Efficient Plant October 2022 - 32

column | safety insights
ALS Units O
Advance Safety,
Reliability
Scott Smith
Motion
SHA, WASHINGTON
(osha.gov), estimates that
120 fatalities and 50,000
injuries are prevented each year
by proper lockout/tagout (LOTO).
With insurance and injury costs
rising, guarding and LOTO areas
will continue to grow. As equipment
manufacturers and end users expand
their machine guarding to improve
safety and minimize risk, how can
the machinery itself be maintained
safely and cost effectively? Many are
leveraging automated lubrication
systems (ALS).
Lubrication of power transmisAn
automated lubrication system (ALS) unit is shown
installed outside a bottling machine's guarded area,
eliminating the need for lockout/tagout (LOTO) to
lubricate the machine. Image courtesy Motion
Reduce Risks of Asset Failure
Over greased = overheating, waste, and pollution
Optimal lubrication
sion and other moving parts must be
done frequently and is necessary to
ensure proper component life. When
the machine or moving apparatus is
well guarded, removing the guarding
to access lubrication points requires
the machine to be shut down and the
energy source locked out. This process
results in machine downtime and
production loss.
Proper asset lubrication, according
to the manufacturer's recommendations,
can and will increase product
output and save costly repairs. Too
often, plants use employees on light
duty to perform lubrication. Unless
they have been properly trained, you
will most likely have issues. Any plant
with an active reliability-centered
maintenance program can show you
the results.
In many instances, doubts about
Under greased = wear, premature repairs, high repair costs
-Manual lubrication
- Automatic lubrication
An automated lubrication system can provide consistent
oil/grease levels that will improve asset reliability while
advancing maintenance safety. Image courtesy SKF
lubrication consistency can be eliminated
by installing ALS units
because they:
reduce risk of failure by providing
the correct type and amount of
32 | EFFICIENTPLANTMAG.COM
lubrication-at the right time-while
the machine is moving
eliminate manual intervention,
i.e., under- or over-lubrication
offer system monitoring capabilities,
specifically alarms and go/no-go
indication.
In addition, the facility can realize
the following benefits:
increased production-eliminates
the need to LOTO the machine to
perform lubrication tasks
improved safety-prevents accidents
that can happen during manual
lubrication, lessens exposure to harmful
chemicals, and reduces climbing
over and around machinery
increased efficiency-the grease
or oil pump can be mounted in an
easy-access area for servicing
maximized equipment reliability
within LOTO areas.
The trend of expanded LOTO
areas will only increase in the coming
years to continue to keep workers safe
and reduce injury risk and cost. This
growth, coupled with reduced maintenance
staff levels at many companies,
provides the perfect opportunity for
increased use of automated lubrication
systems. EP
Scott Smith is West Group Fluid
Power Manager at Motion,
Birmingham, AL (motion.com).
A certified fluid power specialist,
he has more than 35 years of
experience in the fluid-power and
industrial-distribution business,
including more than 12 years with
Motion. He holds a degree in
manufacturing engineering from
the Oregon Institute
of Technology.
OCTOBER 2022
http://www.osha.gov http://www.motion.com http://www.EFFICIENTPLANTMAG.COM
Efficient Plant October 2022

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