Cooling tower fans sit on wet, windy decks with long drive shafts and right-angle gearboxes. Artesis follows motor, shaft, gearbox and fan condition from the electrical panel — nothing to mount in the plume.
A cooling tower fan is driven through a long shaft and a right-angle gearbox, often 10 m or more above ground, in humid air and spray. Vibration sensors there corrode, and route rounds mean climbing onto the deck.
When a tower cell trips, condenser water warms and chillers or process units lose capacity. Because motor, shaft, gearbox and fan are one mechanical chain, their condition shows up in the motor current — readable from the MCC in the dry.
e-MCM or a portable AMTPro test uses the existing current and voltage signals. Nobody needs to go onto the fan deck.
Baselines reflect the fan’s real load, including VFD speed changes with the seasons.
Findings are classified as looseness, unbalance, gearbox or bearing, with the energy each fault costs.

Four fault indicators in the caution band, each with its yearly energy effect.

Looseness, misalignment and gear components above the learned envelope. Select to open full size.
Faults found on both tested cells
Both 480 V, VFD-driven fans with gearboxes showed looseness and gearbox/transmission faults.
The situationCooling tower fans at a semiconductor plant were running with unusual noise and malfunction. AMTPro tests were run from the MCC on two cells.
The findingFan 01 showed loose foundation, unbalance/misalignment, transmission-element (gearbox) and bearing faults. Fan 08 showed loose foundation and transmission/gear faults.
The valueThe reports put the energy effect of the faults at 33,208 and 29,364 kWh per year — a clear case for correcting them before summer load.
Source: Artesis Case Study 2024, slides 6–8, and AMTPro reports for both fans (2023). Customer name withheld.

On the 55 kW cell the spectrum showed a raised looseness floor and transmission/gear components. The report estimated the faults’ energy effect at 29,364 kWh per year.

e-MCM first warned of looseness in October. A renewed alert in November started an inspection, and in February a loose attachment bolt was found and fixed.
AMTPro found no mechanical faults, but both motors ran at about 41% load. The reports advised a smaller, more efficient motor at the next replacement.
Cases are individual outcomes from Artesis field deployments between 2005 and 2023. All visuals are from Artesis software. Customer names are withheld.
Evidence strength reflects how reliably a condition produces an observable electrical pattern in typical cooling tower fan installations — not a guarantee of detection.
| Condition | What changes in the signal | Evidence | Field case |
|---|---|---|---|
| Drive train · mechanical | |||
| Gearbox and transmission | Transmission-element indicator | Good | Fan 01 and 08 → |
| Looseness and foundation | Looseness-related pattern | Good | Fan 01, fan 08, automotive |
| Unbalance and misalignment | Alignment-related pattern | Good | Fan 01, automotive |
| Bearing wear | Bearing-related pattern in the current spectrum | Good | Fan 01 |
| Motor · electrical | |||
| Rotor bars | Rotor-related pattern in the current spectrum | Strong | — |
| Stator and insulation | Current imbalance well above voltage imbalance | Strong | — |
| Supply and connections | Voltage imbalance, harmonics, per-phase RMS | Strong | — |
| Load · energy | |||
| Energy lost to faults | kWh effect per detected fault | Strong | Fan 01, fan 08 |
| Oversized motor | Motor load below ~60% of rating | Strong | Refinery fans |
| Blade pitch or airflow change | Load level versus learned baseline | Good | — |
We state the limits up front, so monitoring is set up where it adds most and paired with the right complementary checks.
Fan-side components after a large gear reduction are small; gearbox and motor faults are clearer than blade faults.
Early blade damage may not change load or balance enough to be seen.
Below about 20 Hz in winter operation, confidence is reduced.
Oil quality is not seen directly; keep oil checks in the routine.
Observed patterns are interpreted by qualified personnel; they guide investigation rather than replace it. AMTPro spot tests need near-constant speed (±1% frequency) during capture.
Artesis Insight turns spectra and trends into plain-language explanations and next steps. Your team does not need to be an ESA specialist to act on a result.
Transmission and looseness indicators together suggest checking gearbox mounting, drive shaft couplings and fan hub bolts.
After action
Re-test at a similar fan speed and confirm the energy effect has fallen.
Example wording only; not a live alarm or a reproduced AI report.
No. All measurements are taken in the motor control cabinet, in the dry.
Gearbox and transmission faults show up as transmission-element components in the motor current, as both featured fans show. Very small fan-side effects behind a large reduction are harder to see.
No. e-MCM supports VFD applications and AMTPro tests at the running speed. Confidence is reduced below roughly 20 Hz.
Yes. Every AMTPro report estimates the energy effect of detected faults and flags oversized motors running below about 60% load.
Motor nameplate data, gearbox or belt arrangement, fan speed range, drive type and the measurement points in the cabinet.
Tell us about your tower cells and drives. We’ll show which fans to test first.
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