BOLTight
Bolted joints tightness and pre-tension monitoring with smart washers.
Introduction:
Operational environmental factors including vibration, severe loading, temperature cycling, fatigue, external forces (wind, thermal expansion, earthquakes), erosion, and corrosion are typical causes of the bolted joints failure in structures, piping, machinery, wind turbines, and applications using bolted joining.
The Problem:
The biggest challenge in bolted connections is to ensure that the bolted joint has achieved or retained the required bolt load. Historically, bolts break or loosen due to fatigue issues, metallurgic phenomena, maintenance re-torquing, torque testing, or micro-movements.
Incorrect tool settings or bolt load during assembly can cause critical problems during the operation phase. The cost impact of periodic check-ups and re-tightening procedures is very high. Critical equipment like cranes and wind turbines undergo lengthy and laborious bolted joint maintenance procedures. The usual practices like torque testing are ineffective when the joints and fasteners are not new; the bolts make microscopic welding to the adjacent material and represent high torquing resistance which falsely indicates that the joint is tight while there is no accurate indication of the compression and joining the clamping force.
Solution:
To address these problems, S5 System has invented Boltight washers, a purpose made to prevent the less effective check-ups and ensure that the compression of the bolted joints is safely and securely monitored for the duration of the asset lifecycle.
The Features:
- Minor cost of ownership with ROI in a few days.
- Minimal external footprint and no impact on the replacement /installation work.
- Manufactured in all standard sizes M10 to M63.
- Manufactured in major corrosion-resistant materials.
- Zero wiring requirements all washers are self-contained with the power from the battery, which lasts for five years and sends data wirelessly through their own network.
- With a graphical user interface and audio-visual alarm and remote operation/ maintenance notification.
- Completely waterproof and shockproof.
- With all self-diagnostic capabilities and zero calibration, this system guarantees no false or missed, or lost data feed.
- Access to the graphical user interface through mobile phones, tablets, laptops, and computers.
- Operating temperature ranges from -30 degrees to +120 degrees Celsius.
Benefits:
- Reduction or elimination of lost bolted joint integrity
- Improved awareness and management of structural integrity
- Ensures safety and integrity of bolted joints.
- Using the operational data and reports, the maintenance and reliability teams can better understand and manage their maintenance regimes plan usage and consumption of the material.
- Enables maintenance teams to be notified with an early warning when bolts become loose or approaching the end of life.
Contact us and order your 50% discounted special pre-launch price for sample sensors.