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The right time to schedule your gearbox inspection

Vertical roller mills and ball mills are regularly taken out of operation for routine maintenance. Some plants even shut their mills down every week. Yet, gearbox inspections are typically scheduled for the annual maintenance shutdown when resources are stretched. This is making life harder than it needs to be for all involved. Let’s simplify things. Consider scheduling your gearbox inspection to later in the year when you can access the expertise and tools you need. This way you can be sure you’ll have access to the most experienced service technicians, equipped with all the tools they need to get the job done.

12th Oct 2021

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Schedule your gearbox inspection
ServiceGears and drives

Shutdown season

Across the northern hemisphere, the first quarter of the year is known as ‘shutdown season’. Naturally, when so many cement plants schedule their maintenance shutdown for the same period of time, it's difficult to allocate resources to everyone who needs them.

This is further complicated by late bookings, by which point plants may find themselves disappointed and have to look elsewhere for their gearbox inspection service.

The difficulty is, of course, that no one is as well placed as an experienced service provider to assess the health and performance of your gearbox. We know the equipment – and we have the tools to conduct a full vibration analysis. Plus, with references around the globe and more than a century in the field, we bring a depth and breadth of experience to every inspection that no other can offer.

An 'off-season' inspection

To take advantage of that experience, why not move your gearbox inspection outside of those busy months? Pulling it out of the shutdown season ensures you get the OEM-quality inspection your equipment needs. It doesn’t cost you any more than it would in Q1 and in fact enables you to spread the cost of maintenance through the year. More importantly, it doesn’t add any further disruptions to your process, since the inspection can be scheduled to coincide with a regular mill shutdown. Best of all, you get access to our people and equipment to ensure a comprehensive analysis that prevents serious issues from going unnoticed.

What is included in an inspection?

We have the know-how to conduct gearbox inspections for nearly any gearbox. These two-day inspections include analysis during operation as well as at standstill and are followed up by a full report on your gearbox condition, together with any recommendations we might have for optimisation. Vibration analysis is included as standard – an insight that helps to inform both maintenance and operational strategy. The full process varies from gearbox to gearbox, but in general includes:

  • Oil condition
  • Bearing condition
  • Condition of tooth surfaces and tooth contact
  • Alignment with motor and mill
  • Vibration analysis

Take care of your gearbox

Your gearbox is central to your process. Give it the attention it deserves to ensure optimum performance and continued, reliable operation.

If you would like to secure Fuller specialists for your gearbox inspection and ensure you benefit from the insights provided by vibration analysis, book now. For more information on what is included in your inspection, download the flyer.

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