Items filtered by date: Tuesday, 16 December 2025

A message from Neil Robinson, WearCheck Managing Director.

Well, what a year 2020 has been. Fortunately, WearCheck was able to operate throughout all stages of lockdown as we are an essential service provider.

Our transformer laboratory, oil analysis laboratory and head office have settled comfortably into our new premises in Westville, and everything is running smoothly.

The new lab equipment in our transformer labs in Joburg, Cape Town and Durban is already speeding up the sample processing time.

I salute all our loyal staff members who continued to provide excellent customer service during 2020, in particular our Durban laboratory staff, who processed 10 000 extra samples from the UK in addition to their normal workload.

We extend warm WearCheck wishes to all our customers – thank you for your continued support, and we wish you good health and happiness over the festive season.

FESTIVE SEASON OPERATING HOURS

As always, we are dedicated to being available all year round, and have therefore ensured that our main laboratory in KZN and transformer labs in JHB & CT remains open to process samples throughout most of the festive season.

For detailed information click here

The ins and outs of online vibration monitoring

There is currently an industry-wide surge in online vibration monitoring driven by Industry 4.0. The use of online vibration transducers is, indeed, at the cutting edge of the monitoring process, however it is essential that users are aware of all available options and have a good understanding of the technical capabilities of the equipment. In Technical Bulletin 70, you can get the low-down on what technology is on the market, the different measuring capacities, installation levels and how to select the system that best fits your needs.

You can download it for free here (1,1MB)

‘Tell me and I forget, teach me and I may remember, involve me and I learn’. – Benjamin Franklin

WearCheck runs a range of oil analysis and condition monitoring training for maintenance practitioners operating at various levels within an organisation.

We are proud of our association with the internationally-acclaimed Mobius Institute and have been an accredited training partner for since 2015.

* Due to the ongoing Covid-19 situation, all courses are also available online, as we strive to comply with lockdown regulations and keep our course delegates safe and healthy.

To book please contact:

• WearCheck training course: Michelle van Dyk, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call +27 31 700 5460 or +27 82 381 3321.
• Mobius training course: Marius Grobler, This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it. or call +27 72 625 6340.

See course details and dates here (1,5MB)

Non-destructive testing, choosing the best additives and MORE!

The next issue of our Monitor newsletter is out. In it, you can learn all about NDT, get advice on selecting the best base oil additive, and gain insight into the brand new technology in our state-of-the-art transformer labs. We announce the lucky winner of the customer survey prize, and we bring you the amazing tale of our staff member who was marooned in Mali during lockdown. You can also view the 2021 training schedule and other stories.

Monitor Issue 83 Download (446kb)

During the video amplification (VA) process, a high-speed video of a machine component in action is captured and then processed with mathematical algorithms to enable any movement that was present in the original video to be played back and amplified. This technique is applied in cases where structural defects are suspected or where repeat failures occur with no apparent cause, giving condition monitoring technicians greater insight into the problem at hand.

To view a VA in action, please follow this link: Wearcheck Condition Monitoring

CASE STUDY In one specific case, repeated failures were experienced on the supporting U-beams and looseness of the square tubing support beam feet of the top shaker table. The video capturing was done at 100FPS, allowing for capturing of movement up to 50Hz (3000cpm), that is well within the range of the dominant machine frequencies that were present. Additional lighting was introduced from a DC source to complement the natural lighting. On all tables, the dominant vibration was related to the table action at 4.6Hz and harmonics thereof.

Following the video amplification, these observations were made:

• Flexing of the shaker table support beam introduced torsional forces on support beams
• Resonance on some support beams resulted in looseness of the feet of the support beams.

The results were then verified with Operational Deflection Shape (ODS) analysis. With ODS, the physical vibration is measured at various points on the structure in three directions of freedom and referenced to one singular point to identify the relative motion between the points. This response is then modelled onto a 3D structure, thereby enabling the animation of the structure in question.

