There are many uses for the thermal camera in the industrial field of machinery. The use of thermal imagery to detect excessive heat in lets say and electric motor for instance. You can look at the electric motor to see if it is running within a normal temperature range. You can detect heat signatures within a particular area of the motor, Lets look at the bearings at either end of the motor. You can surmise that with an elevated heat signature on one end of the motor that there is a problem with the bearing on the drive end of a motor. This tells the technician that this could be a potential problem down the road. It gives him a heads up for plant maintainability. He can schedule his maintenance crew to pull this motor while the plant is down for the night or have a shift supervisor pull the motor while the machine is not being used. This avoids loss of productivity by having the motor die during an active shift.
Any thing with moving parts can be analyzed for temperature fluctuation. This can point out areas that will require preventative maintenance to ensure no loss of productivity.