As oil and gas, and power generation industries quest for decarbonisation and operational resilience, optimising rotating equipment is emerging as a high-impact strategy to reduce emissions, improve energy efficiency and enhance reliability without major infrastructure overhauls .
Across the global energy and process industries, a quiet but significant shift is underway. While much of the public conversation around decarbonisation focuses on new energy systems, there is an equally important opportunity closer to home: improving the efficiency and reliability of existing industrial assets. John Crane, a global leader in flow-control technologies and rotating equipment solutions, see this challenge play out daily across sectors including oil and gas, power generation and emerging energy applications. Rotating equipment sits at the heart of these operations, yet it remains one of the most under-optimised areas when it comes to energy efficiency and emissions reduction. For operators under increasing pressure to reduce emissions, improve uptime and manage costs, the question is no longer whether these inefficiencies can be addressed, but how quickly.
“Leakage of gases, including methane and other volatile compounds, not only impacts environmental performance but can also represent a direct loss of valuable product”
Energy loss in rotating equipment is often invisible until it becomes operationally or financially disruptive. Mechanical inefficiencies, suboptimal sealing performance, and equipment degradation over time can all contribute to significant energy waste. For example, poorly performing seals or auxiliary systems can increase frictional losses or allow process leakage, leading to higher energy consumption. In compressors and pumps, even marginal inefficiencies can translate into substantial energy losses when scaled across continuous operations.
At the same time, fugitive emissions remain a persistent challenge. Leakage of gases, including methane and other volatile compounds, not only impacts environmental performance but can also represent a direct loss of valuable product.
Drawing on industry experience at John Crane, we continue to see that a meaningful proportion of emissions can be traced back to equipment-related leaks and inefficiencies. Addressing these is one of the most immediate and cost-effective ways to reduce environmental impact without requiring wholesale infrastructure change.
Historically, rotating equipment has been managed through maintenance-driven models. Preventive maintenance schedules, periodic inspections, and reactive repairs have long formed the backbone of operational strategies.
While these approaches remain essential, they are no longer sufficient in isolation. A maintenance-led mindset often focuses on restoring equipment to its original condition after degradation has occurred. It does not necessarily address how equipment should perform under evolving operational demands, nor does it fully capture the cost of inefficiency between maintenance intervals. This is where a shift towards performance-driven operations is gaining traction. At John Crane, for example, we are supporting this shift through structured, performance-based service approaches focused on improving reliability, efficiency and total cost of ownership across the lifecycle of rotating equipment.
In many cases, operators adopting these approaches are seeing measurable improvements, including reductions in unplanned downtime of up to 20 percent and efficiency gains in the low single-digit range, delivering meaningful impact when applied across continuous operations. Rather than asking “Is the equipment functioning?”, operators are now asking “Is the equipment performing optimally, and how can we improve that performance continuously?”
“Individually, improvements in efficiency or reductions in emissions may appear incremental. However, when applied at scale, the cumulative impact can be substantial”
Performance-driven operations treat efficiency, reliability and emissions as dynamic variables that can be monitored, analysed and optimised in real time. Advances in condition monitoring, digital diagnostics and analytics are making it possible to detect early signs of performance drift, long before they lead to failure or significant loss. By acting on these insights, operators can reduce unplanned downtime, improve energy efficiency, minimise emissions, and extend asset life.
The shift towards performance-driven operations is also being accelerated by
the growing urgency around emissions reduction. Poorly performing systems can be a significant source of emissions, but well-optimised systems can deliver measurable reductions relatively quickly. From our work at John Crane, it is clear that many of these improvements can be achieved without major capital investment.
While new energy technologies are essential for long-term decarbonisation, existing systems will remain critical for decades. Improving the performance of these systems allows operators to reduce emissions, lower costs and enhance reliability while transitioning to lower-carbon energy sources.
Adopting a performance-driven approach is not solely about technology. It also requires a shift in mindset, stronger collaboration, and a focus on data-driven decision-making.
Individually, improvements in efficiency or reductions in emissions may appear incremental. However, when applied at scale, the cumulative impact can be substantial.
For organisations willing to embrace this change, the opportunity is clear: to turn previously hidden losses into measurable value, and to align operational excellence with environmental responsibility.
