Automated Lubrication, Guided by Bearing Condition
Machinery lubrication is one of the most important actions taken by maintenance and reliability teams to protect and prolong the life of their bearings. But it is also one of the easiest to get wrong.
Traditional lubrication programs often rely on time-based schedules with grease being added because the calendar says so, not necessarily because the bearing’s friction levels have become elevated above baseline.
This approach often leads to over-greasing, under greasing, wasted lubricant and unnecessary stress on the asset. But rarely, the right amount of lubricant getting to the bearing.
ON-GUARD changes that approach by combining the convenience of automatic lubrication with the precision of ultrasound and the reliability plus results of continuous permanent monitoring.
In the case below, you’ll see how condition-based automated lubrication helped identify a developing bearing failure and gave the maintenance team the data they needed to act before the issue became an unplanned failure.
Condition Based Auto Lubrication System - Bearing Failure Analysis
At a Canadian pulp and paper facility, ON-GUARD detected a developing issue on the non-drive end bearing of a pump by continuously monitoring ultrasonic friction levels.
It was able to determine a suspected bearing fault when repeated lubrication injections were only briefly improving bearing condition.
Follow-up measurements with the LUBExpert data collector confirmed a BPFO bearing defect giving the team confidence to schedule corrective action during the next planned shutdown.
Read the Case: Bearing Failure Analysis after Automated Lubrication System Suspects Defect
Extend Bearing Life with the ON-GUARD
ON-GUARD continuously tracks friction and bearing condition, then applies grease only when needed.
By using real-time and historical bearing data, ON-GUARD helps maintenance teams move beyond routine lubrication and toward a more data-driven strategy: one that protects bearings, reduces grease waste, and connects lubrication activity directly to asset health.
Detect early stage bearing failures & lubricate automatically with precision and confidence.