Data Extraction Made Easy

“It’s not just fluid analysis, it’s what you do with it” is something we say a lot here at POLARIS Laboratories®. We strive to help our customers extend the life of their equipment – we do this through not only laboratory testing, but extensive data generation and analysis. While some consider us just “the laboratory”, we pride ourselves on being more than that. By providing you with in-depth analysis and maintenance recommendations, you can address any maintenance issues early.

Data Overload

We test and analyze thousands of samples daily, each generating dozens of individual data points. With different types of components, fluids and severities potentially spread out over multiple accounts, the amount and complexity of data can be hard to decipher. This is especially true if the extent of your data management is simply just receiving sample reports in your email inbox. What do you do with all of that data?

There’s a Solution

Fortunately, our information technology department has developed a number of helpful and innovative tools within our online data management tool, HORIZON®, to help with this. Along with real-time dashboards, we have a number of pre-made reports that most likely can answer most of the questions you may have regarding your sample data. But what happens when there is not a pre-made report available? If you are the analytical-type and know your way around Microsoft Excel (everyone’s go-to Business Intelligence tool), you might just want the raw data so you can do your own analysis. The tool in HORIZON that gives you the ability to do that just that is called Data Extraction.

Customize

Data Extraction is a simple tool within HORIZON that gathers data based upon customized criteria you set and exports it into an Excel-compatible file. Let’s say you wanted to compare two different locations that had severity 3 and 4 rated components for the last quarter. With Data Extraction, you can easily generate this report in Excel so you can go filter or use Pivot Tables to see what is potentially driving those severities.

How It Works

We have recently made some changes in the way the Data Extraction queries are processed and the results are impressive, with reports being generated in seconds. Give Data Extraction a go and see for yourself.

  1. Go to HORIZON and log in
  2. Click on the Management Reports tab
  3. Select Data Extraction Tool from the left-hand navigation
  4. At this point, you can easily select the filter criteria for the report you want to generate
  5. When you have finished selecting your criteria, click Run and the file will generate and download

If you would like to see a walk-through demonstration on how to run a Data Extraction report, click here to watch the video in our Technical Library.

Our goal is to help companies like yours save more of their equipment and strive to provide the resources to do so. We welcome any feedback on the functionality of this report and any other features you’d like to see in HORIZON.

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

Published April 10, 2018

Take Five and Submit Your Sample

In the maintenance field, timing is everything. Often times, it can be the deciding factor whether or not equipment or machinery breaks down, causing jobs to be pushed back to later dates, effecting other business. What if you could eliminate fluid sample submission from being the cause of delays? POLARIS Laboratories® offers a convenient online sample submission option – which not only saves time, but results faster sample turnaround times, eliminates unnecessary timely delays and increases equipment uptime. So, why should you start submitting samples online?

Five Minutes

On average, it only takes five minutes to submit your fluid analysis sample online via HORIZON®. Rather than filling out the paperwork by hand and sending in the sample to one of our laboratories, online sample submission requires less fields – saving you time. Additionally, submitting your sample data via your HORIZON account – where all your data from previous samples is stored – allows for automatic calculations. All you have to do is scan a barcode, enter a few fields of sample information, click submit and it’s logged in our system. Then, ship the sample with the same barcode to our laboratory and the sample is processed and queued for testing, eliminating the need for our sample processing team to enter the sample information manually.

Reduce Errors

One of the most common causes of samples being placed on hold or tested inaccurately (resulting in a re-test) at our laboratory is paperwork issues. Whether it’s handwriting errors or oil spilled on the paperwork causing readability issues, filling out the sample submission form by hand can cause many issues. As a result, these can cause the sample information to be processed and input into our system incorrectly and result in assignment to the wrong component.

Faster Results

Submitting samples online not only saves you, the customer, time but it accelerates the internal process for our team as well. We’ll recieve your sample information instantly, which results in faster processing time, less samples on hold and less tests being re-run which all mean a faster turnaround time and reduced downtime for you.

Sample Submission on the Go

Online sample submission goes hand-in-hand with our mobile HORIZON application, available for both Apple and Android mobile devices. Download the HORIZON mobile app to your smart phone or tablet and submit your sample information online, as soon as the the sample is taken. Customize your push notifications and receive alerts when specific fluid type samples arrive at our laboratory and check in on the status of your sample. It’s one less task you have to do later, helping you stay on schedule.

For more information, click here to see our detailed step-by-step instructions for submitting samples online.

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

Published March 13, 2018

Learn How to Start Tracking Your Maintenance

So you’ve gotten your sample program set up just the way you like it. Your locations are in the system, your equipment is loaded, your kits are in-hand, your oil, coolant or diesel fuel samples have been pulled and tested. All is well and good but, that’s only half of what it takes to leverage a healthy preventive maintenance program.

Is Your Program Complete?

The other half of a successful, impactful and preventive maintenance program is making sure the right action is being taken as a result of the recommendations you receive in your reports.

  • Is your recommended maintenance getting done?
  • Are repairs happening when necessary?
  • Who’s doing the repairs?
  • How do you know if the issue was addressed?