In this case the model was generated by capturing 298 individual readings at 110 points across the structure. Analysis of the result also indicated a severely weak support structure and torsional forces that were caused by the support beam deflection.

CONCLUSION After applying these specialised techniques, we were able to identify the root cause of the failures that were experienced, and we were able to recommend various structural modifications.

If you are experiencing repeated defects on a machine, these advanced analysis techniques will eliminate the “thumb suck” approach to solving structural defects.

It’s been business as usual, as well as moving head office, the transformer oil lab, the oil analysis lab and the mini-lab all to our beautiful new premises in Westville, plus celebrating 10 years for WearCheck India, and some staff members reaching major milestones such as 45 years as part of the WearCheck family - we sure have been busy lately!

Do you wonder how and why we conduct specialised rope testing services for our mining customers, or what the benefits of live sampling with filtration are? Our latest Monitor newsletter features these stories as well as the details of our lockdown-compliant online training courses, a discussion on synthetic oils, our new team members and more – you can read it here.

Monitor Issue 82 Download (446kb)

At WearCheck, the world-class quality and integrity of our laboratory results have been a major priority for us for the past 40 years – we take our certifications and accreditations very seriously.

In fact, you could say that in our rigorous pursuit of superior service, we wholeheartedly embrace the wise words of Ancient Greek philosopher and scientist Aristotle, “We are what we repeatedly do. Excellence, then, is not an act, but a habit.”

WearCheck’s recognition as leaders in the predictive maintenance field is a source of pride for us, as is the fact that we are currently the only condition monitoring company on the African continent with ISO 9001 quality certification and ISO 14001 certification for our environmental management programme, as well as ISO 17025 accreditation for our laboratory-centric quality management programme. Our next step is ISO 45001 – a health and safety management system – soon to be implemented.

Excellence has long been a habit for WearCheck – we know that our external quality certification assures our customers that their investment in our condition monitoring programmes will yield top quality results.

More than 20 years ago, the ISO 9001 Quality Management System was implemented at WearCheck. It is an internationally recognised certification which ensures the quality of products and services of a company.

WearCheck’s first ISO 14001:2015 certificate for environmental management was awarded in January 2005 after passing the external audit. We firmly believe every company should practise sustainable development to preserve the planet.

WearCheck’s first ISO 17025 certificate of accreditation was awarded in June 2012, underlining our laboratory’s ability to produce precise, accurate test and calibration data such as the traceability of measurements and calibrations to national standards, technical competence of staff and maintenance of test equipment. It is the single most important standard for instrument calibration and testing laboratories around the world.

Our team of 18 committed staff members (all volunteers) undertakes the internal audit process on standards ISO9001:2015, ISO14001:2015 and 17025 by evaluating our effectiveness and efficiency prior to an external audit.

ISO 45001 is next on the WearCheck radar – this centres around our occupational health and safety management system.

Any queries? Please contact quality administrator Prinda Narasi on +27 31 700-5460 or email This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

The global Covid-19 pandemic currently wreaking havoc on every continent’s health system and economy has elicited many coping mechanisms, mainly to delay the onslaught of the virus on populations through lockdown and social distancing.

How can South African companies begin operating again and ensure the health of their employees?

In answer to this fundamental question, condition monitoring specialists, WearCheck, have created a unique HealthCheck disinfectant ‘’d’’ tunnel which can be situated at the entrance to work-sites or public spaces, and which sprays every person who enters with human-friendly disinfectant.

HealthCheck d-tunnel designer Chris Hattingh, technical consultant at WearCheck, believes the tunnel will assist mines, transport and construction companies, airports, stations, hospitals, schools and other industries to re-open safely by ensuring employees do not bring the virus into the workplace.

The HealthCheck d-tunnel sprays people with a “non-harmful” sanitiser known as B-safe HOCI – it is the only known sanitiser which kills all pathogens, including COVID-19. It is 100% safe for use on humans, including the hands and face, and even on food. It can be safely sprayed right into the nasal passage and into one’s mouth without side-effects.

