POLARIS Laboratories® Unveils Analysis Engine Powered by AI

The company has announced the launch of Aurora, an advanced AI-driven analysis engine designed to transform equipment reliability and maintenance strategies.

“These are groundbreaking times for our organization,” said Mark Westlake, Chief Information Officer with POLARIS Laboratories®. “Aurora embodies years of dedication, combining Artificial Intelligence (AI) and Machine Learning (ML) to create an intelligent, adaptable system that enhances how our customers manage equipment health.”

Leveraging their 25-year legacy of processing millions of fluid samples, POLARIS Laboratories® has one of the industry’s most comprehensive datasets for lubricant performance, equipment health trends and application-specific conditions. These insights allowed the company to develop advanced diagnostic algorithms and flagging thresholds to optimize maintenance actions.

By integrating Machine Learning, Aurora continuously refines its predictions, becoming more reliable as it processes more data. Maintenance teams can now anticipate issues, minimize downtime and make better data-driven decisions to extend the lifecycle of critical assets.

“Aurora represents a new era of equipment reliability,” Westlake continued. “It’s not just about monitoring performance—it’s about redefining what’s possible with predictive maintenance.”

Advancing the capabilities of fluid analysis and revolutionizing the future of equipment reliability, this new AI-driven system has launched across POLARIS Laboratories’ network. Aurora is here to make fluid analysis more accurate, more reliable and more timely.

View the Full Press Release

POLARIS Laboratories® Announces 2024 Fluid Analysis Program Champion Awards

Each year, POLARIS Laboratories® honors exceptional customers for excellence in their fluid analysis programs. These awards signify program excellence, significant improvement efforts, impactful maintenance actions taken and appreciation of the dedicated work put into the programs.

This year’s finalists will be recognized at the 2025 Reliability Summit, the annual fluid analysis and reliability-focused conference powered by POLARIS Laboratories®, on October 7, 2025, in Indianapolis.

“A program champion plays a vital role in the success of a fluid analysis program, acting as the bridge between mechanics, management and the laboratory while driving the program’s adoption and implementation. It’s inspiring to witness the dedication these champions and maintenance teams bring to their programs. Congratulations to this year’s finalists!” – Randy Clark, POLARIS Laboratories® Manager of Reliability.

POLARIS Laboratories® awards Calfrac Well Services Ltd, as the Tier II Winner and NYC Ferry, operated by Hornblower, as the Tier I Winner of the 2024 Fluid Analysis Program Champion Award. Kokosing Construction Company and Flywheel Energy are named Tier II and Tier I Award finalists, respectively. To hear words from the program champions themselves, click below.

View the Calfrac Well Services Ltd Fluid Analysis Program Champion Award Video

View the NYC Ferry, operated by Hornblower, Program Champion Award Video

View the Kokosing Fluid Analysis Program Champion Award Video

View the Flywheel Energy Fluid Analysis Program Champion Award Video

 

View the full press release

Go Digital with Your Condition Monitoring

As the industry continues to grow in the digital landscape, POLARIS Laboratories® is always looking for ways to maximize customers’ access to technology. With tools such as Component ID Tags, QR-Code-Only Sample Labels and the HORIZON® mobile app, our customers can digitally customize how they manage their fluid analysis programs.

QR-Code Only Sample Labels

QR-Code Only Sample Labels contain a unique barcode number linked to a specific fluid sample, made to easily apply to the surface of the sample bottle. By transitioning to QR-Code Only Sample Labels, customers can reduce the costs of kits while simultaneously improving the overall carbon footprint.

Start using QR-Code Only Samples and:

  • Eliminate handwritten submissions
  • Minimize paper waste
  • Accelerate result time
  • Manage previous submission information
  • Save on costs of kits

Read more on QR-Code Only Sample Labels

Streamline Submissions Through Component ID Tags

Registering equipment information has been made easier using Component ID Tags. Implementing the use of these QR tags minimizes time spent registering samples in HORIZON and ensures data accuracy.

Use Component ID QR Tags on equipment and:

  • Eliminate manually entered ID’s
  • Maintain component ID integrity
  • Decrease registration steps
  • Increase productivity

Get Connected Anywhere Through the HORIZON Mobile App

Implementing the use of QR codes works in tandem with the HORIZON mobile app. Customers can avoid paperwork and access fluid analysis data in HORIZON anywhere, anytime. The HORIZON mobile app gives customers unlimited access to view their equipment list, sample data history, view reports and more all within the reach of their pocket.

The mobile app allows customers to:

  • Register samples
  • Scan QR codes
  • Receive and view reports
  • Add and duplicate equipment
  • Set up custom alerts based on report severity

The mobile app allows customers to edit fields including:

  • Component ID
  • Fluid type
  • Component type
  • Manufacturer
  • Model
  • Filter type
  • Application

Stay Alert Anywhere You Go

Keeping up with the digital age and taking your fluid analysis program digital means quicker sample registration and faster response time to critical issues before they turn catastrophic.

