THE SKF Rotating Equipment Performance Centre (REP), previously known as the SKF Remote Diagnostic Centre, provides anyone from anywhere with easy access to a comprehensive suite of advanced condition monitoring, analytical, and diagnostic solutions.
“Customers simply need to collect necessary data from their plant equipment and upload it to the cloud. Applying our integrated engineering expertise, software, and analytical tools, we convert this critical data into actionable engineering insights on how to better protect and optimise plant assets for enhanced operational performance,” explains John Storm, SKF’s Connected Technologies manager.
Driven by a commitment to environmental responsibility and the circular economy, SKF continuously seeks to augment its service offerings to customers.
“We constantly explore methods to reduce component failure and extend equipment life,” notes Storm. “Our capabilities include the remanufacture of critical components, such as large-sized bearings, at our Reman Centre in Jet Park, Johannesburg, offering not only cost savings for customers but also benefits for the environment by reducing the use of raw material and CO2 emissions compared to manufacturing new bearings. The remanufactured bearings can either be reinstalled in the machine for another full-service life or stored for future use.”
With years of experience in effective critical asset monitoring, SKF excels at diagnosing issues before they escalate into major problems.
The company established its Remote Diagnostic Centre at its Jet Park head office to offer customers comprehensive analysis, diagnostics, and reporting services based on data collected from their field equipment.
“As a knowledge-driven engineering company, we wanted to advance our diagnostic and reporting services,” says Storm.
“We scaled up our capabilities and enriched our engineering expertise. Through this forward-thinking approach, we now deliver analysed diagnostics and machine health insights via the cloud to our SKF engineering specialists. They subsequently develop quick-response solutions for potential issues in the field, effectively closing the proactive maintenance loop more quickly. Our service evolution is perfectly reflected in the rebranding of the SKF Remote Diagnostic Centre to the Rotating Equipment Performance (REP) Centre.”
SKF has also integrated its authorised distributor partners into its digital ecosystem by creating a platform for sharing insights from the REP Centre. “By providing our authorised distributors with access to information, dashboards, and reports, we empower them to enhance their machinery health-related services for customers,” says Storm.
SKF recognises the fact that customers use various analytical methods and network environments to consolidate data from their plant equipment.
Rather than developing stand-alone black box systems, SKF uses highly flexible architecture specially designed to offer a range of integration levels and possibilities, spanning from local SKF hardware solutions to fully connected Cloud-based systems. “We never impose a single connectivity architecture on plant operators, offering instead, versatile solutions that can be seamlessly integrated into any environment with straightforward, flexible onsite implementation,” stresses Storm. “Moreover, our solutions also support LTE and GPS wireless networks when Ethernet connectivity is unavailable. And if there is zero connectivity, we have the capability of manually downloading data from SKF devices to a cellular device, which can then be taken to a location with data access for uploading to the cloud.”
Data collection, using handheld or online devices, is the first step in connecting equipment to the SKF REP Centre. SKF provides a range of technology solutions, from entry-level options to advanced permanent asset management systems, to accommodate various applications for data collection and network connectivity.
Handheld devices include the SKF Quick Collect sensor, the next-generation Microlog Analyzer DBx, Axios, and the wireless IMx-1 condition monitoring systems. These instruments can sync with Android or iOS smart devices to transmit data via the cloud to the REP Centre where engineers offer more advanced diagnostics, identify early signs of failure, and recommend application-specific engineering changes required to keep equipment healthy, ultimately driving reliability, performance and uptime.
