As manufacturing businesses grapple with the continuing fallout from COVID-19 measures, Brexit and the wars in Ukraine and Israel, interest in the circular economy has surged. All of these wider geo-political events have impacted strategy and direction at government level, filtering down to grass roots businesses. With the increased cost of raw materials as well as the unpredictability of supply chains, businesses are having to be more resourceful in terms of ensuring continuity.
Maintaining Equipment
With budgets increasingly strained and margins under pressure, getting the best performance and value out of your manufacturing equipment has never been more important. When considering new equipment, businesses have traditionally looked at the Capital Expenditure (CapEx) required to purchase it; however, quantifying and managing the Operational Expenditure (OpEx) is now also a key priority. Once purchased, the simplest way to maximise the value of equipment is to maintain it at optimum performance for as long as possible, until it needs to be replaced. If it continues to perform optimally beyond its expected lifespan, the need for more CapEx will be postponed and profit is retained.
However, maintenance does come at a cost. Equipment needs regular servicing and any faulty components need to be replaced. The strategy of waiting until the OpEx cost of maintaining the equipment becomes more than the cost of replacement can be an expensive mistake. Businesses may overlook the hidden costs of the downtime caused by time spent fault finding and fixing equipment, as well as the overheads involved in running a line that is at a standstill.
Maximising technologies
Modern technology such as a Computerised Maintenance Management System (CMMS) can take the guesswork out of equipment maintenance, providing detailed information in real time about the running time, wear and tear, utilisation and reliability. A CMMS can give an instant evaluation of the total cost of ownership of any connected piece of equipment, highlighting the true OpEx cost and accurately predicting when a replacement will be financially worthwhile. Routine maintenance tasks can also be scheduled into a CMMS, so that servicing is carried out in a timely manner. Adopting technology like this can help ensure that businesses are retaining equipment for the optimum period of time to maximise the return on their CapEx and OpEx.
Perhaps you have equipment from one brand that you need to incorporate into a line with other brands? This is where Industry 4.0 style technology can prove invaluable, using software that enables systems or components from multiple brands to adapt to and communicate with each other to create a seamless line. Happily, there is also a growing number of machinery suppliers using portable system licences. This is improving the options for companies looking to sell used equipment as it allows technology from multiple brands to be sold as a package. It also means that those buying the equipment can integrate it into their facilities with greater ease.
Refurbishing
For those industries which are inherently vulnerable to supply fluctuations, retaining an in-house capacity to repair or refurbish equipment has often been necessary for survival. Since spare parts may come from overseas and take weeks to arrive, onsite engineering has stood them in good stead at times of difficulty, allowing production to continue uninterrupted.
One of the most effective ways to upgrade a facility is to connect existing equipment to a process control system. Products which perform real-time analysis on time, motion and energy, provide important insights, highlighting whether materials quality, equipment condition or process efficiency is affecting throughput or end product outcomes.
Recycling
Eventually all equipment reaches the end of its life after being maintained, reused, redistributed and refurbished. Machines suffer from environmental impacts, electrical components wear out, and software and operating systems simply become obsolete. When a product is at the end of its life and has nothing left to offer, it can be recycled, becoming raw materials which can be incorporated into a new product. And so, the cycle begins again.
There is also a healthy second-hand market where equipment can be traded. This is particularly helpful for smaller business or startups in cases where the equipment doesn’t need much commissioning to get it back to optimal performance.
Becoming part of the circle
Industry 4.0 technologies now make it possible to significantly extend the life cycle of a component, gaining a detailed understanding of it from when it was first made to when it has nothing more to offer. Being able to monitor its lifespan and usage allows us to measure its overall carbon footprint as well as its long-term cost of ownership. Embracing the lifecycle that Industry 4.0 facilitates can enormously benefit your own business, as well as the sustainability of the materials handling industry.
Promtek provides expertise in designing and integrating process control and automation systems for a variety of bulk material handling industries. For more information visit:
https://promtek.com/
