Paper Manufacturing Reliability Reinvented: Preventing Multiple Wet-End Bearing Failures with Industrial Matrix Condition Monitoring

A leading North American pulp and paper facility transformed its
wet-end reliability program when continuous condition monitoring,
integrated into the Industrial Matrix AI Suite™ ecosystem, identified
multiple early-stage bearing faults across couch and press rolls. 
Each issue was detected early enough to be scheduled into planned
washdowns, preventing unplanned stoppages valued at
approximately $30,000 per event.

The Challenge

Wet-end assets operate under constant moisture, heavy loads, and continuous rotational stress. Bearings on couch and press rolls are especially susceptible to degradation — and when they fail, they can:

Halt production instantly
Damage rolls
Trigger paper quality defects Drive unplanned downtime costs of $5,000 per hour or more

Prior to implementing continuous monitoring, the facility relied on manual inspections and routine lubrication. Faults often surfaced too late, leaving narrow windows between discovery and failure.

The Solution - Condition Monitoring
Integrated Into the Industrial Matrix AI
Suite™ Ecosystem

Vibration, temperature, and acceleration sensors were installed across critical wet-end rolls and connected into the Industrial Matrix AI Suite™ ecosystem, giving the maintenance team continuous visibility and validated fault insight.
The connected ecosystem delivered:

Early detection of bearing degradation
Automated trend and anomaly alerts
Clear pattern recognition from sensor intelligence
Expert interpretation from Industrial Matrix reliability specialists

This enabled proactive intervention without interrupting production.

Findings & Action Plan

Asset	Insight	Action	Result
Couch Roll - Outer Race Fault	Rising acceleration and velocity trends indicated developing outer race damage.	Lubrication adjusted and bearing replaced during scheduled washdown.	Severe outer race damage confirmed; unplanned stoppage avoided (~$30,000 saved).
Couch Roll - Inner Race Fault	Stable harmonic pattern with rising acceleration signaled inner race deterioration.	Replacement completed during planned downtime.	Post-repair trends normalized; improved bearing life stability.
Couch Roll - Progressive Vibration Anomaly	Gradual increase in vibration amplitude pointed to early outer race wear.	Bearing replaced in the next planned washdown cycle.	Consistent roll performance; no downtime.
Press Roll - Temperature-Driven Fault	Temperature rise with slight vibration increase flagged an overheating bearing.	Scheduled replacement confirmed by follow-up monitoring.	The thermal trend returned to normal and remained stable.

Total ROI

Metric	Without Condition Monitoring	After Intervention	Impact
Downtime Exposure	~6 hours per failure	All failures prevented	≈ $30,000 saved per incident
Predictive Accuracy	Manual inspection only	Sensor intelligence + expert review	100% correlation
Maintenance Planning	Reactive	Planned interventions	No emergency repairs
Operational Impact	Line interruptions	Stable wet-end throughput	Higher production reliability

Strategic Insights

Continuous monitoring revealed degradation far earlier than manual routes.

Early fault alerts enabled maintenance to align repairs with existing washdowns, eliminating emergency interventions.

Verified accuracy strengthened trust in predictive maintenance across operations, engineering, and leadership teams.

The facility shifted from reactive firefighting to scheduled, data-driven reliability management.

Long-Term Impact

Following repeated success across wet-end assets, the facility
expanded Industrial Matrix monitoring to additional rolls and
upstream equipment. Long-term benefits included:

Fewer unplanned outages

Extended bearing and roll life

Improved product quality consistency

Stronger alignment between operations and maintenance

Reliability KPIs integrated into corporate performance reviews

The AI Suite™ ecosystem became the anchor for the plant’s broader
reliability strategy.

Conclusion

Through continuous condition monitoring connected into the Industrial Matrix AI Suite™ ecosystem, the manufacturer detected multiple wet-end bearing faults early, prevented high-impact downtime events, and strengthened operational control across the production line. The result: repeatable, measurable reliability improvement and a proactive maintenance culture built on validated insight.

Prevent the failures that disrupt
output. Build reliability that
scales.

Book a Demo with a Pulp & Paper Reliability Specialist