Kittiwake Developments Ltd.
3-6 Thorgate Road, Littlehampton,
West Sussex, BN17 7LU, UK
Tel: (01903) 731470
Fax: (01903) 731480
Email: sales@kittiwake.com
www.kittiwake.com
PRESS RELEASE
For immediate release
Onsite Oil Condition Monitoring made simple!
Kittiwake is key to good Condition based monitoring of fuel and lube oils
With increasing demands for profitability, the Maintenance function onboard is a key focus.
Improved
Maintenance practices lead to:

improved equipment availability

improved productivitity

improved product quality

improved Health & Safety

reduced environmental impact

reduced energy consumption

reduced lubricant and fuels consumption

reduced inventory costs
And of course, an increase to bottom line profits.
As technology and education come together, industrial engineers increasingly understand that the key to critical
plant maintenance is the consistent measurement, monitoring and management of their machinery lubrication
systems.
Condition monitoring or CBM (Condition Based Monitoring) is an effective form of predictive
maintenance where the engineer will monitor the condition critical plant or equipment such as a diesel engine, or
hydraulic systems. Acting in a proactive, or root-cause driven manner will extend lubricant and machine life, and
minimise the need for costly breakdown maintenance.
Condition monitoring of fuels and lubricants used in industrial and marine plant & equipment has become one of
the main weapons in the fight to reduce premature failure of engines, gearboxes and hydraulic systems.
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Many tests worldwide are still carried out by trained chemists in oil test laboratories, while this is accurate and
should be continued there is a definite place in all maintenance programs for onsite testing. Regular onsite
sampling and analysis of fuel, lubrication and hydraulic oils enables the engineer to assess the condition and
performance of the machine oil over time, allowing adjustments to be made to ensure maximum operational
performance and avoiding critical downtime. A result in 2 minutes versus 2 weeks has obvious benefit, especially
if the result is quantitative and trended.
An effective Oil Analysis programme must include:

Oil Condition - to know when to change the oil so it is neither changed too early, nor too late (when harm
may be caused to the machine).

Oil Contamination - to take action to remove harmful contamination before damage is done to the
lubricant or the machine.

