Tag Archives: optimization

White Paper: Performance Prediction for the Aftermarket

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Pumps are often expected to run at low flows and on many occasions can spend their entire operating lives there. It is important to understand the complex behavior of fluid and how that affects performance and reliability so that modifications can be made to achieve optimal performance in these challenging conditions.

By combining reverse engineered data, analytical tools and engineering expertise, a comprehensive approach can be developed to understand and modify hydraulic performance. This process allows pumping equipment to function exactly as required by the system that it fits within.

Download our latest white paper published with Pumps & Systems magazine to read Dr. Gary Dyson’s discussion of how low flow affects performance and what can be done to optimize operation and reliability.

Learn more about Hydro’s engineering services.

Capability Spotlight: Optimize Energy Efficiency

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It’s estimated that 85% of pumps are not optimized to their systems, costing end users both efficiency and reliability. To achieve operational excellence and reduce environmental impact, assessing and improving our systems is essential.

Many OEMs focus on the initial pump design and providing a higher peak efficiency. While this can provide energy savings, it misses some of the greatest gains available. With our history in developing solutions for the aftermarket, Hydro approaches energy efficiency differently. Our unique experience as a brand-agnostic company focused on end users’ existing installed equipment has provided us with insight into improving equipment performance by understanding how it operates as a part of the greater system. This has allowed us to provide significant energy savings for our partners, as shown in successful cases such as this case study published in World Pumps magazine.

Hydro’s Energy Edge program takes advantage of our in-house engineering, field testing, remanufacturing, and parts capabilities to provide an end-to-end solution to improve energy usage and reliability. The process starts with getting the necessary design and operation data to perform a comprehensive analysis of current performance and identify opportunities for improvement. Depending on the findings, solutions can range from system operations recommendations to hydraulic modifications to a completely redesigned drop-in replacement. By providing a custom solution instead of an off-the-shelf replacement, Hydro not only optimizes performance, but minimizes cost, lead time, and risk by ensuring that the solutions fits into the existing equipment footprint.

Some of the aspects of an energy optimization project may include:

  • Energy Savings Audit: Field performance testing provides a performance baseline and identifies areas where improvements can be made
  • System Analysis: Using system design experience and AFT Fathom hydraulic analysis software, Hydro’s engineers model and simulate fluid flow through the system to accurately predict system behavior and optimize performance.
  • Hydraulic Modification: Modification to existing hydraulic components or design of new components provides hydraulic performance optimized to meet system needs. Our hydraulic specialists use both design knowledge and CFD analysis to provide the best fit design for the application
  • Equipment Remanufacturing and Parts Supply: Modifications are implemented through Hydro’s service center network, ensuring oversight and communication with the engineering design team. New cast parts are provided by our Parts Solutions division, ensuring control over parts quality and lead time.
  • Performance Testing: Testing in our HI-certified performance test lab validates new hydraulics and provides a new certified performance curve. Post-modification field testing can also be performed to provide data on field performance.
  • Continuous Monitoring: Using Hydro’s Centaur condition monitoring solution, equipment mechanical performance can be continuously monitored to provide better insight into equipment health into the future.

Want to learn more about energy efficiency and pump performance? Watch Bob Jennings’ presentation on the subject during Empowering Pumps 2024 Maintenance and Reliability Summit or read our co-authored eBook with Plant Services magazine.

System Optimization

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Boost Energy Efficiency and Accelerate Savings

It’s estimated that 85% of pumps are not optimized to their systems, costing end users both efficiency and reliability. To achieve operational excellence and reduce environmental impact, assessing and improving our systems is essential.

There is a lot of focus on buying new equipment with a higher energy efficiency rating. In reality, the efficiency gains available in optimizing efficiency within the pump design is usually dwarfed by the energy savings available by optimizing the way the pump operates within its system. Not only does optimizing a pump to its system result in a reduction in energy usage, it allows the pump to operate at its best efficiency point (BEP), where reliability is the greatest.

With today’s technology, optimizing a pumping system is achievable with less cost and a greater return on investment. Advancements in testing capabilities and analytical modeling help us to better understand and predict how fluid moves through a system, allowing us to identify more opportunities for improvement. These technologies also eliminate the uncertainty of planned modifications by assessing their effectiveness in a virtual environment.

When optimizing a pump to its system, it’s important to have a holistic mindset- looking beyond the pump boundaries, considering both mechanical and hydraulic performance, and understanding that system operation is affected as much by the people who operate it as it is the physical system itself. What tools are useful to have in your toolbox when approaching a system optimization project?

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IIOT software service presentation

7 Key Steps on Your Connected Plant Journey

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With the advent of machine learning, great strides have been made in using Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) technology to drive smarter and more efficient plant operation and maintenance. But how do you start on this connected plant journey and what is the ultimate destination?

Starting the process of implementing new technologies can be intimidating, but you don’t have to venture out into the digital frontier alone. This article maps out the journey from initial data collection to system optimization and points out some important guideposts along the way.

