One way to optimize your measuring rounds is to include remote measuring points in new installations or turn existing measuring points into remote ones. There are several reasons this is a solid strategy. Below I will explain what extended measuring points are and why they are the better option.

Remote measuring points

This is a system that enables you to move the physical measuring point away from the machine. Most common is to gather 4-8 measuring points from one or two machines in one spot, although larger and/or smaller numbers of measuring points are possible, too. This setup always consists of transducers, connectors, cables, cableways and/or clamps, and a terminal cabinet with or without a switch. Most common is to place quick connectors inside the cabinets. It is also recommended to collect rotational speed data.

Health, safety, and environment (HSE)

Safety always comes first. In many cases, gathering the measuring points in a single location away from the machine is the optimal solution from a worker safety perspective. The keywords here are complete protection with full connectivity.

Economy

Another important aspect is time. Collecting measurement data from remote measuring points is much faster than fixed measuring points on the respective machine component. Several sources report time savings of up to 80%. Time is money, and the extra time can be spent analyzing results instead. The ROI (return on investment) will be fulfilled very quickly by investing in remote measuring points.

Repeatability

In the maintenance world, repeatability is an essential factor, especially regarding data collection. If data is not consistently measured in the same way, or measuring points are mixed up, results can be unreliable. It is easy to see that remote measuring points eliminate the risk of collecting bad data.

Online systems

With a terminal cabinet already in place, complete with sensors, connectors, cables, and cableways, all gathered in one spot, future investment costs for an online condition monitoring system can be reduced by up to 50%.

Wireless systems

If neither handheld nor online monitoring is an option, there are wireless systems to collect the data, which can then easily be connected and presented in analysis software and/or in a dashboard.