Ensure that your leak tag system is working

Edited by Paul J. Heney • VP, Editorial Director

A leak tag system needs to be followed through until repairs are completed.

Leakage is usually a significant add-on to the cost of operating any compressed air system. Almost every factory employee knows there are air leaks, and often can identify where the big ones are — but the follow-through on this knowledge is often a problem. This is where a good system of leakage detection and repair comes in handy.

During a recent visit to an industrial plant, an auditor heard from the plant manager about their excellent leak tag system — well, at least he thought it was excellent and fool-proof. All employees had the option of identifying leakage using an innovative inhouse leak tag system. Whenever a leak was identified, the employee could grab a leak tag from a tag bin and fill it out, identifying the location and severity, and hang it on the leak. A perforated part of the tag would then be ripped off the main tag and put in the maintenance department’s mailbox for repair.

This sounded like a great system until the auditor started looking, or rather listening more closely. Leaks were everywhere in this plant and no tags were to be found. A quick check of the compressor during non-production time showed the plant compressor was 60% loaded, even while the plant production machines were idle.

The auditor asked about seeing what the plant’s innovative tags looked like, but it seemed as if nobody knew where they were. Finally, they were located under the maintenance manager’s desk. It seemed like the tags were a good idea at the time, but the tag and repair system was not really a system, because it lacked follow-through. This sort of problem is not uncommon; the auditor regularly sees numerous leak tags flapping in the breeze from major leaks in sites he visits, sometimes years after the leaks were identified.

Some tips about leakage repair systems:

• A good leakage repair system starts with employee awareness; the line workers need to be educated about how much leaks cost and what they can do about them.

• Often times, leakage detection and repair has to be gamified — that is, the employees sometimes require a little more motivation than the nice feeling about finding a leak to take action. Some plants make leakage detection a contest that workgroups can participate in to get recognition or reward.

• Leakage can be more easily detected with good ultrasonic tools. These need not cost thousands of dollars, as there are some very affordable leak detectors available for purchase these days.

• A good system of tagging is important. Be sure when the leak is found it can be identified, described and located again when the repair is made. Or best, repaired immediately.

• Ensuring follow-up is a must, finding leakage is often fun, but repair more difficult. Make sure that when the leak is identified, the repairs are scheduled in a timely manner. Typically, someone needs to be accountable for leakage levels; if your plant does not have someone, make sure this changes.

• The leakage repair efforts need to be part of normal maintenance. Make sure your maintenance program has a way to identify the general leakage level (such as a main flow meter) and has a system of tracking the level frequently so changes can be detected. Set target levels and keep at the repair process until the desired level is achieved. Make sure your system triggers action should the level rise over a certain threshold.

• If you have so many leaks you don’t know where to turn, get help, and attack with a special focused effort and the beginning of the process. And keep plugging until the job is done!