Track Your Trends

We’ve developed a report that will allow you to answer those questions, and make sure you’re maximizing your program. With Maintenance Tracking, available within HORIZON®, you are able to see trending data over time, the results of your maintenance actions after each sample and visually see the results of your fluid analysis program. Moreover, anyone who receives reports will have all of this information, without any need for action from you. The feature is available in the Equipment Management tab in HORIZON. If you do not see this option, please contact customer service to update your account’s permissions.

Start Using Maintenance Tracking:

  • Learn how to run the Maintenance Tracking report out of HORIZON | A set of instructions has been created and gives you a step-by-step walkthrough of where to go in HORIZON to activate the feature and run the report.
  • Contact customer service | Our customer service representatives are trained on all the the features available in HORIZON and are available by phone 877.808.3750 from 7:30 a.m – 7 p.m. ET all business days or by email, custserv@eoilreports.com

It’s Never Too Late

It’s important to monitor all of your sample results, maintenance recommendations and to see if those recommendations are being carried out. It’s the best way to know if you are getting the most out of your investment and to ultimately save your equipment. And remember that it’s never too late to use this feature; whether you’ve just started your program, or have been testing with us for years, start taking advantage of this function today.

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

Published February 13, 2018

Kick Off the New Year With A Review of Your Program

As we move into 2018, could you answer these questions?

What was the return on your fluid analysis investment in 2017?

Did you meet the goals of your program in 2017?

Beginning a new year is a great time to reevaluate your program and its goals. Outlined below are a few aspects of your fluid analysis program that should be reviewed:

Feedback

Did you provide feedback regarding the accuracy of recommendations in the sample reports? This can be a vital part of a continuous improvement program. For those of you using HORIZON®, you are probably familiar with the “Take Action” function. This is a great place to record your findings and communicate with the data analysis team and let us know if:

  • Were the recommendations spot-on?
  • Did you find additional issues?

By providing this feedback to the lab, future recommendations will be more detailed and accurate and will start you on the path of continuous improvement. Take a moment to capture the cost savings associated to the report in the “Estimated Savings” field. This will allow you to run a report later to determine the return on investment of your program.

Training

The need for training goes beyond the person who reviews reports or oversees the program. Everyone that handles fluids, repairs equipment, obtains fluid samples or is in any way accountable for the cost of the program should receive formal training on fluid analysis.

  • Have you included proper training of personnel as part of your goals for 2018?
  • Has everyone in your organization received training?

Transparency

As we kick off 2018, I encourage you to share with all your team members the goals of your fluid analysis program and where you are today in relation to the goals. In order to maximize your current program, continue sharing the progress with your team. You will truly be surprised at how quickly you will obtain your goals when everyone on the team is aware of the progress and realizes what a vital part each of them plays in achieving the goals.

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

Published January 16, 2018

It’s All In The Equipment List

Did you know that reviewing and updating your overall equipment list is a simple way to make your fluid analysis program more effective and efficient? Cleaning, updating and organizing your equipment list can also alert you of problems early before they can turn critical or cause a catastrophic event.

Overall Review

It’s good to do an overall review of your entire equipment list often, this ensures everything is up-to-date and accurate. It’s simple to do – just follow these steps:

  1. Using the data extraction tool under the “Data Management” tab on HORIZON®, download your list of equipment.
  2. Review the list for any updates that need to be made. While reviewing your equipment, here are some things to look for:
    • Equipment that needs to be merged together
    • Equipment that needs to be marked as inactive
    • Any other information that needs updated
  3. Once you have completed your review and filled in any information that is missing or any equipment that needed merged, send the equipment list to our Customer Service team at custserv@eoilreports.com. We will work on getting those changes made within our system in time for them to be reflected in your next round of sampling.

Making Updates

One thing to note – the above steps can be used for doing an overall equipment review. At any time, you can go under the “Equipment Management” tab on HORIZON and click on “Equipment List” and make updates to your equipment within HORIZON as well.

Adding Equipment

Do you have a new group of equipment to add to your account? You can go to the Technical Library and download the Equipment List template. Once you have filled this out, send it to us and we will get everything loaded and updated in our system for you.

Staying on top of your equipment list can help you maximize the benefits of your fluid analysis program and make sure your program as efficient as it can be.

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

Published January 9, 2018

Spend Minutes Today: Save Hours Tomorrow

In today’s world, everyone wants to get more done in less time, and the HORIZON® technical library can help you do just that. It doesn’t matter if you started fluid analysis sampling today or have been looking at reports your entire career, we’ve created 100+ videos and informational documents to help you maximize your HORIZON experience and get the most out of your sample data.

For Beginners

The “How To” section is great for beginners (though veterans may discover a few tips while they’re there). These instructions focus on the nuts-and-bolts of fluid analysis – collecting samples, filling out labels and reading reports. You can learn the basics quickly, so you can get back under the hood.

Mastering Your Data

HORIZON is designed to be intuitive to new users, but its free-form fields may take time to master through trial-and-error. Skip ahead by exploring the technical library and take advantage of the resources available to you. There are 12 different instruction sets just to help you run the management report features! Each one will save you time (and sometimes, headaches) filtering and sorting spreadsheets, and they can be scheduled to run automatically to save time in the future, too.