This is a practical solution for companies to re-open safely once the lockdown restrictions are eased. It is a sure way to eliminate risk and limit viral infections, thereby keeping our workforce healthier and helping South Africa’s hard-hit economy to make a come-back.’

The HealthCheck d-tunnel is available in two versions – a heavily-engineered model designed to accommodate large volumes of foot traffic, as well as a “light” option for smaller organisations.

The HealthCheck d-tunnel does not need an operator. A simple 230 volt pressure pump dispenses the spray, while the tunnel is corrosion-resistant and has variable settings for the misting intervals and spray times.

The sanitisation system has many benefits, including these: it is non-flammable, non-toxic, it is ecologically friendly, and can be disposed of in municipal drains without adverse effects as it degrades to the quality of source water. There are no known health hazards, and no dermal irritation factors and no eye-irritants.

The disinfectant can be dispensed to other locations using WearCheck’s range of portable systems and pumps, ensuring that on-site spaces such as offices, training centres and meeting places are virus-free.

For further information, or to order a HealthCheck disinfectant tunnel, please contact Chris Hattingh on +27 (0) 83 625 0808 or This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it.

or click here http://www.wearcheck.co.za/shared/Healthspray%20Brochure.pdf

WearCheck, are proud to announce a partnership with Swedish condition monitoring instrument manufacturers, SPM.

The full SPM range features portable condition monitoring products, online systems, maintenance tools, technologies and expertise, all using techniques that help customers to achieve the highest possible uptime of critical assets – an approach which dovetails perfectly with WearCheck’s.

WearCheck’s technicians have been trained to use, apply and install the SPM equipment, which performs many reliability solutions techniques, including vibration measurement and analysis, balancing, orbit analysis and laser shaft alignment, bearing and pulse checking, lubrication assessment and root cause analysis.

Scientific lubrication programme saves money

Tough economic times dictate that companies need a thrifty approach to maintenance, without compromising on quality. By lubricating scientifically, in other words utilising condition monitoring technology to tell you if you need to lubricate, rather than relying on a time-based programme, plants will definitely create cost savings. This is a simple process done with SPM’s BearingChecker and Vibchecker as your first line of defence.

Online monitoring guards assets 24/7

A lack of on-site manpower to conduct condition monitoring does not mean that this is an opportunity for machinery to fail. Rather, WearCheck and SPM now have top-of-the range online guarding solutions in the form of the SPM Intellinova range of online condition monitoring units, which combine wired and wireless (Airius) platforms into one cloud-based/on-site server application.

Super supportive software

SPM’s Condmaster software - the unique platform via which all the SPM devices interact - supports the full product range including handheld devices for measuring vibration data, alignment and balancing.

The software also governs online systems for continuous monitoring, such as wired multichannel systems and wireless monitoring systems, as well as supporting external user directories such as Microsoft Azure AD and REST API. The software offers a wide range of connectivity options, perfect for smart factories and Industry 4.0 environment.

As per the distribution agreement, WearCheck will provide full technical support and sales for SPM instruments in the following countries in which WearCheck operates – South Africa, Zambia, Namibia, Mozambique, Zimbabwe, and Botswana.

The WearCheck family is growing, we have added new skills and expertise to our team.

Sharista Raghunath is WearCheck’s newest chemist, joining the team in the company’s Durban laboratory. Armed with a master’s degree in Applied Science, Sharista also has laboratory experience with a major paint manufacturer, where she focused on reverse-engineering of products, innovation of products, method development and validation of analytical procedures, optimisation of product formulae and assistance in cost-saving initiatives. At WearCheck, Sharista is tasked with ensuring the application of the company’s strict laboratory standards in terms of quality, environment, health and safety, along with research and development.

Sharista Raghunath has been appointed as chemist based at WearCheck’s Pinetown laboratory