!