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Operating an asset subjects its structure to variable loads that produce localised structural damage, which is the origin of fatigue failure. This failure first appears as cracks, visible or not, that grow until a section of the structure fractures. The fracture can be catastrophic if cracks are not detected in time, both in human terms and in the loss of asset availability.
Continuously measure the accumulation of structural damage to quantify the effect of operating variables on service life and availability, and to generate information to feed back into operations. This is done with our Damage Monitor system.
Damage Monitor supervises a machine’s operating conditions in real time, recording fatigue damage to its structure caused by fluctuating loads.
For each crack-prone zone (CPZ), the system captures the strain of the structure under real loads. At each CPZ, a Damage Monitor node calculates fatigue damage in real time based on the measured strains and a finite-element model.
When the level of demand and/or the rate of damage accumulation exceed user-defined limits, Damage Monitor issues an alert indicating the severity of the detected condition.
This structural-integrity management tool makes it possible to assess the effect of operating conditions and practices, and to plan inspection, repair and replacement of the structure.
