When machine tools are not making chips you’re not making any money. Fortunately you can reduce or eliminate the main reasons machines go down with these 7 ways to reduce CNC machine tool service costs.
- Buy the right equipment to begin with. No question that buying a CNC machine is a major investment. Unfortunately some companies, hoping to save on the initial cost, purchase a machine tool that doesn’t adequately meet their needs. This means the machine is constantly pushed beyond its capabilities, leading to excessive wear and service costs. Worse, the machine is likely losing accuracy over time so part quality slips, which means more scrap and rework. It’s far most cost-effective to invest in a machine that precisely fits your needs from a machine tool company you can trust. You’ll quickly see the benefits of reduced service costs and consistent part quality.
- Keep key replacement parts on hand. Every machine has some parts that must be replaced over time due to normal wear. By anticipating this need and maintaining a manageable inventory of perishable components, you can save considerable downtime, emergency repairs and the cost of expediting parts shipments. It’s also important that the CNC machine tool builder keeps parts readily available when needed.
- Invest in planned maintenance. One of the easiest ways to reduce service costs is to properly train your staff to perform routine preventative maintenance. Just as your car or truck requires regular care, so do your machine tools. And the frequency of this service depends on the amount of use and severity of conditions. Therefore you need to put a daily, monthly and quarterly maintenance program into place. If you need help staying on top of machine maintenance, consider a Planned Preventative Maintenance Program from Haas.
- Train machine operators and programmers. Most machine mishaps, including serious crashes, happen because someone isn’t as familiar with the equipment as he or she should be. Your machine tool supplier should provide affordable technical training to minimize operator problems.
- Document problems. If you encounter intermittent machine problems, be sure to document the incidents thoroughly. Record machine conditions at the time of the problem, any alarms or indicators, and precisely at which point in the process the problem occurred. The more information you can provide, the better able the service person will be to diagnose and fix the problem, thus saving you time and money.
- Keep machine documentation handy. User manuals should be readily available so that operators can refer to them and possibly head off the need for a service call. The more familiar your people are with these documents, the better able they will be to handle minor adjustments and operate the equipment safely and efficiently.
- Get to know your local service provider. Your Torrance Haas Factory Outlet has trained service technicians equipped with fully stocked service vans who will respond quickly if your Haas machine needs attention. To learn more call (310) 381-0750, email: jphillips@haasfactoryoutlet.com, or visit www.haasfactoryoutlet.com.