Tag: efficiency

Change Waste to Resource

Written on by John Henry

Basic physics tells us that matter can’t be created or destroyed, only transformed. When we transform matter, we get a combination of something useful plus waste. That proportion of usefulness to waste is efficiency.

We are all, always, focused on improving efficiency. If we are not, we should be. Most of what we do in this area focuses on reducing the amount of waste and that is as it should be. We will never get to 100% and we will always have waste. Perhaps more attention should be focused on what to do with the waste. Once the waste can be used, it is no longer “waste”.

Up to the mid-1920s cars used lots of wood and Ford had its own forests. Converting trees to lumber generates a lot of waste that must be disposed of. It can be burned, but unless the heat from burning can be used, that is just another form of waste.

Ford found an economical way to make a plastic, that could be used in Ford cars, from the “waste” wood. He converted the wood from waste to money.

In his biography, My Life and Work, Henry Ford tells how one process generated scrap metal disks that had to be disposed of. One of the workers found that, by using a double thickness of the “waste” disks, they could be stamped into radiator caps. They converted the disks from waste to money.

I once did some work with a pasta manufacturer. They dried spaghetti by draping it over hooks. When dry, they broke off the “U” shaped pieces and gave them to a farmer for animal feed. Someone in the plant had the idea that kids might like small pieces of spaghetti and they started packaging and selling it as “Hook Spaghetti”. They converted the hooks from waste to money.

What do you do with your waste? Are you paying to have it hauled away? Can you convert it from waste to money?

Yes, it is always preferable not to have any waste. Yes, we need to be constantly battling against waste. We’ll never get it all so we also need to be thinking about how to convert it from waste to resource.

To learn from a master how this is done, read Henry Ford’s 3 books: My Life and Work, Today and Tomorrow and Moving Forward

Equipment Automation: Efficiency

Written on by frain-sales

What is the source of your plant inefficiency? Does it come from lack of training, damaged product, minimum/slow production, machine set-backs, material costs, or labor?

All the above has the potential to negatively impact your efficiency resulting in minimal production and profit.  The best and fastest way to improve efficiency is by automating an existing process.

An automatic application can usually at least double the output of any given process. Automatic packaging or processing machinery typically requires no operator, little to no supervision, and can run 24-hours per day with proper maintenance.

It’s fair to note that efficiency goes hand in hand with production and the goal is to achieve maximum output with minimum expense.

Many companies and individuals interested in automating their process fail at justifying the cost of automation. Corporations weigh out their options, but occasionally miss a few angles that include leveraging the cost of operators, benefit packages, production, efficiency, and more.

Shedding light on these hidden costs can easily justify rapid automation.  If the cost of your efficiency is weighing you or your company down, then it’s time to address the issue.

With the help of Frain, you can be as efficient as you are meant to be.  We offer the largest packaging and processing equipment inventory, accommodating rental and leasing options, and the quickest delivery in the industry.

Intelligent Automation

Written on by frain-sales

A highly-fantasized process, automation can be as simple as auto-updating computer programs or as complicated as a packaging system of automatic equipment. Though automation has highly reduced time and labor when properly implemented, intelligent automation will help adapt to new technologies and innovations.

In effect, the goal of a smart and automatic packaging line is to optimize the production using multiple variables including computer vision, robots, or other artificial intelligence/technology, thus intelligent automation.

Take for example, a manufacturing robot can be programmed to efficiently perform unique tasks in different industries and in one or more patterns. In the confection industry, a pick and place robot may be used to package chocolates in a container while the same pick and place robot may be used to handle/sort parts in the automotive industry.

Compiling and analyzing information is another equally important part of intelligent automation. Smart automation systems, for instance, collect data and use it to learn, adapt, and increase the efficiency of a process. Companies, such as Audi and Volvo, for instance, are using big data, including map grids, to introduce self-driven vehicles in the future.

