You recently invested in both primary and secondary packaging equipment to ensure all your products are well-individually packed. And in order to maximize this investment, you need to come up with the right maintenance plan. This would help prevent machine downtime, lengthen the service life of your equipment, and ultimately cut costs.

Want to make sure your packaging machine will serve you and your production line for many years to come? Implement these proper packaging machine maintenance tips. 

5 Expert Tips on Packaging Machine Maintenance

1. Inspect the Packaging Machine Regularly

The key to long packaging machine lifespan is preventive maintenance.

It’s important to establish a regular maintenance schedule to prevent issues on the machinery before they even occur. This would also help eliminate unscheduled and expensive downtime.

As such, you need to routinely check your packaging machine for wear components. You also have to ensure that the machine is properly lubricated. It’s also best to keep high wear parts of the machine in stock.

Overall, make sure to strictly adhere to this maintenance schedule (whether the tasks are done on a monthly, quarterly, or annual basis) in order to extend the service lifespan of your packaging machine.

2. Establish Autonomous Maintenance Tasks

In addition to a comprehensive preventive maintenance plan, you should also establish task-based activities for trained machine operators.

Introduce a checklist of the tasks that should be accomplished at regular intervals, whether daily, weekly, monthly, quarterly, or bi-annually. These activities usually include basic cleaning and inspection routines, which help operators become familiar with the packing machinery.

Through this regular training, your operators would be able to detect signs of errors (unusual noise, speed, undesirable motion) in your packaging machine before the scheduled maintenance task. They will ultimately become your first line of defense against expensive machinery downtime and repairs.

3. Choose a Reliable Packaging Machine Manufacturer or Supplier

Ideally, before purchasing a packaging machine, you have carefully selected a manufacturer or supplier that would offer technical services in case the machinery fails. After all, every second count when your packaging equipment is down. And the longer your machine remains non-operational, the more money would cost your business. 

That’s why it’s best to partner with a responsive manufacturer or supplier to provide both electrical and mechanical support. You can rely on them when it comes to important details such as the type of technical service available, contact numbers, and related repair costs.

Furthermore, you should be able to remotely fix problems without the need for expensive and unnecessary on-site visits. Ask the manufacturer or supplier if they provide virtual meetings or video conference calls to help clients with troubleshooting. This type of customer support is more important than ever, especially with the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic.

4. Consider Packaging Machine Upgrades

With technology developing fast these days, you’ll need to upgrade or replace parts of your packaging machine to ensure it stays relevant and working efficiently.

It’s best to keep close communication with your packaging machine manufacturer in order to know the necessary equipment upgrades or learn if a certain part is being phased out. 

5. Invest in Spare Parts

When your packaging machine is down, you don’t want to be waiting for a certain part to be manufactured or shipped⁠. You should fix the machine as soon as possible to minimize the loss of money.

As such, it’s wise to keep spare parts of your machine in stock. You should consult the manufacturer or supplier of your equipment about the list of components needed for emergency replacement needs. This list is typically divided into three separate classes based on wear: high wear, medium wear, and low wear.

1. High Wear Parts – These parts are not standard items and have a shorter lifecycle.
2. Medium Wear Parts – These parts have a longer lifecycle and rarely ever fail.
3. Low Wear Parts – These parts never fail.

Ideally, you should always have an accessible stock of high wear parts in order to fix machinery issues as fast as possible.

Proper maintenance is crucial to your packaging equipment’s longevity and performance. With the right maintenance plan, regular preventive measures, inventory of spare parts, and the manufacturer’s support, you can enjoy the benefits of your machinery as long as possible.

ALSO READ: 8 Steps to Prepare for Your Next Packaging Machine Installation

Need more help in proper packaging machine maintenance? Elixir Industrial Equipment Inc., the leading packaging machine supplier in the Philippines, is committed to supplying its customers with cutting-edge technology, professional installation, and reliable after-sales service. We offer fast response time as well as on-call machine diagnosis and recommended maintenance plans. Contact us today to learn more!

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