OPTIFY™ Solutions Newsletter
Volume 2 | May 6, 2025
The evolution of condition monitoring from ideation to IIoT
Table of Contents
Since its conception, condition monitoring—the systematic observation of equipment health through key performance indicators (KPIs), such as temperature and vibration—has transformed from basic human observation to sophisticated digital systems.
In 1889, Dodge® pioneered one of the earliest automated monitoring systems when R.D.O. Smith developed an electrical alarm system for pulleys. This innovative technology provided early warning of pulley failure by tripping a circuit to alert a supervisor when the rope began to fray. Patented by Dodge, the electrical alarm represents one of the earliest examples of predictive, rather than reactive, maintenance. This marriage of emerging electrical technology—the lightbulb was invented just 9 years prior—with practical industrial maintenance represented a significant leap forward in equipment reliability and industrial innovation. By linking an electrical circuit to physical indicators of wear, industrial safety began to improve dramatically.
The 20th century brought more advanced methodologies including thermography, vibration analysis, and oil analysis. These techniques enabled deeper insights into machine health and created the foundation for modern predictive maintenance. As computer technology and digital sensors emerged, real-time data acquisition became possible, eventually leading to cloud-based monitoring platforms capable of instant notifications and sophisticated analytics.
Today, OPTIFY™—a comprehensive condition monitoring ecosystem featuring wireless sensors, connected gateways, and intelligent analytics—represents the culmination of this evolution. The OPTIFY platform enables continuous oversight of critical equipment, minimizing downtime and optimizing operations across entire facilities.
From the basic electrical alarms of the 19th century to today’s advanced Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) solutions, Dodge continues to drive improvements in safety, reliability, and operational efficiency through innovations in condition monitoring. As we look to the future, OPTIFY will remain at the forefront of this technological evolution, helping industries maximize uptime and equipment lifespan.
OPTIFY applied: intelligent lubrication cuts bearing failure by 92 percent
Facing nearly $100,000 in annual mounted tapered roller bearing replacement costs alone, a manufacturing facility was struggling with recurring failures on their chain mill equipment due to heavy particulate contamination. Each replacement resulted in 2 hours of unplanned downtime and required multiple technicians, dramatically increasing the total cost of each failure beyond just the bearing price.
With industry data showing that up to 80 percent of bearing failures are linked to lubrication issues, the Dodge team recommended the customer implement OPTIFY Intelli-Lube®. The customer’s existing manual greasing schedule couldn’t keep up with the severely contaminated environment, leading to inconsistent protection and premature failures.
Installed over 8 months ago, each of the 16 mounted bearings in this application is now maintained by an Intelli-Lube drive unit with a 500 cc lubrication cartridge, delivering 0.5 cc of grease every 4.5 hours. Unlike traditional lubrication methods, the OPTIFY Intelli-Lube system provides remote monitoring capabilities and alerts. The near-continuous greasing cycle minimizes contamination ingress while ensuring optimal levels of lubrication at all times. When a grease cartridge nears empty, the user is notified via email or text that maintenance is needed to prevent issues from arising.
The results speak for themselves. Since implementation, bearing failures have decreased by 92 percent with just one bearing failure in 8 months compared to the previous average of three failures per month—delivering an estimated $85,000 in direct material cost savings, plus approximately $46,000 in recovered production time and reduced maintenance labor costs. The switch to Intelli-Lube has significantly reduced maintenance costs and unplanned downtime, delivering substantial return on investment for the facility.
What’s new in the OPTIFY platform?
We’re excited to announce the latest enhancements to the OPTIFY platform, featuring significant improvements to both mobile and web interfaces. The mobile app (v1.13.7) now includes automatic Intelli-Lube commissioning prompts and real-time dashboard refreshing, while the web interface introduces scheduled lubrication, automatic data collection after alarm events, and customized FFT settings for individual sensors. Additional improvements include single sign-on capabilities with PT Place credentials, enhanced filtering options, unified measurement scales for easier data interpretation, and improved audio diagnostics for troubleshooting. These updates reflect our commitment to providing you with powerful, user-friendly tools to maximize equipment reliability and streamline maintenance across your operations.
Feature highlight
You asked, we delivered! Our new “extreme events” feature automatically begins capturing detailed vibration data when an alarm is triggered on an asset—helping you understand not just which asset may be experiencing problems, but providing you the information you need to diagnose why.
