The Trakka internet-based CBAM software was officially launched in December last year, and has since undergone two updates aimed at “reliability and useability improvements”. However, Dingo says it is yet to be heavily promoted outside the company’s existing customer base.

Despite this, early signs suggest uptake will be strong anyway. Trakka has already been adopted by two customers – an opencut coal mine in the US and a power generation facility in Australia – while users of Dingo’s other CBAM tools (FleetOil, CBAM Service) have indicated they are likely to migrate to the new product within time.

“We expect to see a strong response once the marketing campaign gets into full swing,” said Trakka product manager Andy Ling. “Trakka delivers real benefits to multinational mining corporations with multiple sites, and we are currently working on several opportunities in this area.

“It is designed to cater to the needs of all people involved in CBAM programs, from mechanics to site managers. The corporations that are serious about generating real savings through this technology will recognise that it is a tool that can be used to facilitate lasting maintenance culture change.”

According to Ling, Trakka was conceived in close consultation with customers, including high profile mining names Peabody Energy and Newmont, and developed in its entirety out of Dingo’s Brisbane offices. The company received financial assistance for the project in the form of an AusIndustry grant.

Ling said Trakka represents a “radical departure” from existing oil analysis software tools, including Dingo’s own FleetOil program, which is now being phased out to make way for the new offering.

“It [Trakka] was designed from the ground up to support the implementation of CBAM programs with a focus on achieving benefits,” he said. “Its underlying architecture is geared towards optimising component life and oil drains rather than simply storing and analysing oil analysis results.”

While oil analysis is a key function, Trakka also provides simplified storage and use of a range of other condition-monitoring data, such as thermography, vibration and ultrasonic testing, through the one platform, and can be easily integrated with customers’ existing maintenance systems.

“This can greatly simplify the work processes necessary to ensure that assets are maintained in peak condition with a minimum of resources,” Ling said. “It also means that companies can better utilise diminishing on-site technical resources – one system can be used from anywhere to track condition-monitoring results for any site across the globe.”

According to Dingo, other significant benefits offered by Trakka include:

* The ability to compare data from similar equipment across a whole site for quicker and more accurate condition assessment and root cause analysis;

* Access to accurate asset component and lubricant information through site and global profiles; and

* Constant monitoring of CBAM program improvement through key performance indicators on the system dashboard.

Like other Dingo CBAM products, users subscribe to the Trakka service, but rather than pay a lump sum up-front licence fee, the new model is “pay as you go”. The company has indicated it will create incentives for companies wishing to sign up and pay for longer-term service periods. All upgrades will be included in the subscription cost.

In terms of where Dingo takes Trakka in the future, it said efforts to enhance the product would focus on making it easier to improve maintenance performance in a range of areas. These included component life optimisation, lubricant life optimisation, scheduled lubricant drain optimisation, managing condition-based component changes, best practice oil sampling and root cause analysis.

Among the technologies likely to be added are magnetic plug debris monitoring, ferrogram/filter patch debris monitoring, vibration monitoring, thermography, ultrasonic crack detection, wireless condition sensor integration, and pocket PC adaptability for field data gathering.

Dingo has been developing software tools for oil analysis and CBAM since 1991. The company said customers reported wide-ranging levels of success, but those to realise particular benefits were ones which either had limited resources, limited experience in CBAM or a strong desire to improve financial performance.

Australia's Mining Monthly