sponsoredDigital Sealing Solutions Intelligent Seals – Your Start with Smart Condition Monitoring

Sponsored by

EagleBurgmann Germany GmbH & Co. KG

Corrosion, broken springs, and unstable operating conditions: A centrifugal pump has repeatedly failed at a chemical production facility at Dow Chemical. It was only the targeted use of sensors on the mechanical seal and structured data analysis that finally brought clarity — and ensured that the pump and production were running stably again.

Seals are often considered inconspicuous components — but in process-critical applications, they are decisive for downtime or smooth operation. This was also the case at Dow Chemical in Böhlen, Germany, where a centrifugal pump was used at high temperatures and in contact with aggressive sulfuric acid. Problems arose time and again in the supply system of the seal: cracked oil, traces of corrosion, damaged seal components. The consequences were uncertainties in operation, unclear causes and high repair costs.

Tracing the Causes

What needed to be done? To rectify a failure, first an understanding of the underlying problem is required. Therefore, the seal experts at EagleBurgmann, in collaboration with the operator, initiated a structured root cause analysis and examined the inner workings of the seal itself.

The first step: retrofitting the system with EB Smart Seal Sensors to monitor temperature, pressure, flow rate and other operating parameters — directly at the seal inlet and outlet.

The recorded data was transmitted wirelessly to an IoT gateway and stored in the myEagleBurgmann Cloud. There, experts from EagleBurgmann continuously analyzed the values as part of the Smart Condition Monitoring service.

This condition monitoring is more than just retrospective root cause analysis; it’s a precise ear to the rail of the production process. It provides operators, maintenance teams, and component experts with real-time insights into the operation itself. “We wanted to understand what exactly happens in the pump — not just make assumptions,” explains Christian Ihrke, Head of Service Center Halle/Leipzig at EagleBurgmann. Although measured values from the customer’s process control system were already available, these were not sufficient to explain the behavior of the machine in detail. It was only the digital condition monitoring system that brought the necessary transparency.

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From Suspicion to Solution

It soon became apparent that the circulation pump in the supply system of the seal was defective, and the barrier fluid was stagnating. The heat dissipation no longer worked — with serious consequences for the seal. The system reacted as intended. It triggered alerts that were delivered in real-time to the customer and to the EagleBurgmann teams. Targeted measures followed: The barrier pressure was adjusted, defective components were replaced, and improvements in terms of circulation and temperature control developed. The sensor technology even revealed a faulty screw connection, which further hindered the flow.

After replacing the circulation pump, the temperatures stabilized — the pump and production were running normally for the first time in a long time.

Interview: “That Means a Maximum of Availability”

The speakers were Tom Pantelli-Davies, Head of Digital Business Development, and Michael Skusa, Senior Application Engineer for Digital Solutions, both EagleBurgmann.

Tom Pantelli-Davies: Michael, let’s talk about Condition Monitoring: Can you explain how we connect our sensors and hardware to the myEagleBurgmann Cloud?

Michael Skusa: Of course! For the IT infrastructure, we use a wireless system that can be easily installed in existing plants. This eliminates the need for wiring — which is typically the most expensive part in existing systems. We have wireless data transmission between the sensor and gateway and from the gateway to the cloud. All systems are independent IT infrastructures, so there is no need to connect with the client system or coordinate with the client’s IT department. The data is easily accessible through personal login via a standard web browser in the EB Smart Product application.

Pantelli-Davies: What if our customers want direct access to the data? Can we support that?

Skusa: When customers need data in their own DCS system, we can provide an OPC UA connection: They simply plug the cable into the gateway to receive the data in their system. For large customers or special requirements, it is also possible to work on a customized solution.

Pantelli-Davies: How secure is our IT infrastructure when transmitting data?

Skusa: The transmission between our EB Smart Seal Sensor and the gateway is secured. We use the Open Thread Language as a secure transmission protocol here. For data transmission between the gateway and the myEagleBurgmann Cloud, we have partnered with Microsoft. The cloud is ISO 27001 certified. Data transmission via the Telekom mobile network also occurs over the secure IoT network.

Pantelli-Davies: If you were to summarize the objectives for the Smart Condition Monitoring Service, how would you do it?

Skusa: With our Condition Monitoring solution, including our sensor, gateway, etc., we set the starting point for condition monitoring for our customers. From this foundation, we are able to develop further strategies to achieve the ultimate goal: predictive maintenance. The predictive maintenance strategy underlines a maximum availability of the products, the customer’s machines and mechanical seals.

Understanding What Happens in the Seal

It also pays off for the operator: “The collaboration with EagleBurgmann was a real turning point for us,” confirms Bernhard Fröhlich, PPM Technologist Leader Maintenance at Dow Chemical. “For the first time, we really understood what happened in the seal and were able to take targeted countermeasures instead of trying out expensive assumptions.”

Problem recognized, danger averted. Thanks to real-time monitoring of operational data, the faulty component could be quickly identified and replaced. However, from the experts’ perspective, the system is capable of much more than just error correction: EagleBurgmann aims to develop a better understanding of the condition and supply of each seal based on operational data.

This allows technical correlations to be understood and informed decisions to be made during operation. “With the combination of sensors and data analysis, we can prevent damage and provide our customers with specific recommendations for efficient and safe operation,” explains Dr. Max Botz, Development Engineer IoT Sensors at EagleBurgmann. “This is exactly the core of our Smart Condition Monitoring Services.”

Summary

Smart, reliable, and — as in the example — easily retrofittable, the EB Smart Seal Sensor is more than just a translation tool for pump whisperers — it's an entry into the world of condition monitoring and digital sealing solutions.

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