ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

INTRODUCTION TO
CONDITION BASED MAINTENANCE

ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

INTRODUCTION

CBM Introduction
Risk Based Maintenance and Condition Monitoring
The Condition Based Approach
Maintenance Strategy, RCM SRCM
Continuous improvement

Page 1

Over recent years maintenance practices have changed radically leading to the current
focus on Condition Based Maintenance. There are probably three main factors
driving this change:
Economic Pressures

There has been a growing requirement to reduce

operating costs, both to prolong the life of existing
assets and to make new projects economically feasible.
Our objective is to plan maintenance in a way that will
evolve, representing a cycle of continuous improvement
throughout the life of the asset.

Safety/Environmental

Today, safety and environmental issues are given the

attention they deserve, and it is no longer acceptable to
reduce operating costs by arbitrarily eliminating
maintenance without considering the consequences.

Available Technology

Many technical developments have contributed to

reducing operating costs, but in the maintenance area,
two key developments are the growing availability and
understanding of condition monitoring techniques and
the evaluation of maintenance strategy analysis
techniques to optimise our efforts.

ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

This section is aimed at introducing the condition monitoring tools and their
application.

ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

DEFINITIONS

DEFINITIONS
CONDITION BASED MAINTENANCE
A SCHEME WHEREBY MAINTENANCE, INSPECTION AND
OVERHAUL OF PLANT AND MACHINERY IS SCHEDULED ON
THE BASIS OF THE CONDITION OF THAT PLANT
This requires techniques for

CONDITION MONITORING
SCIENCE OF DETERMINING THE CONDITION OF PLANT AND
MACHINERY BY NON INVASIVE MEANS DURING NORMAL
OPERATION OF THAT EQUIPMENT

Page 2

The definitions shown in the panel are helpful in distinguishing between Condition
Based Maintenance - the maintenance management procedure and condition
monitoring - the science of monitoring machinery condition which makes the latter
possible.

ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

MAINTENANCE PHILOSOPHY

MAINTENANCE PHILOSOPHIES

BREAKDOWN

PLANNED

Fix it when it breaks!

Fix it when its due

whether it needs it or not!

CONDITION BASED Fix it when it needs it!

Page 3

At the outset, let us consider the question how can we schedule maintenance? Usually
this is summarised under three headings:
Breakdown

Repairs carried out as and when failure occurs.

Planned

Repairs carried out at fixed time intervals or at fixed

running hours, irrespective of machine condition.

Condition Based

IF a non-invasive technique can be found to indicate the

condition of a machine then it can be maintained, when,
and only when needed.

In real life a maintenance strategy will be a combination of all three, but let us
consider the implications of each:

ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

BREAKDOWN MAINTENANCE

Breakdown Maintenance

Page 4

Breakdown Maintenance is a procedure whereby machines are simply run to failure.

There are situations where this approach is quite appropriate, for example when
dealing with machines of low priority or low value whose failure does not have
serious effect on safety or production. However, when dealing with machinery that is
critical to the effective business operation or where the failure of the machine would
have a serious safety implication, a "run to failure" approach is clearly inappropriate.

ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

PLANNED PREVENTATIVE MAINTENANCE (PPM)

Failures

Failure Characteristics (PPM)

Wear out failure

Failures

Time

Time
Time

Wear out +
early life failures
Page 5

This used to be the only alternative to a breakdown maintenance strategy. Here,

maintenance is carried out at fixed time intervals irrespective of the condition of the
machine.
The first graph in the diagram illustrates the situation where a wear out or age related
failure mode is assumed. The second graph illustrates the situation where wear out
with early life failure is assumed. The time intervals to maintenance are selected to
give a high probability that the maintenance will be carried out before the occurrence
of any failure. If the assumption of the failure mechanism is right and the intervals are
correctly set then planned maintenance can be very effective. However more
maintenance will be carried out than strictly necessary since the machine will be
overhauled sometime prior to failure. Maintenance of this type often seems to be
"wasteful" involving, for example, shutting down a machine that is running
satisfactorily and replacing perfectly serviceable bearings simply because their
scheduled running hours had elapsed.
Where early life failures occur we often find that there is a higher probability that the
machine will fail in the first few hours after maintenance. There is nothing like a

ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

rebuild for causing the failure of a reliable machine! Planned maintenance will also do
nothing to address the small percentage of premature failures.

ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

Failures

Failure Characteristics (PPM)

Wear out failure
Time

Failures

Wear out +
early life failures
Time

Failures

Random failures
Time

Page 6

The third graph in the above diagram illustrates components that fail on a random
basis. If we take random failures into account then planned maintenance becomes
totally ineffective. As the failures can occur at any time a scheduled overhaul will do
nothing to prevent them.
Studies in the aircraft industry were carried out following an unacceptable failure rate.
At first it was assumed that the maintenance was either inefficient or the interval was
to long. The maintenance practices were inspected to ensure effectiveness and the
interval shortened. This had no effect at all on the reliability of the aircraft indicating
that the assumption of wear out failure was incorrect. Further studies showed that in
practice around 15% of failures follow a wear out mechanism. The other 85% are
random and cannot be prevented by planned maintenance. This aircraft experience
has been found to be applicable in most situations.
However, PPM is appropriate in situations where the life of a component (e.g. an oil
filter) is dependent on a wear our or age related failure or where there is no alternative
(e.g. Gas Turbine Blade Creep).

ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

CONDITION BASED MAINTENANCE

Rotating Machinery Monitoring (CBM)

Is the machine fit for Service ?

Mechanical
Integrity
Bearing
Monitoring

Vibration
Velocity

Lube Oil Fit

for Service

Performance
Ability to Meet
Duty

Wear Debris
Analysis

Defend Against
Specific Failures

Run Machine or Plan Maintenance

Page 7

This is a compromise between the extreme of a breakdown or preventative approach.

The condition based maintenance approach relies on the use of non-invasive
monitoring techniques, which can give a reliable warning of when maintenance is
required. Maintenance is then programmed only if necessary.
Condition Based Maintenance will normally result in longer intervals between
invasive maintenance than PPM, but obviously a shorter time interval than the run to
failure approach. Usually condition monitoring will achieve benefits through the
following:

Reduction in maintenance effort compared with PPM.

Avoiding damage caused by running to failure.
Reduced production loss by avoiding machinery failures and unnecessary
maintenance.
Reduction in safety & environmental consequences from early detection of
hazardous situations.

The use of condition based maintenance also has benefits for maintenance personnel.
The frustration of expending effort on unnecessary repairs is eliminated; unexpected
failures are reduced; and the results of maintenance work can be seen and measured
through the improved availability or improved running of the plant.

ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

ADVANTAGES OF CONDITION BASED MAINTENANCE

Advantages of Condition Based Maintenance

Failure
Consequences
Planed
Planned

Page 8

This diagram illustrates in general terms why CBM saves money.

In a planned maintenance strategy, work is carried out at fixed time intervals
irrespective of the maintenance needs of the plant. It frequently happens that, this
preventative maintenance work is the dominant figure in annual maintenance costs. In
this event, any extension to the run time of machinery between overhauls will produce
a proportional reduction in maintenance costs. Ultimately, however, costs will rise as
a consequence of unscheduled shutdowns and failures - the plant is moving towards a
breakdown maintenance plan.
Condition based maintenance finds the optimum maintenance interval, minimising
costs.

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

Stopping Maintenance
Overhead
Cost

Stop Maintenance
Programme

Time

Page 9

The panel illustrates a pitfall that is not uncommon. When operating margins are
squeezed, there is an obvious pressure to reduce maintenance cost by eliminating
planned maintenance. This will give short term benefits, but may prove a false
economy in the long term. However, investing in a properly implemented condition
monitoring programme will ensure a satisfactory and sustainable long term outcome.

