Keeping your tire plant running at maximum capacity is vital today. Machinery or IT failures mean downtime and, with systems typically running 24/7, any production lost can simply never be regained. In order to maximize profitability, all the assets in a tire plant must constantly operate at their full potential.
This is why one of the major areas of focus for Cimcorp’s R&D team in recent years has been the development of maintenance-free concepts. As a result, our current systems feature far fewer different components than their predecessors, and require considerably less input in terms of maintenance. Plus, we have developed powerful tools to collect performance and condition data from our solutions in order to facilitate predictive maintenance.
The power of data
We have been using condition-based maintenance for years now in our customer support department. Utilizing the data from a variety of sensors, we can detect when systems are developing problems. This enables us to proactively order spare parts and schedule repairs, minimizing the risk of catastrophic failures. Advances in sensor technology mean that harvesting valuable information about equipment conditions is easier, faster and cheaper than ever too.
Smart factories
Through logistics automation, tire producers are not only realizing efficiency gains in faster and smarter materials handling, but also using data to minimize downtime. In this way, automation helps them to achieve the highest productivity at the lowest cost. Moreover, the Internet of Things (IoT) enables the sharing of such data across multiple sites, which enhances its predictive power. In these Industry 4.0–minded environments, smart factories can collect, communicate and take advantage of data from plant floors across the globe, in real time.
Total support
At many of our customers’ factories, we are responsible for the performance of the entire intralogistics solution with our personnel on site. For all of our customers, support is just a “phone call away.” We take care of everything, from floor-level equipment to the Manufacturing Execution System (MES). While we are analyzing an increasing amount of data from our systems, the experience of our technicians remains the cornerstone of our customer support. This is why we still recommend comprehensive maintenance inspections twice a year.
The human touch
In some scenarios, you cannot beat the senses—sight, hearing, touch and smell—of a technician on the ground. The relationship between the technician and machine could be likened to that between a doctor and patient. A number of factors could cause a patient’s high body temperature, such as strenuous exercise or fever. To understand the significance of any observed condition, the sensible thing to do is to consider all factors in order to reach a clear diagnosis. And so, it is with maintenance inspections—even a short visit—that can often prevent a small issue from escalating into a large and costly one. It is the combination of skilled technical staff and collected system data that provides the key to success in maximizing uptime for today’s tire factories.
Interested in finding out more about our automated intralogistics solutions or customer support services for tire plants? Get in touch to find out how Cimcorp can help you to optimize operations in your tire plant.
Author Ilpo Nummelin