Ever hear the saying, you can pay me now or pay me later? Early detection and prevention of unwanted production issues can lead to increased profitability. Invest in your future! It is not as expensive as you think.
Running a continuous process line can be an expensive operation. People rely on that production line to run smoothly and efficiently by avoiding unwanted stoppages. Most often, these stoppages will be costly in many ways. Machinery downtime is almost always certain, but minimizing this downtime can obviously be very advantageous.
One of the main reasons for machinery breakdown is a result of poor alignment. Poor alignment places unnecessary stress on production line components, can cause product quality problems, a high scrap rate and early component failure. You can associate this to your car hitting a curb or pothole creating poorly aligned wheels resulting in an unwanted vibration throughout the vehicle. Eventually this leads to excessive wear on your tires and, if left untreated, increases vehicle handling problems and potential safety issues. Ideally, you will get the wheels aligned and restore the vehicle to normal operating conditions at a minimal cost. Ignore the problem and it will likely compound itself leading to a much greater cost and inconvenience to repair. Production lines and manufacturing equipment operate on similar principles as this automobile analogy.
So, the next time you have a planned shutdown or even a scheduled maintenance period, consider checking the alignment of the production line. It will help to minimize unwanted work stoppages, increase the life of your equipment and give you added confidence that your line will keep running smoothly and profitably.
We often hear people say alignment can be costly, but on relative terms it will ultimately save you time and money. Let us consider the example of a plastics production machine that generates $750K of product annually and breaks down on average of once per month for a lost shift of 8 hours. In dollars, we are seeing losses of $360 per hour times 8 hours times 12 months or approximately $34,500 annually. Prices for a laser alignment system vary, but a $20,000 investment in equipment and training will provide you with a return on investment in less than 9 months for this one machine. If you have several lines running in your plant, an investment in alignment equipment and some training for your personnel will pay back for itself in a much shorter time.
Putting maintenance on your schedule and on your terms will increase your production efficiency and profits and minimize those unexpected slowdowns and production surprises. Our engineering team has decades of experience working with manufacturing firms helping them to save money and increase manufacturing profits. Call us to schedule an on-line product demonstration and let us show you how easy and affordable it is to start aligning your own production equipment. You have nothing to lose… except money!