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

THE CONDITION MONITORING TOOLKIT

The condition Monitoring Toolkit

VIBRATION MONITORING
Well established approach to addressing particular failure
modes on rotating equipment. Offline or online?

LUBE OIL ANALYSIS

Condition based oil changes AND
detect failure modes which vibration cannot,
particularly on reciprocating machines

THERMOGRAPHY
Carries the condition based
maintenance approach into electrical
plant

PERFORMANCE MONITORING
Simple- MAKING USE of the log sheet
sophisticated- performance analysis

Page 10

There is a wide variety of condition monitoring tools available; the slide lists only
some.

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

VIBRATION MONITORING

Spectrum Analysis Techniques

amplitude

1X
1X

2X
2X

3X3X

4X4X

Page 11

Well established as a means of determining the mechanical integrity of equipment bearings, alignment, couplings gearboxes etc. A wide range of technology is available
for both on-line and off-line monitoring. Ultimately the choice between these
approaches can be based on simple value for money or, do more sophisticated and
expensive solutions provide better benefit?

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

ENVELOPING

Rolling Element Bearings

Supplement

If a surface irregularity exists on a rolling element bearing race, then a burst of high
frequency vibration is generated each time a ball passes that defect. This high
frequency vibration represents the "ringing response" of the bearing housing to the
impact of the ball with the surface irregularity. These bursts of vibration will repeat
periodically at a rate determined by the bearing geometry and the machine running
speed. Such repetition rates are known as bearing defect frequencies. There are four
frequencies associated with a rolling element bearing:

Inner Race Frequency

Ball Spin Frequency

Outer Race Frequency

Cage Frequency

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

LUBE OIL ANALYSIS

Lube Oil Analysis

What

Are we looking for

Why

Do we test oils & greases

Where

Does it fit in with other CBM

Management
Site Personnel
Maintenance contractor
Test Laboratory

Who

CM Consultant

Might manage
the program

How

When

To schedule tests

To select target machines

Page 13

Traditionally complements vibration monitoring. Allows oil changes to be scheduled

on condition. Also identifies some failure modes on reciprocating machines to which
vibration monitoring is insensitive.
Why we test oils & greases

To detect degradation of properties (due to normal or abnormal breakdown of

the oil or matrix).
To detect degradation of machinery (by detection and analysis of debris in the
lubricant).
To enable replacement on condition (rather than time based or breakdown
maintenance).
To assist in Condition Based Maintenance (CBM) of machinery.

What are we looking for

Contamination water, process fluid, fuel, salt, dust, soot, other oils & greases
Wear debris ferrous or non-ferrous, elemental, microscopic, macroscopic

Where does it fit in with other CBM

May indicate conditions that precede or cause later mechanical failure

Supporting other methods (such as vibration) in detection of equipment failure

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

The Sample
What

Why

Is a good sample important

Is important to ensure
in a sample

Where

To sample to ensure quality

Competent, trained personnel

Who

How

Should take the samples

To sample to ensure quality

When

To sample to ensure quality

Page 15

Why is a good sample important

Increases consistency of trending enabling rapid identification of changes

and effective use of statistical analysis.
Reduces the risk of incorrect conclusions due to spurious results.

Reduces the need for re-sampling to re-evaluate spurious results.

What is important to ensure in a sample

Representative of the lubricant charge well mixed by the machine & has
passed through the machine. This is particularly important with grease
samples, as grease does not necessarily circulate.
Uncontaminated by external or unrepresentative sources such as dust, sea
spray or sump sludge, unclean sampling equipment.
Identifiable appropriate labeling of source and oil type.
Supporting information run hours, last oil change, oil consumption rate,
maintenance history, other observations.

