BelgiumManufacturing2024 – ongoingOwens Corning
Waites predictive maintenance for a Tessenderlo ball mill
Owens Corning avoided over $11 million in potential ball-mill losses, Waites estimated
Problem
Older equipment depended on periodic inspections and manual lubrication. Replacement parts could take months to arrive after a failure.
Approach
Owens Corning installed Waites wireless vibration and temperature sensors with AI analysis and analyst support. A February 2024 alert at Tessenderlo prompted inspection of a ball-mill bearing. Technicians found a cracked shaft and replaced damaged parts, then added automatic lubrication.
Results
Takeaway
The alert prompted technicians to inspect and repair the mill before a breakdown. The reported savings were Waites' estimate of potential losses avoided.
Categories
- Size
- Large enterprise
- Industry
- Manufacturing
- Business function
- Production and quality
- Innovation type
- Process innovation
- AI technology
- Predictive analytics and ML
- Adoption
- Vendor solution
- Evidence
- Vendor case study
Sources
Source summaries
Waites documented a bearing-temperature alert at the Belgian plant and subsequent repairs. It attributed over $11 million in avoided potential costs to the intervention.
Full details are in the original sources.
