A practical guide to machine condition monitoring
A field guide for selecting assets, interpreting condition changes and turning alerts into maintenance decisions your team can review.
1. Start with the operating question
Condition monitoring works best when it helps answer a practical plant question: which machine is changing, how does the change compare with normal operation, and what should a qualified person inspect next? Define the equipment scope and decisions before selecting sensors or dashboards.
What line, process or utility depends on this asset?
What could an unplanned stop affect, and what backup is available?
Can vibration, temperature or another signal help reveal relevant change?
Can the team safely access the asset and respond to an alert?
2. Select a focused first group
Prioritise assets using production criticality, maintenance history, operating duty, sensor suitability and access. A small, representative group can make it easier to establish installation practices, capture operating context and agree how findings will be reviewed.
Record the baseline context
- Asset ID, type, location and driven equipment.
- Normal operating modes, speed range, load and known process changes.
- Recent maintenance work, recurring observations and relevant limits.
- Sensor location, mounting method, environment and connectivity constraints.
3. Interpret signals with machine and process context
A change in vibration or temperature is evidence to review, not a diagnosis by itself. Mechanical conditions such as imbalance, looseness, misalignment, bearing wear or lubrication changes may produce abnormal patterns. Process conditions such as changing flow, cavitation, blockage, material build-up or load changes can also alter machine behaviour.
4. Turn an alert into a reviewed action
A useful maintenance recommendation should identify the asset, describe the observed condition and supporting evidence, suggest a suitable inspection or action, and state the priority or target timing. A qualified engineer should review the recommendation against equipment documentation, site procedures and safety requirements before work begins.
- Sense: collect condition data and relevant observations.
- Understand: compare with the machine baseline and operating context.
- Prescribe: prepare a specific, reviewable maintenance action.
- Act: plan and perform approved work under site procedures.
- Validate: record whether the finding and corrective action were confirmed.
- Review outcomes: use the record to improve prioritisation and future decisions.
5. Evaluate a pilot before scaling
Agree what a successful pilot should help the team learn. Review asset coverage, data quality, alert usefulness, operator feedback, response workflow and any maintenance actions taken. Compare outcomes with the baseline while accounting for operating changes and other contributing factors.
Confirm assets, installation suitability, normal operating conditions and review owners.
Review evidence and process context with the people who know the equipment.
Assess usefulness, workflow fit and lessons from operator validation.
Extend coverage by asset risk and team readiness, then continue reviewing outcomes.
Questions to take into your next review
- Which assets create the greatest production or safety consequence if they stop?
- What operating context should accompany condition alerts?
- Who will investigate, approve, schedule and validate a recommended action?
- Which results are measurable from the current baseline?
- What evidence would justify expanding the monitored asset group?
Important: This guide is general information, not engineering advice or a prediction of performance. Follow site safety procedures, equipment instructions and qualified engineering judgment. Financial and reliability results depend on the plant, assets, operating conditions and implementation.