Pump Pressure Monitoring with Centaur

Pump Pressure Monitoring with Centaur: From Data to Decision

Pump pressure monitoring is the fastest way to see what your system is feeling—especially when it’s paired with vibration data. With Centaur, Hydro turns continuous pressure and vibration signals into clear, actionable insight so teams can detect issues early, protect uptime, and schedule maintenance with confidence.

Why Pump Pressure Monitoring Matters (with Vibration)

When pressure trends are viewed alongside vibration, you gain a complete picture of hydraulic and mechanical behavior. That correlation exposes the why behind alarms, validates root cause, and supports smarter maintenance timing that protects MTBR/MTBF and energy costs.

Case Study – Pipeline Pump Pressure Monitoring

At a midstream pipeline station receiving batches of different refined products, Centaur captured upstream and downstream pressure on three pumps and correlated those signals with vibration. As batches transitioned, operators could see pressure deviations drive vibration change—flagging anomalies early and guiding intervention before conditions escalated. Long-term pressure trends also revealed efficiency drift tied to wear, informing work scheduling when it created the most reliability value.

Case Study – Differential Pressure at Intake Screens

A European nuclear utility installed differential pressure sensors across four river-water intake screens with alarms every ~10 seconds. With Centaur, the site moved from fixed backwash schedules to demand-driven cleaning—reducing wasted energy, extending screen and pump life, and maintaining reliability during high-debris periods.

From Monitoring to Predictive Maintenance for Rotating Equipment

Centaur combines sensors, connectivity, and Hydro’s engineering oversight to turn signals into decisions. Monthly health reports, analytics, and targeted recommendations help teams move from reactive responses to proactive planning—translating data into fewer surprises and more uptime.

See how pump pressure monitoring paired with vibration delivered earlier alerts and smarter maintenance decisions across pipeline and intake-screen applications.

Download the full Centaur pressure monitoring case study (PDF)

Ready to Modernize Your Program?

Talk to Hydro about pump condition monitoring for your critical assets—pipelines, cooling water systems, and plant utilities. We’ll help you pair pressure and vibration to detect issues earlier, confirm root cause faster, and plan maintenance with confidence.

Contact your local Hydro Service Center to talk through your application or schedule a demonstration here.

Centaur: Flexible Connectivity, Secure Data

Every plant is different. Some need the convenience of cloud access. Others demand the security of keeping data on-site. With Centaur, you don’t have to choose.

Cloud Deployment – Simple & Accessible

  • Cellular or Wi-Fi/Ethernet communication
  • No maintenance: Hydro handles all updates
  • Access data anywhere, anytime
  • Quick setup for fast deployment
  • Multiple backup redundancies for security
  • Seamless integration with PI, CMMS, System 1

On-Premises Deployment – Secure & Controlled

  • Local PC or server keeps data fully on-site
  • Full dashboards and tools without external exposure
  • Controlled outside access via “digital escorts” or .csv exports
  • Integration with enterprise platforms (PI, CMMS, System 1)

Complete Monitoring Ecosystem

  • Vibration & temperature sensors (single & tri-axial)
  • Pressure transducers
  • Wired submersible accelerometers
  • Battery-powered transmitters
  • Gateways (110/220VAC or battery powered)

With Centaur, you get continuous live data, expert reports, and 24/7 oversight from Hydro’s dedicated Monitoring Room.

The Bottom Line

Cloud or on-premises — Centaur adapts to your needs.
You get secure, reliable data flow that fits your environment, your compliance standards, and your operations.

See Centaur in action
Get a 15-minute consult to map the best data path for your site (cloud, on-prem, or hybrid) and walk through deployment, security, and integrations. Schedule a demo here.

Explore real-world results
Read Centaur case studies featuring advanced vibration analysis and measurable reliability gains here.

Case Study- Cold-Weather Vibration Patterns Reveal Hidden Machine Dynamics Through Long-Term Monitoring

Seasonal environmental changes can significantly impact pump and motor behavior—sometimes in ways that aren’t immediately obvious. In this recent case, Hydro’s Centaur IIoT monitoring platform continuously tracked vibration data on a vertically mounted pump-motor system operating in a cold climate region.

While the system showed no overt performance issues, long-term data revealed that motor vibration amplitudes consistently increased 150–200% during colder months. Frequency analysis identified discrete peaks linked to transient cavitation events and turbulence, particularly on the pump and recirculation line.

Thanks to Centaur’s high-resolution, 24/7 monitoring, the issue was diagnosed without unnecessary shutdowns or false alarms. The facility team was able to schedule targeted inspections and maintenance during routine downtime, safeguarding equipment health and avoiding costly interruptions.

This case highlights how continuous condition monitoring delivers insights that periodic manual checks might miss—especially in environments with fluctuating ambient conditions.

Read the full case study here.

Read more Centaur case studies highlighting advanced vibration analysis and real world results here.

Case Study- Solving Vibration Issues in Vertical Pumps

Vertical pumps are especially susceptible to minor conditions that can result in elevated vibration amplitudes. The vertically suspended design and long stationary element lengths often combine into natural frequencies that are near forcing frequencies, such as running speed or even sub-synchronous faults. The complexity of these issues makes it difficult to diagnose and resolve persistent vibration issues with the type of data that is routinely available to the end users.

In-depth field testing paired with computational analysis provides a clear path to both an accurate diagnosis and a solution that has a high likelihood of success. The effectiveness of this methodology was proven for a Gulf Coast midstream company who was experiencing high vibration with their vertical freshwater pumps. By applying advanced field diagnostics, the end user was able to understand the underlying causes of the vibration and evaluate possible solutions in a theoretical environment prior to implementing them in the field.

Read the full case study, published in the May 2025 edition of Pumps & Systems magazine, here.

Read more case studies on vibration analysis and the work completed by Hydro Reliability Services here.

The Hidden Costs of Cheap Repairs 

Why Technical Expertise plays a Critical Role in Equipment Maintenance

As the industrial world becomes more competitive, reducing costs is key for maintaining an advantage in the marketplace. As such, many end users have become more cost-conscious when approaching equipment repair. In some services- where equipment is not complex and performance doesn’t affect process availability or quality- this strategy can provide some benefit. However, the short-term gain of a lower repair price often turns into long-term cost increases when a lack of engineering capability impacts equipment reliability and performance.

The importance of engaging with a facility that has strong engineering capabilities and subject matter expertise was proven during a series of boiler feed pump repairs for a Canadian biomass power plant. Like many biomass facilities, this plant had segmental ring boiler feed pumps, also commonly referred to as BB4 pumps. This is a complex design installed in a high energy, critical application, with numerous stacked and nested components that must be kept in alignment.

In this case, a small shop had completed several repairs that had resulted in high vibration and performance issues. These pumps were a legacy design that was no longer supported by the OEM and required engineering knowledge to properly refurbish and set the balance device. As such, it was important to find a repair partner that had a strong understanding of pump design. The plant worked with Hydro’s Scotford facility to bring these “bad actor” pumps back to optimal performance.

Read the full case study in World Pumps‘ March/April 2025 edition here.