POLARIS Laboratories® prioritizes our customers’ reliability through providing services that increase program efficiency. As we continue to innovate using technology to streamline our programs, we hope customers utilize these tools to effectively monitor their equipment.

Revolutionized Maintenance Training at INTEGRATE

Where can you find education and training designed to give you the tools you need to see success along your reliability journey?

The answer: at the 2023 Reliability Summit | INTEGRATE. 

We’ve revolutionized our annual maintenance training conference to provide all-encompassing training on every aspect of your fluid analysis program. From expanding your use of the HORIZON® platform, to understanding how to grow your program, learning how sampling can be made easier, to increasing understanding of result interpretation, to eliminating silos by integrating fluid analysis data into your maintenance management system, INTEGRATE is the one place you need to be.

View this year’s line up of speakers and learning sessions

In one trip to Indianapolis in October, you and your maintenance teams can gain new ideas, insights and knowledge to kick your maintenance into high gear and see your reliability program reap the benefits of effective, impactful fluid analysis.

Gain New Perspectives

Not only will you gain education, but you’ll also gain new perspectives. During this 2-day exclusive event, hosted by POLARIS Laboratories® at The Alexander in Indianapolis, you’ll have the chance to:

  • Meet one-on-one with your account representative
  • Ask subject matter experts your questions
  • Learn what others are doing to improve their reliability program
  • Network with fellow maintenance professionals to learn and grow from their experiences

See Operations in Action

When you attend INTEGRATE, you get more than education through learning sessions, you get a first-hand look at not one, but two facilities through exclusive tours – and a chance to see inside POLARIS Laboratories’ headquarters laboratory in Indianapolis.

Cummins Augmented & Virtual Environmental Lab

Experience a tour of Cummins technical center and environmental lab and see what Cummins engineers and scientists are creating, testing and evaluating to prepare for the future of manufacturing. See processes and devices, including 3D printers, tomography x-ray systems and Cummins’ use of virtual reality.

 

U.S. Aggregates Facility & Mine Tour 

Get a glimpse of U.S Aggregates’ 460-acre facility and see a glimpse into their mining operations. See how U.S. Aggregates mines and processes limestone, while getting a first-hand look and feel of a raw material reduction with the use of explosives.

 

POLARIS Laboratories® 

This tour gives you a first-hand look inside our state-of-the art laboratory and headquarters facility in Indianapolis. From the time your sample hits the facility doors, to laboratory testing, to data analysis and customer support, and everything in between, this tour gives you an exclusive look into our laboratory daily operations.

These tours have limited spots, first come first served – register early if you want a seat on the tour. See the available tours and information here.

Discover New Solutions

Our annual training conference would not be possible without our event sponsors. We’ve teamed up with several industry solutions providers (lube manufacturers, filter solutions, sampling supplies, data integration) to give you tools to advance your programs and expand your maintenance practices. Each sponsor will have an exhibitor booth at the conference as well. Please feel free to stop by their booths to see what they have to offer your program!

It’s All Here in Indianapolis

I’ll leave you with this question, where else can you find lube manufacturers, OEMs, testing experts, reliability professionals, integration solution providers and everyone in between? At INTEGRATE October 2-4 in Indianapolis.

From the Data Analyst: How Sample Information Affects Limits and Analysis

Two questions our Data Analysis team often receives from fluid analysis customers are “What information is necessary to analyze our samples?” and “Why is this information so important?”

Whether your sample is defined as a grease, diesel fuel, lubricant or coolant, there are complex interpretation factors accounted for each test result of the respective application. Aside from establishing the appropriate testing slate applied to a fluid, test limits may also vary and be comprised of SAE, ISO, POLARIS Laboratories®, OEM, industry charter and/or fluid manufacturer standards. Due to these reasons, it is imperative to supply as much relevant equipment and fluid information as accessible to your laboratory when submitting the sample for testing.

Here are a few scenarios… Without fluid information, a laboratory may not be able to see abnormal fluctuations for additive content or viscosity. The fluid’s basicity may become essentially depleted prior to detection, or the acidic levels may be too high for neutralization efforts. Without the specific equipment model, a laboratory may have to rely on generic data points to extrapolate typical wear accumulation. These limits may be too aggressive or not aggressive enough for the type of equipment tested. These are all exact scenarios we have previously experienced with customers.