  1. Collect More Data, More EfficientlyThe first step for developing a connected plant may sound basic, but it is essential for everything that follows. Collecting the right data at high frequency intervals is the cornerstone of moving your plant into the digital world. Minimizing the time between collected data points and ensuring that your hardware has a range capable of detecting all failure modes will provide greatly improved line of sight to transient events and incipient problems.Collected data connects both artificial intelligence and human intelligence with monitored equipment. Data needs to be stored and analyzed in an environment where it is accessible by internal and external subject matter experts. With cloud-based access to information and automated alerts sent through email or SMS, equipment owners no longer need to jump through hoops to get information on current equipment health.Route-based maintenance or “islands” of information are roadblocks on the connected plant journey.
  1. Integrate Information on Plant Operation

    Getting information on equipment condition is an important step forward, but to give this information perspective it is important to integrate it with data related to equipment design and operation. Collecting inputs such as vibration and temperature can help provide a clear picture of how the equipment is operating, but system data will help refine why it is operating this way.For example, inputting the original tested pump performance data can provide perspective on how much performance is degraded or how the operating point relates to the best efficiency point. Another example would be integrating information on plant load or flow control valve position; correlating system load with equipment behavior provides perspective on how operation is directly affecting monitored inputs.
  1. Predict Future Performance and ProblemsOnce data points are being collected at high frequency intervals and operating data is available, the groundwork is established to start becoming more predictive. Monitored inputs can produce a detailed picture of current condition. Correlating different operating modes with changes in observed data provides a basis for anticipating future behavior under varying conditions.In this phase, the analytical software used becomes an important factor as algorithms are finetuned to provide more accurate predictions. Actual outcomes are fed back into the software to provide validation of these predictions and train it to better interpret monitored information. On the human side, experience with equipment design, maintenance, and behavior are crucial for supporting the machine learning process. This human element is also critical in assessing risk based on predictions supplied by the software.
  1. Detect Anomalies Instead of Blind AlertsWhile automated alerts are a good first step in making your digital resources work for your maintenance strategy, considerable value is realized when your system can differentiate anomalies from expected behavior. This requires training AI-driven software to recognize “normal” equipment behavior.A pump may exhibit high vibration from its commissioning and frequently exceed recommended alarm values- but this behavior does not necessarily represent a maintenance concern. Conversely, equipment with a smooth operating history that suddenly exhibits a vibration spike indicates a problem even if that vibration does not reach the set alert boundary.Separating anomalies from steady trends will greatly improve identification of incipient problems so that actions can be taken before substantial damage occurs.
  1. Diagnose Root Causes with ConfidenceOnce the software can classify different types of behavior, it can be taught what failure modes are associated with that specific set of observed conditions. This is another area where having a subject matter expert support software development is very important. With expert input, the software can learn to recognize patterns in the monitored data and suggest possible failure modes as they develop in real-time.When monitoring software reaches the point where it can intelligently diagnose events, it provides the plant with actionable information. Instead of starting a root cause investigation with a blank sheet of paper, you can quickly perform validation steps for suspected failure modes. This can significantly shorten downtime caused by equipment unavailability.
  1. Get Proactive and Eliminate Potential Problems
    Centaur Sensors
    With the software’s advanced diagnostic capabilities trained, the output can be used to develop a proactive approach to maintenance. When failure modes are recognized, engineered solutions can be developed to extend equipment life. After solution implementation, the software can analyze the efficacy of the fix and continue to monitor equipment condition to make sure that new failure modes were not introduced.Innovative methods of monitoring or analyzing the data can be used to further understand and trend the health of the system. For example, instead of just monitoring vibration, parameters can be measured that allow the software to calculate efficiency and correlate this to changes pump wear ring clearance. By trending more sophisticated values, your plant can get closer to the monitoring the causal factors of degradation rather than just measuring their effect.
  1. Optimize Design and OperationThe end of the connected plant journey is an optimized approach to maintenance, operations, and engineering. Developing technology that does the bulk of the processing and analytics frees up our human resources to focus on what they do best- using their experience and insight to interpret grey areas, assess risk, and plan ahead.With a proactive maintenance plan, equipment condition can be trended and maintenance intervals extended by making changes that positively affect equipment health.On the operations side, understanding efficiency can inform decisions of what machines to run in parallel. Being able to operate the most efficient piece of equipment will result in energy savings, directly reducing the cost of operation. Historical data can also be used to optimize the combination of equipment being run at different plant loads.Plant engineers can use the connected plant output to take a deeper look at their systems and determine if the original design still suits current operation. Equipment design can then be optimized to provide operation that is safer, more efficient, and more reliable.Lastly, a well-developed IIoT strategy will help equipment, equipment owners, and subject matter experts stay connected to the data and to each other, optimizing communication and flow of information.

 

Wireless Condition monitoring, the perfect combination of man and machine. Where human experience and secure machine data collection create a long-term strategy for your operation. Beyond basic data trends machine health, take a chance at Centaur for your rotating equipment. Apply for a free trial today.

Note: This article was originally published on bicmagazine.com.