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

Where to sample to ensure quality

In an active stream such as a return line or high in an active sump where

flow is turbulent or from within a grease lubricated system
After the machine or machine element on a return system before filtering or
pumping.
From an on line collection device such as a magnetic plug, filter or slew
sample bottle.
NOT from baffled sumps or reservoirs or from partial drains (such as in some
gearboxes with multiple return paths) or from an external grease pack. A
dedicated sample point should always be used. Do NOT break lines to obtain
a sample.

How to sample to ensure quality

Use clean, dry sampling equipment.

Flush re-useable sampling equipment with virgin lubricant or appropriate
solvent (note this is not necessary for the Vampire pump type).

Discard sampling consumables after each sample.

Discard initial sample flow or grease surface sample could contain dead
oil or contaminants from the sample point. This should be done in an
environmentally friendly and safe manner.

When to sample to ensure quality

With the machine running or shortly after running lubricant charge well

mixed and flowing past sample point.

With the machine at operating temperature can affect some properties such
as water content.

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

THERMOGRAPHY

Themography

Themography

Page 16

The obvious applications for Thermography can be seen frequently on the television
searching for earthquake victims, firemen looking for the seat of the fire, police
searching for hidden criminals. Its a well-established technique for detecting faults in
electrical equipment. These include faults in switchgear panels, HV/LV electrical
equipment, transformers, power supplies, circuit boards etc. The technique also has
some wider applications e.g. fouling of vessels, passing valves, blocked coolers, hot
bearings, process anomalies, lagging defects and building surveys. Throughout
industry the objective for implementing an infrared thermographic survey is to
maximise the availability of critical machinery and detect inefficient processes and
defects. This can be achieved by:

Early detection of developing faults allowing for scheduling of maintenance to

rectify faults at an early stage.
Performing regular surveys on critical systems and equipment that confirm that
they not only remain fit for continued service but that the processes they are
used for remain efficient.

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

PARTIAL DISCHARGE (ROGOWSKI) COIL TESTING

Partial Discharge (Rogowski) Coil Testing

Page 17

Utilising proven technologies such as Rogowski Coils and Cegelecs Micamaxx

system can offer a range of online partial discharge monitoring solutions. The
alternating magnetic field produced by the partial discharge current induces a voltage
in the coil that is proportional to the rate of change of current. The coil provides an
exceptionally versatile partial discharge measuring system that can be designed to
accommodate a vast range of frequencies, current levels and conductor sizes. The
output is independent of frequency, has an accurate phase response and can measure
complex current waveforms and transients
What is Partial Discharge?
Partial Discharge is an electrical phenomenon, which causes insulation to deteriorate
and is frequently the reason for breakdown of an insulation system resulting in failure
of the equipment.
Partial Discharge can be described as an electrical pulse or discharge in a gas-filled
void or on a dielectric surface of a solid or liquid insulation system. This pulse or
discharge would partially bridge phase to ground insulation or phase to phase
insulation in an electrical apparatus, thus causing the electrical equipment to fail.
Partial Discharges can occur for a number of different reasons. For example, Partial
Discharge can occur when high voltage structures have sharp projections; internal

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

discharge can occur in voids and contact noise can occur if the ground connection to a
bushing is poor.

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

PROCESS DATA

Process Data
The primary function of a log sheet is to communicate process
and mechanical information for a piece of equipment or
system.

Paper
or
Technology
Page 18

Every plant collects vast quantities of routine operating data. But without efficient
interpretation its true value can never be fully realised. ProLog is the key, which
unlocks the latent potential of this information. Paper records and log sheets are
probably the oldest source of information about the condition of plant and equipment we need to harness this and move from a reactive to a proactive stance as part of a
condition based maintenance strategy.
Systems designed to replace tools as simple as paper and pencil need to be userfriendly. If they are less convenient, then the system will founder.
With ProLog, the value of collected data is enhanced by calculations set up by the
user which automatically generate derived variables to be stored and analysed
alongside the raw measurements. A powerful range of algorithms analyses the
performance of pumps, compressors, turbines, heat exchangers and control valves.
ProLog reports highlight departures from normal plant operation and deterioration in
the health of equipment. The flexibility is there to change the order of data collection
as required, or even stop for a tea break! Plus, with built-in data validation routines,
users are instantly alerted to equipment anomalies, misreadings and keying errors.