For example, we may factor the following information when establishing statistical trends for wear metal content, lubricant properties and interpreted recommendations:

  • Equipment Type (e.g. engine)
  • Specific Application (e.g. diesel)
  • Equipment Manufacturer (e.g. Cummins)
  • Equipment Model (e.g. ISX)
  • Industry Type (e.g. logistics/transportation)
  • Lubricant Manufacturer (e.g. Chevron)
  • Lubricant Product (e.g. Delo 600 ADF)
  • Lubricant Viscosity (e.g. 15W40)
  • Filter Type (e.g. Full Flow)
  • Filter Micron Rating (e.g. 10 micron)
  • Sump Capacity (e.g. 14 gallon)
  • Time on Lubricant (e.g. 13,598 miles)
  • Time on Equipment (e.g. 124,600 miles)

While some equipment manufacturers have a ‘fixed’ wear limit table for operational guidelines, laboratories typically provide a more objective and literal statistical significance of normal wear accumulation. These statistics may reduce unnecessary calls for maintenance, which would otherwise lead to costly downtime or premature use of materials.

Read more in the Technical Bulletin

If you are unsure what information may be required to appropriately identify abnormal trends for your equipment samples, reach out to the laboratory for a list of the requisites and additional guidance. To receive an improved return on investment out of a lubricant, fuel, or coolant maintenance program, avoid delays or guesswork the laboratory may experience due to absent sample information.

How to Ensure Optimum Performance of Wind Turbines

With the increase of greener energy production, wind turbines are playing an increasingly important role. It is vital that these energy producing turbines operate at optimum capacity for extended periods of time. To do this, a high level of equipment reliability is critical and, due to remote locations or access difficulties, all maintenance needs to be planned at optimum intervals to ensure maximum uptime and reductions in total cost of ownership (TCO).

The operating fluids inside a turbine, including lubricating oil in gearboxes and hydraulic systems, fluids used in cooling systems and greases all play a significant role in optimizing operation of the wind turbine. All of these operating fluids should be monitored closely to determine the condition of the fluid, identify contamination and measure the levels of wear metals generated within each system.

Monitoring conditions through routine fluid analysis allows you to avoid unplanned downtime and perform necessary maintenance based what is actually happening within the unit rather than on the hours in operation or calendar days. Planned, predictive maintenance will get you to optimum energy production.

See the recommended testing for power generation equipment here.

Proven Impact. Proven Uptime. Proven Savings.
Let us prove it to you.

Published January 5, 2023

How to Prepare Your Program for 2022

After the events of 2020 throwing operations out of whack, we had high hopes for 2021. Unfortunately, the maintenance industry continued to struggle – whether it be labor shortages or lubricant shortages. But, we’re here to give you a little hope for 2022. We’re here to help you get your maintenance program ready for a new year.

Here are some tips to regain control of your maintenance program:

  1. Take an inventory of your equipment and conditions
  2. Identify or reassess the importance (criticality) of each equipment in your processes
  3. Dust off and review maintenance records of each individual piece of equipment
  4. Identify specific needs for each piece of equipment

If fluid analysis is one tool you use to assess equipment conditions, then consider these:

  1. Collaborate with your Technical Business Consultant | Identify specific actions/activities that will enhance the impact of a well-managed fluid analysis program (our team’s contact info is listed below)
  2. Audit your Equipment List | Complete any missing information and move inactive equipment to a mothball account
  3. Review Your Users | Assess your list of active users and add new or remove those that are no longer needed
  4. Determine Training Needs | Identify gaps and schedule appropriate sessions and topics
  5. Develop and Participate in a Program Review | Program reviews highlight areas where the program is being successful, as well as those needing improvement. Specific equipment in need of attention can be identified as well.

If you are ready to refocus your maintenance and fluid analysis, contact your POLARIS Laboratories® Technical Business Consultant for assistance in reviewing your maintenance practices so you can take your fluid analysis program to the next level.

POLARIS Laboratories® Technical Business Consultants:

Henry Neicamp

hneicamp@polarislabs.com

Connect with Henry on LinkedIn

Julio Acosta

jacosta@polarislabs.com

Connect with Julio on LinkedIn

 

Proven Impact. Proven Uptime. Proven Savings.
Let us prove it to you.

Published October 19, 2021

Why Accurate Sample Information is Important

Garbage In, Garbage Out

In this day and age, we have all encountered a situation where our personal data is not correct; it could be the bank has an old phone number or a store has a wrong or an old email address. POLARIS Laboratories® is no different when it comes to data – one area that hinders us and our laboratories is receiving accurate fluid information with your sample.

Why the Right Fluid Information is So Critical

It’s pretty simple really. If you send in a sample with incorrect fluid information, when we compare the test results from your sample to the information submitted, (the basis of a lot of the maintenance recommendations we make to you). If that information is correct, we are able to give you precise, actionable recommendations tailored to your application. If the information is incorrect, not only do the maintenance recommendations no longer hold as much value, but in some cases, we may recommend an incorrect action or repair.

