New method to monitor metal working fluids

Jon Lawson

Castrol has launched SmartControl, a system that provides automatic, in-machine real-time monitoring and management of metal working fluids.

Developed in collaboration with German control systems experts Tiefenbach, it is a real-time condition monitoring system that puts the user in total control of metal working fluid operations.
 
“At Castrol we know that managing cutting fluids requires many manual processes, like sampling, testing, intervention and documentation, which are an inefficient use of our customers’ time and resources. That’s why we’ve created Castrol SmartControl. It can maximise the effectiveness and efficiency of our customers’ cutting fluid management and limit the associated HSSE risks”, said Mathias Buschbeck, Global Industrial Leader at Castrol.
 
SmartControl is, as the name suggests, a smarter way to deal with metalworking fluid management. It moves monitoring and management to a new level, and takes repetitive, dirty, and dangerous tasks out of engineers’ hands.

Real-time condition monitoring is designed to minimise errors and maintain fluids and their performance by integrating with Industry 4.0 technology.

SmartControl continually measures the following parameters: Concentration, pH level, conductivity, temperature, volume and flow.
 
Any variation away from specification triggers an alert. It does without manual sampling, meaning no loss of time while samples are transported to the lab to be analysed, and ensures there are no delays on account of reports being sent late. SmartControl even self-cleans and self-calibrates, in order to maintain ongoing accuracy.

 

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