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

THE CONDITION MONITORING TOOLKIT

There are two points to be emphasised:

(1)

All of these techniques can be applied superficially or professionally.

There is a difference between having a technician "check the vibes"
and applying vibration monitoring as part of a CBM process to
eliminate preventative maintenance.
Similarly, we can log a
compressor discharge temperature or use a computer based system to
routinely analyse performance to detect specific failure modes, and
eliminate/defer major intrusive maintenance or unit change out

(2)

All of the monitoring techniques cost money, and the most effective is
neither the least or the most expensive. What is required is an analysis of
the failure modes of an equipment item leading to selection of the
appropriate detection technique for that failure mode - ranging from
nothing (breakdown maintenance), through a combination of condition
monitoring techniques to planned preventative maintenance.

An approach is therefore required to target our effort in those areas where it will produce
maximum benefit.

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

OCB OIL ANALYSIS

OCB Oil analysis

Oil Filled Circuit Breakers are
used to switch circuits and
equipment in and out of a
system.
They are oil filled to provide
cooling and prevent arcing when
the switch is activated.

Page 20

Oil Circuit Breakers (OCB), consisting of moving and stationary contacts and
ancillary components involved in making and breaking the circuit, can wear out and
lost the ability to adequately perform their intended functions. This may happen
because of misalignment, wear, poor contact surfaces and improper timing of contact
movement. Dielectric failure may occur from excessive localised moisture or
excessive amounts of conductive particles in the oil. Thermal runaway causes
carbonisation and by-product polymeric films to form on conductors, increasing the
surface resistance of the contacts, which can result in overheating to the point of
failure. Even stationary components such as the interrupter shell and nozzle grid
materials can break down, which results in inadequate arc quenching and carbon
build-up, compounding the overheating condition.
Various approaches can be used to develop diagnostic tools to detect incipient faults
in OCBs. One approach is to identify problems by visual inspection, electrical tests
and oil tests to see which ones provide results exhibiting significant changes from
previous comparison tests.
Three oil-quality tests are selected to provide the essential information necessary to
diagnose equipment status without being too complicated. The dielectric breakdown
voltage test provides information on the insulating capacity of the oil. Determining
the water content reveals how wet or dry the system is and whether free water exists.
The neutralisation number, which measures the acidity level, provides information on
the extent of the degradation of the oil. The acidity is a factor in determining the

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

severity of a condition because high concentrations of organic acids can exacerbate an

already deteriorated condition.

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

MAINTENANCE AND STRATEGY ANALYSIS

Maintenance and Strategy Analysis

BUSINESS OBJECTIVE
COST EFFECTIVE OPERATION

STRATEGY ANALYSIS
IDENTIFY AND MANAGE RISK

CONDITION
MONITORING

PREVENTATIVE
MAINTENANCE

HUMAN
FACTORS

SCOPE AND QUALITY OF

MAINTENANCE

Page 21

The slide illustrates the role of a maintenance strategy analysis. It is an important part
of the link between the global business objective and targeting maintenance resources.
Human factors and maintenance contractual arrangements are important in their own
right. However, these factors do not influence the basic discipline of identifying and
managing risk, which is the central purpose of the maintenance strategy analysis.
The strategy analysis takes as its input, the overall business objective of cost effective
operation, together with other business level decisions such as:
Value of Lost Production/Sales value (cash driven operation) or cost of
operation deferral.
Cost of Safety Related and Environmental Incidents
Life of asset/Write off of investment.

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

Plant and equipment reliability statistics are the second important input to the strategy
analysis. On existing installations, this can come from the maintenance history,
together with the experience of operating personnel. On new plant, the corresponding
information comes from in-house field experience of generic equipment, together with
OREDA or the manufacturers reliability data.

