Smart sensors taste success at one of the world ’ s premium vodka producers
Brith Isaksson , Global Food and Beverage segment manager , ABB Motion , discuss how ABB Ability TM Smart Sensors keep global production running at Absolut Vodka .
Absolut Vodka , one of Sweden ’ s most iconic export products , has only a single production line serving the entire world . That makes process reliability critically important to the company ’ s profitability .
After researching various methods to optimize condition-based monitoring and maintenance , the Absolut distillery in southern Sweden received an offer it found hard to resist . ABB suggested the distillery install its ABB Ability TM Smart Sensors as the basis for a cost-effective and easy to use condition monitoring solution .
Historically , the high cost of installing vibration monitoring equipment had been the single biggest obstacle at the distillery . “ With ABB ’ s Smart Sensors , however , we realized they had the potential to give us the continuous monitoring we wanted , but using inexpensive and less complex wireless communications ,” said Jonas Nilsson , Absolut ’ s Maintenance Supervisor .
Smart Sensors , each about the size of a mobile phone , were installed on motors in the ‘ mash preparation ’ process – a continuous function critical to the overall distillery operations . The production of Absolut vodka , which amounts to about 130 million bottles per year , is done using high-quality Swedish winter wheat that gets digested , fermented and then distilled .
EARLY DETECTION Right after the sensors were fitted to the motor housings , an abnormal vibration curve was detected on an agitator motor , indicating possible bearing failure . More
14 FDPP - www . fdpp . co . uk in-depth analysis confirmed that there was indeed a faulty bearing . Detecting the defective bearing before it failed allowed Absolut to fix the problem during a planned shutdown , avoiding lost productivity caused by unexpected downtime .
At the same time , the sensors uncovered a second possible problem - significant vibration in one of the pumps , also on the mash preparation line . At first , engineers thought it might also be a bearing issue , but it turned out to be a valve that had shifted accidentally resulting in pump cavitation .
“ The sensors offer us an easy way to gain a deeper insight into our mash preparation , with the possibility to find even small problems and address them before they become a major issue . By understanding the condition of our equipment , we can plan maintenance activities and align them with planned production stops ,” said Absolut ’ s Automation Engineer , Tony Knutsson .
Here , Smart Sensors offer a cost-effective condition monitoring solution that can measure vibration , temperature , and other critical factors . The Absolut team are impressed with the benefits and are now looking to use more Smart Sensors on other pieces of equipment , especially motors in hard-to-reach areas of the plant .
http : / www . abb . com / smartsensor