To make matters worse, your test results may be delayed. For example, with the wrong fluid identified when submitted, we may send samples back to be retested in our laboratories to confirm, what looks like on paper, to be an incorrect result. This delays the results getting back to you. A more extreme example is submitting a used engine oil as an engine coolant, meaning the wrong test package may be applied, resulting in the sample going through the complete wrong testing thus missing issues you desperately need to be identified.

Blood Work as an Analogy

A good analogy for this would be getting getting blood taken at a doctor’s office. My blood, a middle-aged man, is submitted but the paperwork is mixed up. But because of the incorrect information, my blood is tested and the results compared to a 15 year old female – a very extreme case, but it could happen. My doctor gets the results back and then instructs me to go directly to hospital because my results say I’m in critical condition. The results from my blood are considered normal for a middle-aged male, but definitely abnormal for a 15-year old female.

Better Data = Better Predictions

It’s critical to a successful fluid analysis program that all applicable fields are filled in when submitting a sample. Testing in the laboratory is heavily dependent on the submission fields and directly affects whether or not a fluid receives the right laboratory testing and you recieve the right recommendations.

Proven Impact. Proven Uptime. Proven Savings.
Let us prove it to you.

Published August 11, 2021

How to Avoid On-Hold Samples

Having your fluid sample placed on hold creates a hold-up for our laboratory processing your sample, laboratory performing testing and in turn, a delay in providing you with the important results you need to take action. As your fluid analysis provider, we want to make sure we provide the most accurate results as possible by testing the right fluids for the right components for the right equipment and that the information is recorded in the right account.

Based on our internal research of on-hold samples, 1.72% of all fluid samples sent to our laboratories are placed on hold – this equates to more than 25,000 samples per year.

Reasons for On-Hold

Based on our research, 85% of fluid samples that are placed on hold are indicated as having seven different reasons. Here are the top 7 reasons a sample is placed on hold before it can be processed, tested and analyzed:

  1. Locked Account | We are unable to add your equipment to your account in our sample data system. This could be because of a request from your account owner.
  2. No Information | There is little to no account information for us to be able to identify the sample. This means there is incomplete, incorrect or missing information submitted.
  3. Prepaid Barcode Required | Your account is set up for prepaid sample barcodes, we received your sample without one of these barcodes and are unable to process your sample
    • Note: EZ Label barcodes are unique, single use only and can only be used one time. If you re-use a barcode, we can not process the sample.
  4. Unknown Account | There was no account information submitted with your sample.
  5. Missing Required Info | We are missing sample or component information that is required for your account.
  6. Incorrect Sample Form | Your fluid sample was received with a form that did not match the fluid type.
  7. Component Type | Your sample was submitted with no component type. To perform the correct fluid testing, we need the type of component your sample came from.
What if your sample is placed on hold?

We’ve put together an infographic outlining what you can do to resolve your on-hold sample so it can be placed in the laboratory queue for testing – and so you can get your results when you need them.

In addition, on your HORIZON® Dashboard, you can click on the blue link by ‘samples on hold’ to submit a resolution to address the on-hold issue. We will review your resolution and contact you if we need additional information.

Why is My Sample on Hold?

So, what can your team do to avoid your samples being placed on hold?
  • Ensure your account information in HORIZON® is correct with the owner of your account
  • Pay the correct amount of postage due (if you’re using a non pre-paid test kit)
  • Make sure both the account and component information are correct when registering your sample
  • Include all requested sample information at registration or on the paper sample information form
  • Only use sample label barcodes one time
  • Avoid paperwork errors – submit your samples through online sample submission in HORIZON

Proven Impact. Proven Uptime. Proven Savings.
Let us prove it to you.

Pathway to Reliable Greased Components

Receive More In-Depth Info + Achieve Reliability in Your Grease

All grease samples received after March 1, 2021 will receive one of our Grease Reliability Test Packages. If you have not already received the new testing under our Grease Reliability Testing Program, your next grease sample will reflect a change in testing performed. We are now able to provide new and improved testing for grease that our previous testing was limited to. Performing testing within our Grease Reliability Testing program will ensure your grease sample receives industry-wide testing and provides more detailed recommendations when concerns are present.

The Grease Reliability Testing Program provides three testing options:

  1. Basic Grease Testing
  2. Ferrous Wear Identification
  3. Advanced Grease Testing

Our new Technical Bulletin, linked below, will provide further details of what is included in each of these grease test packages available under the Grease Reliability Testing program.

Grease Reliability Testing

How this change will impact my current test kits?
All current programs with grease testing will be moved to our new program automatically. If you program still has outdated testing kits, your grease samples will automatically receive the Basic Grease Testing.

Time to order new sample kits? Customer service or your account manager can advise which of our three grease tests will be best for your needs.

Proven Impact. Proven Uptime. Proven Savings.
Let us prove it to you.

Published March 1, 2021