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

CRITICALITY ANALYSIS

Criticality Analysis
CRITICALITY

The probable impact of an equipment item or failure

mode on the business if protective measures are not
taken

PRODUCTION

SAFETY

ENVIRONMENT CONSEQUENTIAL
DAMAGE

"# # " $ %# $ &

Page 23

The slide shows a definition of criticality, which is appropriate to the present objective
of targeting maintenance resources. When planning maintenance, criticality defined
in this way is a measure of the significance of the equipment item and therefore of
how much effort it is appropriate to expend in planning and executing maintenance.
At least four factors can contribute to the criticality, as shown in the slide. There is
only one common basis on which these factors can be compared - their Financial
Impact on the Company'
s business. Two further benefits arise from using a financial
measure of criticality:
1. The financial penalty can be compared with the cost of preventative
measures to develop a fully optimised and targeted maintenance strategy.
2. As the operating constraints on the business change - due to changes in the
oil price or reservoir depletion - the impact on the appropriate level of
maintenance and priorities within the maintenance programme will be
revealed. In this way maintenance can be modulated appropriately
throughout the life of the plant.

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

STRATEGY ANALYSIS

Strategy Analysis
EQUIPMENT
TAG

CM/PM
Success Probability

Potential
penalty
FM 1

FM1

Probable
penalty
FM 1

Potential
penalty
FM 2

FM2

Probable
penalty
FM 2

Etc
Total
potential
penalty

BENEFIT OF
CONDITION MONITORING
AND PM

Total
probable
penalty

Page 24

Criticality analysis highlights the equipment items where protective measures are most
appropriate. The next step is to put these protective measures in place and assess the
benefit.
With regard to condition monitoring, a success probability must be attached to each of
the systems proposed against each failure mode. It is part of the responsibility of a
condition monitoring engineer to generate these figures, and to have his performance
assessed against these targets. The success probability of preventative maintenance
can be evaluated, from reliability theory, knowing the MTBF, failure characteristic
and overhaul interval.
Armed with this information the probable penalty can now be calculated based on
the probability that each failure will occur despite the preventative measures taken.
In this way the benefit arising from a particular combination of preventative
maintenance and condition monitoring can be evaluated and the optimum
maintenance plan identified.

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

PROACTIVE RELIABILITY MAINTENANCE

Reliability and Maintenance Feedback

Page 25

PRM is a risk-management process including steps that, when carried out and
repeated, enable you to continuously improve maintenance strategies and machine
performance.
While most forms of Predictive Maintenance (PdM) form a sustained maintenance
loop, the SKF Service Proactive Reliability Maintenance (PRMTM) process forms a
continuous improvement loop.
Each of the following four steps builds on one another to prevent repetitive failures
or problems from recurring.
Step 1: Establish a predictive system
The first step is to design a Predictive Maintenance (PdM) system specifically for your
plant, based on information provided from an external audit, or by you. This enables
you to understand the parameters that affect your plants equipment life.
A PdM system will include activities such as:

Vibration analysis and bearing monitoring

Thermography
Lubrication analysis

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

The Proactive Reliability Maintenance process may also highlight the need for
additional activities during maintenance, such as rotating equipment geometric
alignment, precision balancing, and lubrication and filtration control.
Step 2: Diagnostics and root cause analysis
Reliability Engineers diagnose the root cause of problems and determine corrective
maintenance actions, such as machine realignment, changing the lubricant or replacing
a damaged component.
Detailed machine and component diagnostics can be conducted on site or at a
centralised Reliability Maintenance Centre. Physical analysis on the damaged
components may also be required to determine the root cause of the failure.
This information is used to prevent the same type of failure from recurring.
Step 3: Key Performance Indicators to measure improvement
Key Performance Indicators (KPIs) are performance improvement targets established
jointly between SKF and you. They may cover a wide range of factors, from bearing
performance to staff availability. Where possible, once a KPI is achieved, a new
target is set to facilitate continuous improvement.
Step 4: Management review process
Periodic review of the improvement programme is important to monitor KPI
achievement. Results are documented and presented at performance review meetings.
Operational review meetings are held to continually refine the PRM process to
achieve the best balance of plant asset performance with the PRM process activity
cost.
How your plant will benefit
Implementation of well-managed Proactive Reliability Maintenance process will
ensure the best possible return on plant assets by managing potential risk.
SKF can guide you in establishing your own PRM process or design, implement and
manage the process for you. This can apply to your entire plant or any sector of it.
Full management includes hardware, software and the technical resources needed to
provide measurable improvements.

