Asset type
Pump monitoring
SAM4 monitors every pump type from the motor control cabinet — detecting bearing degradation, cavitation, blockage, seal wear, imbalance, and efficiency loss weeks before failure. No sensor on the pump. No site visit for installation.
At a glance
- Monitoring method
- Electrical Signature Analysis (ESA)
- Sensor location
- Motor control cabinet (MCC)
- Voltage range
- Low and medium voltage
- Drive type
- DOL, soft starter, VFD
- Pump types
- Submersible, booster, borehole, process, transfer, circulation
- Faults detected
- 7 fault types
- Typical lead time
- 4–12 weeks before failure
Why monitor pumps
The most common rotating asset in industry — and the most likely to fail undetected
Pumps account for the majority of rotating equipment in water utilities, chemical plants, and refineries. They run continuously, degrade gradually, and often fail without warning — because most lack condition monitoring.
of pumps in a typical plant have no condition monitoring. They run until they fail.
typical cost of an unplanned pump failure — including repair, production loss, and emergency response.
energy wasted by pumps operating below their best efficiency point — recoverable with the right data.
What SAM4 detects on pumps
Seven fault types from one sensor location
| Fault type | What's happening | How SAM4 detects it | Typical lead time | Confidence |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bearing degradation | Inner/outer race defects, rolling element wear, lubrication breakdown | Characteristic bearing fault frequencies appear in the motor current spectrum | 4–12 weeks | Full |
| Cavitation | Vapour bubble collapse at the impeller, caused by low NPSH or throttled suction | Broadband noise increase in the electrical signature above baseline | Days–weeks | Full |
| Blockage / clogging | Rag, debris, or sediment buildup restricting flow or loading the impeller | Load signature shift — torque pattern changes relative to healthy baseline | Hours–days | Full |
| Imbalance | Impeller erosion, deposit buildup, or broken vanes causing rotational imbalance | 1× running speed component increase in the current spectrum | 2–8 weeks | Full |
| Seal wear | Mechanical seal degradation leading to leakage, contamination, or motor ingress | Progressive load profile change as friction and flow characteristics shift | 4–10 weeks | Full |
| Misalignment | Shaft or coupling misalignment between motor and pump | 2× running speed component in current spectrum, progressive increase over time | 2–6 weeks | Full |
| Efficiency loss | Pump operating below BEP due to wear, oversizing, or process changes | Power consumption vs. output deviation tracked continuously | Continuous | Full |
Detection capability depends on drive topology, sampling rate, load variation, and operating conditions. See ESA detection constraints.
Installation on pumps
30 minutes. No access to the pump required.
Open the motor control cabinet
SAM4 installs at the MCC — the same panel your electricians already access. No confined space entry, no scaffolding, no process shutdown.
Clip sensor onto motor supply cables
Current and voltage sensors clip directly onto the existing cabling. No wiring changes. No interruption to the asset's operation.
Connect and commission
The SAM4 gateway connects via cellular (4G/LTE) — no dependency on your IT network. Monitoring starts immediately. First diagnostic results within 48 hours.
Energy monitoring
Not just fault detection. Energy optimisation too.
Pumps are often the largest energy consumers in a facility. SAM4 continuously tracks power consumption against output — identifying pumps running below their best efficiency point, oversized motors, and degradation-driven efficiency losses.
Real-time pump curve
SAM4 calculates the operating point on the pump curve continuously — showing where the pump runs relative to BEP and how that changes over time.
BEP deviation alerts
Automatic alerts when a pump operates consistently outside its efficient range. Quantifies the energy waste in kWh and currency.
Rightsizing recommendations
Data to support pump replacement or impeller trimming decisions — backed by months of continuous operating data, not a single-point measurement.
Where pumps are monitored
Industries using SAM4 on pumps
Water & Wastewater
Booster pumps, submersible pumps, distribution pumps. Blockage and efficiency monitoring across the network.
Chemicals
Process pumps, transfer pumps, circulation pumps. Monitoring in hazardous zones without physical access.
Oil & Gas
Transfer pumps, injection pumps, cooling water pumps. ATEX-compatible monitoring from the MCC.
Metals & Mining
Cooling pumps, slurry pumps, dewatering pumps. Harsh environments where pump access is restricted.
See SAM4 monitoring pumps
A 30-minute demo shows SAM4 running on pumps like yours — with real fault data, real diagnostics, and real energy insights.