Fluid health
Verify viscosity, additive condition, oxidation and contamination.
Lubrication
Oil analysis continuous improvement
Turn lubricant condition data into confident maintenance decisions and practical reliability improvement.
Fluid health • Machine condition • Decision quality
Talk to AMREA See the workflow
Site-owned condition monitoring capability
The objective
Trusted information, timely action
Oil analysis adds value when sample quality, test selection, interpretation and response operate as one system.
A condition-monitoring program, not simply laboratory reporting.
The program should reveal lubricant degradation, contamination, wear and developing defects early enough to enable the right maintenance response.
Machine condition
Detect wear, ingress and developing defects.
Decision quality
Connect results to practical, agreed maintenance actions.
Where oil analysis delivers value
Prioritise systems where condition data gives useful lead time
Prioritise systems where lubricant condition or wear information provides useful lead time for a decision.
Gearboxes & drives
Wear, contamination and lubricant condition in process and mobile equipment.
Hydraulic systems
Particle contamination, water ingress, fluid condition and component wear.
Engines
Oil condition, soot, fuel dilution, coolant ingress and wear trends.
Compressors & turbines
Lubricant health and early evidence of machine or system distress.
Priority-setting lens
Controlled workflow
Sample, assess, act, learn
The process must maintain sample integrity and link every exception to a managed response.
- 1
Define
Asset, compartment, lubricant, failure modes, decision lead time.
- 2
Sample
Use the correct live-zone location, method, bottle and label.
- 3
Test
Select fit-for-purpose tests and establish comparable history.
- 4
Assess
Trend data against limits, duty, history and other condition evidence.
- 5
Respond
Inspect, re-sample, test further, plan work or escalate.
- 6
Improve
Verify findings, update strategy and retain program learning.
Sampling quality
Sampling quality is the foundation
A laboratory result cannot compensate for an unrepresentative, contaminated or poorly identified sample.
Representative sampling controls
- Sample from a repeatable, representative point, preferably in a live, flowing zone
- Standardise sample points, ports, hardware, bottles, flush volumes and labelling
- Capture operating context: fluid, compartment, hours, top-ups, recent work and abnormal events
- Avoid cross-contamination, dirty containers and inconsistent collection methods
- Use procedures that can be followed reliably by site personnel
Program maturity
Build a site-owned program over time
Where is your oil analysis program in the maturity model below?
Level 1
Reactive reporting
Samples are collected and laboratory alarms are relied on; internal ownership is limited.
Focus the improvement plan on ownership, controls, decision rules and verified learning.
Level 2
Controlled program
Sampling points, hardware and procedures are standardised to improve confidence and repeatability.
Level 3
Integrated decisions
Site-owned targets and trends are linked to maintenance strategy and other condition evidence.
Level 4
Continuous improvement
Information drives RCFA, defect elimination, lifecycle decisions and verified improvement.
Alarm limits
Meaningful limits must lead to a decision
Set limits only after the sampling method, asset context, failure modes and available decision time are understood.
Set practical alarm limits
- Confirm fluid, compartment, duty cycle, known failure modes and required lead time
- Use baseline trends, OEM guidance, laboratory expertise and site history
- Define an agreed response for each condition: inspect, re-sample, test further, plan work or escalate
- Review alarm effectiveness against field findings and actual defect outcomes
- Adjust limits when evidence shows that they are not supporting timely, appropriate decisions
Integration
Integrate oil analysis with the maintenance strategy
Oil analysis is strongest when it is evaluated with operating context and complementary condition evidence.
Use condition evidence together
- Link sample results to asset criticality, functional failure modes and planned maintenance strategy
- Compare exceptions with vibration, bearing condition, process data, inspections and operating history
- Use recurring findings as inputs to RCFA, defect elimination and design / lifecycle decisions
- Ensure work orders include the condition evidence, decision rationale and required verification
- Confirm the condition has changed after corrective action, not merely that the task was closed
Mobilisation checklist
Program mobilisation checklist
Set up the operating controls before relying on results to direct maintenance work.
Asset register
Asset, compartment, lubricant, criticality and sampling frequency.
Test slate
Tests matched to lubricant, failure modes, operating context and decision needs.
Data workflow
Laboratory interface, trend review, exception ownership and work-management linkage.
Sampling plan
Sample points, access requirements, procedure, hardware and labelling.
Limits and actions
Baseline, alarm levels, escalation triggers, roles and response pathways.
Assurance plan
Competency, audit, sample-quality checks and recurring program review.
Turn oil data into actionable reliability insight
The right sample, test, interpretation and action must work together.
AMREA supports the controls, capability and continuous-improvement pathway required for dependable oil analysis decisions.