Efficient Plant June 2023 - 12

feature | predictive maintenance
Smart
instrumentation,
with diagnostics
and verifi cation
capabilities, advances
uptime and safety in
process systems.
Take Manual
Out of Maintenance
Bethany Silva
Endress+Hauser
IN THE PROCESS industries, maintenance is necessary to preserve
equipment health, maintain operational safety, and ensure
product quality. Until recently, most maintenance was performed
manually because there were limited options. Th is type of work takes
considerable time and eff ort, and oſt en requires stopping the process,
resulting in a potential loss of productivity. It also introduces the
risk of human error while confi guring instruments and can pose a
safety risk to technicians when working in areas that are hazardous
or diffi cult to access.
Today, technological advancements in instrumentation and other
plant tools are automating regular maintenance. Smart instruments
achieve this with a wealth of diagnostic data, along with on-demand
and automatic online verifi cation procedures, alleviating the need
to disrupt the process for measurement optimization. Th is reduces
the risk of human error, improves personnel safety, and keeps plant
12 | EFFICIENTPLANTMAG.COM
downtime to a minimum, all while preserving the standards of quality
that maintenance aims to uphold.
MANUAL MAINTENANCE DRAWBACKS
Every plant process has critical measurement points that must be
accurate to ensure proper functionality. However, instruments
used to make these measurements can driſt or detrimental process
conditions can develop, such as corrosion or debris buildup (Fig. 1),
reducing accuracy over time.
Preventive maintenance preserves safety and quality by ensuring
accurate measurements and correct equipment functionality. Still, it
can be expensive, ineffi cient, and even pose a degree of risk. Th is is
especially true when it must be performed manually and particularly
when instrument removal is required.
In these cases, plant personnel must oſt en disassemble equipment,
JUNE 2023
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Efficient Plant June 2023

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