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

SKF ENGINEERING SOLUTIONS AN OPEN & SHUT CASE

SKF ENGINEERING SOLUTIONS

AN OPEN & SHUT CASE

When engineers started to have problems opening one of the giant-sized sliding
doors of the world famous Cardington Airship Hangar, it was SKFs spherical
roller bearings that provided the solution.
In the late 1920s, the Cardington Airship Hangar, in Bedfordshire, housed the Barnes
Wallis-designed R100 airship. Such is the size of the hangar that it could easily house
both Nelsons Column for height, as well as the aircraft carrier Ark Royal. It has a
floor area twice the size of Wembley football pitch and a volume equal to 8,338
double-decker buses. The hangar is a Grade II listed building and is currently used by
the Building Research Establishment (BRE) to house the largest enclosed laboratory
in the world.
Although the hangar was subjected to a major refurbishment programme in 1993,
engineers from BRE recently experienced difficulties sliding aside the southern
hangar door. With the doors requiring to be opened, on average, once a day, the
problem had to be rectified quite urgently. As each hangar door measures a massive
55 metres high by 24 metres wide and weighs some 470 tons, the bearing
refurbishment programme required to solve the problem turned into a major
engineering exercise.
The hangar doors run on a twin track system using four, four-wheeled bogies mounted
on each track. On close examination of the bogies on the inner track, BRE engineers
detected that the bearings were in a state of collapse and obviously the reason for the
difficulty to move the door. This problem had also created flats on some of the
760mm diameter wheels, due to skidding instead of rotating. One bearing was

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

removed, stripped for examination and found to be a home-made needle roller

bearing design which had disintegrated. Most of the rollers were in bad shape and the
side plates were almost worn right through.

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ISO18436 Level 1 Module 1

While BRE could have tried to simply replace the bearing arrangement with a similar
system, it was concerned about the degree of wear on the side plates and contacted
SKF, along with other bearing manufacturers, to see what benefits modern bearing
arrangements could provide, and how the wear problem could be overcome. SKF
took a positive approach to the problem and proposed new designs, using heavy duty
spherical roller bearings along with adaptation and re-use of existing bogie
components where possible, to give the best all round solution.
After tests on site, SKF and BRE engineers determined that the inner bogies were
carrying three quarters of the doors weight, which equated to a load of some 33 tons
on each of the wheels. In high winds, this load could almost double. Track
measurements also revealed that the side plate wear was caused by a difference of
20mm in the height level of the inner and outer rail tracks.
The SKF refurbishment included detailed redesign, in order to accommodate the
massive loads involved, plus shaft, housing and wheel re-machining, and complete
assembly of wheel units. At the end of the project, SKF had refurbished all 16 wheels
on four bogies on one door and fitted a total of 32 new bearings.
Where possible, the existing shafts and wheels were used. As well as being costeffective, the SKF solution ensured that all loads were held within the wheeled units.
This contained the high static loads and particularly, the lateral forces, avoiding the
original wear problems.
Throughout, SKF and BRE worked closely together to co-ordinate the progressive
removal and re-machining of individual wheel sets so that the door still remained fully
operational. The result is that the application of SKFs modern bearing technology
will ensure that the door will open and close for at least another 50 years.

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