Turning Results into Action

Finally, the technical library has detailed information specific to the fluids we test and best practices for fitting fluid analysis into your maintenance programs. Our OMA and CLS-certified staff collected their thoughts from decades of testing and consultation to help you turn your sample results into maintenance recommendations and program improvements.

The best part? The technical library is available 24/7 in HORIZON. Log in today and start saving time tomorrow.

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

Published December 26, 2017

The “Aha!” Moment: How to Track Your ROI

It’s safe to say it’s every company’s goal, no matter what industry, to see a positive return when investing money. Investing in a fluid analysis program is no different. HORIZON® has a feature that allows you to track the action taken based on your sample recommendations. This feature also allows you to see an estimated cost savings vs. running to failure for each action taken. Customize the Action Taken Summary Report with date ranges, severities and fuel types and the report will give you a summary of your actions and cost savings for a given period. Using this report, you can provide your upper management with the ROI of your fluid analysis program.

For more information on how to use the Action Taken feature in HORIZON:

The “Aha!” moment: The Fleet Maintenance Director of a global logistics company tracked the action taken in HORIZON® based on the sample recommendations and discovered the company saved more than $650,000. The company only invested just more than $14,000 in a fluid analysis program. That’s a 45:1 ROI!

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

Published December 19, 2017

Tips For Getting Your Sample Results Timely

We know how important it is to get your sample results back in a timely manner. Once we receive your package, we strive to achieve a sample turnaround time of 1 to 2 business days for most routine oil, diesel and coolant testing. If you haven’t received your sample results within a week, please contact us. Your customer service team is here to help! If you are concerned with not receiving your results, there are several factors that come into play.

Where in the world is your sample? (quite literally)

A good place to start is to make sure your package containing your sample was delivered to our laboratory. Here are a few tips on shipping, depending on which service you choose:

  • UPS or FedEx: If you sent your package via one of these services, check to see the status using the carrier website. UPS and FedEx deliver packages right to our laboratory doors several times a day and we sign for all packages received.
  • United States Postal Service (USPS): This service does not track deliveries to our door. Their tracking service will show when the package was delivered to the post office, but it may take significantly longer to process our packaged mail for pickup.

The best way to ensure your samples have been received is to be proactive with your HORIZON® account and set up alerts for when your samples are logged and are awaiting laboratory testing. Setup up this alert under “My Settings” and know exactly when your sample arrives. Check out the video tutorial in the HORIZON technical library, it demonstrates how to setup real-time, daily or weekly summary Sample Receipt Alerts.

You’ve confirmed we have your sample in our laboratory, what else could it be? 

  • Make sure your HORIZON account is activated and you have set up your password (your welcome email might be stuck in your email spam filter.)
  • Ensure we have the correct email address on file, there might have been an error due to a typo in your email address when processing your sample.
  • Double check to see if you have access to the account the sample was logged in to.
  • For various reasons, your sample may have been placed on hold and you did not receive the email notification (samples are only held for 30 days, so don’t wait to contact us!)

Please contact us to check in on your sample and sample results and we will do our best to assist you.

4 Reasons to Start the New Year Right

2018 is just around the corner, start off on the right foot and re-start your fluid analysis program.

If you aren’t doing fluid analysis, you should be. And you should be doing it with POLARIS Laboratories®.

We provide insights into your maintenance by testing your equipment’s engine oil, hydraulic oil, coolant and diesel fuel. Extend your drain intervals to save money in your maintenance budget by starting fluid analysis program with us. I’ve highlighted four key reasons to start your year off with POLARIS Laboratories®:

  1. Sampling on The Go: The HORIZON® mobile app places the power of the web data management application in the palm of your hand. The app allows you to quickly submit sample data and read reports from mobile devices.
  2. DataConnect: Conveniently have all your data in one system with an automatic import of your HORIZON sample data into your own data system.
  3. Trusted Laboratory: POLARIS Laboratories® is accredited in accordance with the requirements of ISO 17025:2005.
  4. 24-Hour Assistance: Our customer service representatives and data analysts are available 24-hours a day, Monday through Friday to assist you.

Learn more about managing an effective fluid analysis program by partnering with POLARIS Laboratories®.

Ready to get started? Fill out this form and we will contact you.

 

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

Published December 5, 2017

Schedule Sample Reports to Optimize Your Program and Save Time

HORIZON® Management Reports can be automatically delivered to your inbox so you can better manage your fluid analysis program. After a report is generated, the criteria can be saved and scheduled to be sent daily, weekly, monthly or annually.

The following reports can be scheduled for delivery in HORIZON:

  • Severity Summary Report
  • Sample Schedule Report
  • Sample Volume Report
  • Sample Frequency Report
  • Turnaround Time Report
  • Equipment List
  • Data Extraction Tool
  • Problem Summary Report
  • Program Condition Report
  • Action Taken Summary Report
  • Data Analysis Report
  • Sample Submission Report
  • Sample Hold Summary Report

Login to HORIZON today at www.eoilreports.com or contact custserv@eoilreports.com with any questions about electronic sample submission.

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

Published April 18, 2017