Getting to the reality of wireless devices

As of Thursday 1st January, a new European standard came into effect that limits the effectiveness of industrial wireless devices. Officially titled EN300328 V1.8.1, the European standard has introduced a ‘listen before talk’ (LBT) transmission process to wireless devices, much to the dismay of OEMs and end users. Although wireless device capability may be reduced, will the new standard significantly affect businesses that implement predictive maintenance?

In simple terms, the new standard means that wireless devices must first check if any other device is transmitting and will need to wait for a clear signal before communicating. This could mean that if another device is transmitting, the wireless device is unable to transmit its message – and in critical areas this may have a detrimental effect on business productivity and profitability. On the surface, this may be cause for concern, but in reality wireless may not actually be the best solution in the immediate future for businesses that require predictive maintenance capability.

As the introduction of the new standard highlights, wireless vibration monitoring equipment has its limitations, especially in a process or industrial environment. However, there are many excellent options that enable effective predictive maintenance without wireless equipment. Hardwired, reliable vibration monitoring solutions from Hansford Sensors are one such example. The cabled devices connect to a PLC or higher level control system, enabling the devices to be used for dependable real time monitoring, alarm and critical data analysis. Our industrial accelerometers and vibration transmitters offer an efficient and cost effective – often more so than wireless options – alternative that are not limited by the proposed European standard.

Click here to learn more about our full range of vibration monitoring solutions.