Machine Condition - to take immediate action to stop increasing wear rates before catastrophic damage
occurs.
Kittiwake Developments Ltd., the UK based market leading specialist producer of oil test kits, equipment and
sampling products provides the tools necessary for industrial engineers to conduct these crucial maintenance
routines. Determining the presence of Water in oil, degradation of TBN (Total Base Number), rises in TAN (Total
Acid Number) and ferrous wear debris can be among the first indicators of potentially expensive and possibly
catastrophic failure of the plant.
Water in oil can enter from many sources including condensation, leakage and malfunction of oil treatment
systems. It will rapidly cause corrosion, cavitations and instability of additive packages and encourage the growth
of microbes. Testing for water in oil is essential to maintain and protect your equipment, preventing damage in
advance.
TBN Testing is particularly important for engine oil, as it is continuously exposed to acidic combustion products
and these must be neutralised before they can corrode engine parts. The TBN of oil is the measure of the
alkaline reserve, or the ability of the oil to neutralise acids from combustion. Severe depletion of the TBN results
in acid corrosion of combustion space and bearings along with fouling within the engine. Maintaining a correct
alkaline reserve is critical in preventing unnecessary corrosion of the upper piston, piston rings and top end
bearing. Additionally, low TBN is indicative of reduced oil detergency.
Total Acid Number or TAN is a measure of both the weak organic and strong inorganic acids present within oil.
Testing for TAN is essential to maintain and protect your equipment, preventing damage in advance. A rise in
TAN is indicative of oil oxidation due to time and/or operating temperature. High operating temperatures severely
stress the oil resulting in oxidation and nitration, changes in viscosity, the build up of acidic waste products and
deposits on metal surfaces. Trend as well as absolute values should be used to monitor TAN levels.
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Monitoring the ferrous debris generated in engine, gearbox other industrial plant oil can provide an invaluable
insight to the condition to the equipment. Ferrous debris is naturally produced in everyday running but having the
ability to trend this data on-site can pinpoint problems. An example of success can be found in the measurement
of un-combined total ferrous debris in the waste cylinder lubricant for slow speed diesels. To counter the normally
high sulphur levels in the fuel, specially formulated oil is used. This high TBN oil is expensive and normally only
lasts one pass through the cylinder. An average container ship can spend $10,000,000 in its life just on cylinder
lubricant. Reducing the amount of oil used in everyday running has been found to be highly profitable, as long as
it can be proved that no excessive wear occurs to the engine. Being able to monitor the wear onboard can show
the effects of reducing the amount of oil used. A conservative 5% reduction to the oil feedrate is the equivalent to
a life time saving of circa $500,000. Some vessels have run feedrate optimisation programs and reduced oil
usage by more than 30%. Regular monitoring can also spot sudden and severe wear events such as ones
caused by high levels of cat fines in fuel. Experience has shown that this is a regular problem and if no actions
are taken has lead to the loss of liners which can cost up to $40,000 to replace.
With damage and costs like these can you really afford not to take condition based monitoring seriously? A
simple and inexpensive addition to your maintenance program, onsite oil analysis will help provide the confidence
that your critical systems will be working efficiently and productively. Wherever there is a requirement for on-site
testing of critical machinery, Kittiwake’s portable test kits and online test solutions have a proven track record in
preventing unnecessary down time and costly repairs. The NEW DIGI Test cell from Kittiwake is one piece of
essential equipment that no plant room should be without.
Designed to analyse multiple oil breakdown
characteristics, the dual purpose DIGI Test cell can measure both ‘Water in Oil (0.02-1%, 0-10%, 0-20%, 20010000ppm)’ and ‘Total Base Number’ (0-80 TBN) in one unit. This ‘easy-to-use’ device provides a fast and
accurate digital measurement for each parameter, allowing the engineer to effectively monitor the condition of the
oil and the equipment in which it is used and immediately act upon the results.
The latest DIGI test cell collection offers an extended base number range, stronger construction, reduced weight,
improved ease of use and the latest in transducer technology. Manufactured to be rugged and practical, the new
cell is made with a tough and durable GRP casing to withstand the rigours of daily operational use. The cell
features an easy to read display with step by step test instructions, a built in memory which automatically records
previous test results, a clear LCD display showing direct readouts in ppm, % water or Total Base Number (TBN).
Designed with non-slip twist grips to ensure that it can be fully sealed when in use the cell also features ‘easyclean’ touch pad controls. The Pre-programmed software built into the cell takes the user through a step-by-step
process to analyse the oil sample and deliver a result in just 2 minutes.
The DIGI Test cell can be purchased with just the TBN or Water program, but is most commonly purchased as a
combined cell. The test cell is delivered as a complete kit in an engineer’s case for portability and ease of
storage.
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For more information on the Kittiwake range of sampling and test solutions for your application then visit
www.kittiwake.com, check out the fuel and lube oil training manual or contact Tom Kent – Kittiwake Applications
Engineer
About Kittiwake
For over 15 years, Kittiwake has provided sampling and test solutions into the marine and many other markets
worldwide. The Oil analysis equipment available range from bunker samplers and sampling accessories, through
to suitcase sized portable oil test solutions, and wall mounted analysis suites for users requiring a higher degree
of accuracy when testing for wear debris, viscosity, density, insolubles and more. Kittiwake prides themselves in
their ability to provide solutions and advice to engineers worldwide. For a vast amount of information on Fuel and
Lube testing, including a large training manual visit www.kittiwake.com, contact Kittiwake Sales on +44 1903
731470, or email marketing@kittiwake.com.
About the Author
Tom Kent is a senior application engineer for Kittiwake Developments. Tom, a member of IMECHE and a
graduate in Mechanical Engineering has worked for Kittiwake for over 7 years and recently moved from his role
as a research and development engineer responsible for many of the products described above into the role of
applications engineer. Experienced in oil analysis and maximising equipment and lubricant life, Tom is able to
merge his vast knowledge of Kittiwake products with the needs of the application, providing a perfect fit for the
maintenance requirements of the user. Email: tomk@kittiwake.com
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For further information, please contact:
Paul Froome
Marketing Manager
Kittiwake Developments Ltd
3-6 Thorgate Road, Littlehampton,
West Sussex, BN17 7LU, UK
Tel: 01903 731470 Fax: 01903 731480
Email:paulf@kittiwake.com
http://www.kittiwake.com
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