Preston Johnson with Cutsforth

Scott MacKenzie hosts the Industrial Talk podcast, celebrating its success and encouraging listeners to share their stories and technology. He introduces Preston Johnson from Cutsforth, who discusses their asset management platform, Insight CM. Insight CM integrates various condition monitoring technologies, such as vibration, lubrication, and thermography, to provide a comprehensive view of equipment health. Preston emphasizes the importance of understanding asset failure modes and leveraging data to predict and plan maintenance. He highlights the benefits of workforce optimization, increased uptime, and reduced maintenance costs. Roadblocks include resource constraints, IT integration, and leadership buy-in. Preston provides contact information for further inquiries.

Action Items

• [ ] Understand the client's critical assets and failure modes.
• [ ] Identify the appropriate sensors to detect developing defects.
• [ ] Integrate the Insight CM platform with the client's existing data sources and systems.
• [ ] Develop prognostic capabilities to predict remaining useful life of equipment.
• [ ] Provide a business case and justification for implementing the Insight CM solution.

Outline

Introduction and Overview of Industrial Talk Podcast

• Scott MacKenzie introduces the Industrial Talk podcast, emphasizing its focus on industry innovations and trends.
• Scott thanks listeners for their support, highlighting the podcast's success and its mission to celebrate leaders in the industrial sector.
• Scott discusses the exciting developments expected in 2025, including innovation, technology, and solutions in various industries.
• The podcast aims to promote companies passionate about success and to provide a platform for sharing insights and solutions.

Introduction of Preston Johnson and Cutsforth

• Scott introduces Preston Johnson from Cutsforth, focusing on asset management and the importance of managing assets effectively.
• Scott reflects on the success of the previous year, mentioning the numerous interviews with industry leaders and the global broadcasts.
• Scott encourages listeners to create and share their stories, emphasizing the importance of amplifying messages through the Industrial Talk platform.
• The podcast aims to support listeners in their success by providing a platform for sharing technology and solutions.

Preston Johnson's Background and Cutsforth's History

• Preston Johnson shares his extensive experience in the industrial instrumentation business, including his time at National Instruments.
• Preston discusses his journey in condition monitoring and predictive maintenance, starting in the early 2000s.
• Cutsforth's acquisition of the Insight CM software in 2022 is highlighted, expanding their business from generator support to a predictive maintenance platform.
• Preston provides a brief history of Cutsforth and their involvement in various industries, including power generation and generator support.

Insight CM Software and Its Unique Features

• Preston explains the vision behind Insight CM, focusing on leveraging multiple condition monitoring technologies.
• The software was developed in response to a large power generation company's need for fleet-wide condition monitoring across various technologies.
• Insight CM's ability to digitize and compare trends from different technologies, such as vibration, lubrication, and temperature, is emphasized.
• The software aims to identify defects in equipment by collaborating and comparing data from different monitoring technologies.

Implementation of Insight CM and Typical Steps

• Preston outlines the typical implementation steps for Insight CM, starting with understanding the assets in the plant.
• The importance of identifying failure modes and selecting appropriate sensors to detect defects is discussed.
• Preston explains the process of understanding the performance and defects in equipment through various sensors and data acquisition systems.
• The software's ability to normalize and trend data from multiple sensors to provide actionable insights is highlighted.

Challenges and Benefits of Implementing Insight CM

• Preston discusses the challenges clients face in justifying the investment in continuous monitoring systems.
• The potential benefits of workforce optimization and increased equipment uptime are highlighted.
• The importance of leadership buy-in and the integration of IT and OT systems to support the implementation is emphasized.
• Preston mentions the potential for reduced maintenance costs and improved safety through early detection and mitigation of defects.

Prognostics and Predictive Maintenance

• Preston introduces the concept of prognostics, which involves predicting the remaining useful life of equipment.
• The challenge of predicting the trajectory of equipment degradation and the role of physics-based models in this process is discussed.
• The potential for advanced statistics and artificial intelligence to enhance prognostics is mentioned.
• The importance of understanding the specific failure modes and degradation patterns of equipment is emphasized.

Roadblocks and Future Directions

• Preston identifies the main roadblocks to implementing online monitoring systems, including resource constraints and the need for subject matter experts and IT support.
• The importance of leadership buy-in and the integration of IT and OT systems is reiterated.
• The potential for supply chain optimization and improved financial performance through better asset management is highlighted.
• Preston discusses the exciting developments in the field, including the integration of artificial intelligence and advanced analytics.

Conclusion and Contact Information

• Scott summarizes the key points of the conversation, emphasizing the importance of asset management and the potential benefits of Insight CM.
• Preston provides his contact information for listeners interested in learning more about Cutsforth and Insight CM.
• Scott thanks Preston for the insightful conversation and encourages listeners to reach out for further discussions.
• The podcast concludes with a call to action for listeners to stay engaged and continue the conversation in the coming year.