Murray Goulburn, Pactum Dairy and Lion are currently installing the COSMOS tool for planning service activities on separators, homogenizers, pumps and fans.
Lower maintenance costs and increased production time are reasons why these companies are installing COSMOS, an online system for monitoring and analysing the condition of rotating components in dairy separators.
"The idea is to let machine condition decide when service is required," said Aniyo Rahebi, Technical Sales Engineer, Tetra Pak Oceania.
"COSMOS continuously measures, 24 hours a day, vibrations from rotating components in separators and homogenizers.
"As soon as a part shows the first sign of deterioration, COSMOS online pinpoints the exact source of the fault and tells you how serious it is.
"Breakdowns can be avoided through the built-in warning system. An alarm status showing the severity of the vibration can be forwarded to external recipients via the internet or SMS."
COSMOS delivers cost savings through improved machine reliability and provides the confidence of continuous condition monitoring.
"Instead of doing a major service every year, customers need only do a major service when COSMOS data indicates it is required," Rahebi said.
"Based on the monitored status, major service intervals can be extended in order to decrease maintenance costs and increase available production time."
Tetra Pak has more than 90 installations of COSMOS worldwide. Some installations have been running for more than 15 years.
In Oceania, COSMOS online is being installed on two separators and two homogenizers at Pactum Dairy in Shepparton, two separators at Lion Chelsea and one separators at Lion Morwell. Murray Goulburn is planning to install the system on six separators at its Leongatha facilities early next year.
"Continuous condition monitoring enables the customer and Tetra Pak to work together to plan service activities," Rahebi said. "This means maintenance can be optimised and planned to avoid disturbance in production."
[Courtesy Tetra Pak Oceania]