
Vigilant continuous acoustic monitoring: from the SDT route to online
When a weekly SDT340 walkdown is no longer enough: how SDT Vigilant covers critical bearings, steam traps and inaccessible points 24/7 and plugs into the route-based programme.

A route with the SDT340 is the backbone of an ultrasound programme. But on some assets a weekly walkdown is not enough: a critical pump, a steam trap on a sterile loop, a bearing in an ATEX zone that is rarely accessible. That is where continuous acoustic monitoring belongs — Vigilant and the related Online4US line.
When the route is no longer enough
| Situation | Risk with infrequent rounds | Solution |
|---|---|---|
| Bottleneck bearing | failure between visits | Vigilant 24/7 |
| Steam traps in pharma / clean zones | hidden steam losses | permanent acoustic channel |
| Hard-to-reach / hazardous areas | points get skipped | remote sensor |
| Night and weekend shifts | no analyst on site | trend plus alert |
The route is not cancelled — it still covers the rest of the fleet. See the 90-day SDT programme.
What Vigilant delivers
- A continuous ultrasonic signal from selected points.
- Trending and thresholds — an alert before the failure becomes audible.
- Compatibility with the SDT ecosystem — the same measurement logic as the portable instruments.
- Scalability — from a handful of channels up to a full Online4US system.
Typical points: fan, pump and gearbox bearings; critical steam traps; zones where LUBExpert ON-GUARD or the handheld LUBExpert has already flagged an issue.
Rollout plan for a plant
Step 1 — audit the route
From your SDT340 reports pick 5–15 points with an unstable trend or a high downtime impact.
Step 2 — Vigilant pilot
Put continuous monitoring on those points. Keep the weekly route running on the rest of the fleet in parallel.
Step 3 — escalation
When levels rise — take a targeted SDT340 measurement (TWF/FFT) and make the maintenance decision. For motors, add Artesis ESA.
Industries in Kazakhstan
- CHP plants — auxiliary fans and pumps, steam assemblies (SDT at a CHP plant).
- Pharma / food — sterile steam loops (acoustic monitoring of steam lines).
- Mining and processing — critical conveyor and pump assemblies.
- Metals — cooling systems and ID fans.
Conclusion
Vigilant does not replace the SDT340 — it is the second tier of the programme: online on the 5% most expensive points, route-based on the other 95%. Together with Artesis and vibration it completes the reliability roadmap — 18 months of SDT + Artesis.
Equipment in this article
Vigilant - Permanent Ultrasound Monitoring
A permanent ultrasound monitoring system for critical equipment, 24/7
Online4US - Compact Online Monitoring
Compact 4-channel online monitoring system for continuous condition control
SDT340 - Advanced Ultrasound Detector
The most advanced ultrasound detector for collecting, analysing and trending dat...
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