Some individuals maintain that there is data that implies that consumers want less variation and more consistency when it comes to certain products. In fact, I recently read a consumer complaint on twitter that highlighted a discrepancy on the amount of frosting on a Pop Tart: “I’VE NEVER IN MY LIFE BEEN SO DISRESPECTED. @PopTarts411”. Another consumer described faulty brushes: “So I got new @kyliecosmetics lip glosses…. SO disappointed in this product. That wand is unacceptable”.

Both consumers brought up two great concerns: Why are the same items different from one another? What happened to quality control?

Solution to those questions can be provided with the use of intelligent automation of packaging and processing equipment. At Frain, we can help you automate intelligently – and quickly – by enhancing your production/packaging performance and efficiency while at the same time ensuring product quality.

Our trusted integration service, automation machinery, and project delivery speed sets our customers apart from their competitors.

Which Came First?  The Machine or The Price?

Written on by frain-sales

When buying, renting, or leasing machinery – start-ups or well-established companies will want a quick take on the price of the machinery.

Even if equipment buyers are in the early stages of understanding what they need, they will want to lock down some semblance of investment early on within their project.

It’s a chicken and egg scenario.  The answer to the question –  “How much will this machine or equipment line cost me?” –  is found only by knowing what exactly you want and what you ‘re willing to invest right now.

You can get a machine that is guaranteed not to work for very little cost.

You can also buy a brand new machine that is overkill for what you really need.  You end up buying too much machine.

 

The devil is in the details.  Here are some key questions to have answered before you shop your next machine:

  • What product are you running?
  • What size of your package or container?
  • What volumes/speed?  (10 per minute = 4,000+ units/day)
  • When do you need to have the machine or line up and running?

Additional questions:

  • How long will you need the machine?
  • Do you have any space / footprint limitations?
  • How are you handling this now / reason for change / people involved and level of experience?
  • What are your main questions / concerns / goals in deciding on the machinery?

 

Once you contact our engineers with the answers to these questions – we can comb our inventory of 9,000 machines and provide you options for one machine or entire packaging lines to best fit your specifications.  We can also provide you terms (rental, lease, purchase) and services (training, start-up) that put you in position to succeed.

 

The Need for Speed

Written on by frain-sales

As Tom Cruise said in the 80’s classic, Top Gun, “I feel the need – the need for speed.”  Many of our customers get in a rut when thinking of the containers per minute for their current or upcoming application. Most select a velocity that they would want versus the rate they need.

Often, we speak with customers that “want 30 or more containers per minute but need an output of 530 per hour”. Of course, the numbers do not match, and only after discussing key factors to determine the actual speed required can our engineering team effectively begin to help customers.

The bottom line is realistically figuring out how many truckloads or pallets you’re shipping per day and work backward from there.  You’ll also want to factor that rarely are you ever running at full speed for the entire day, week, etc.

Here are items to consider calculating speed:

  • Production requirements
  • Production efficiency
  • Decrease/increase in demand

A higher capacity is required as business grows, and understanding the need for speed is key to evolving any business. Keep in mind that Frain not only provides machines, we provide services, engineers, technicians, and educational resources to guide our customers throughout every step of their application.

Optimizing Washroom Efficiency

Written on by John Henry

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If you work in Food, Beverage, Pharma, or other other industries, you have a washroom. There you wash machine parts, changeparts, implements (like spatulas and trays), mixers, and more.

You need to think of this as a production operation to maximize efficiency. Here are some ideas to help you:

  • Detergents: Detergents need to be measured. Several suppliers offer pre-measured packets. If they don’t have what you need, make your own using Ziplock bags. This assures proper amounts and saves time measuring at point of use.
  • Sink level: You need the right amount of water. Instead of filling your sink by eye, engrave the target fill level in the sink. Another improvement is to add a flow meter or a level control to automatically shut off when full.
  • Faucet: Some sinks seem to take forever to fill with the standard faucet. Add a high flow faucet (1-1/2″ or 2″) for faster filling. Leave the smaller faucet for rinsing or for when a small quantity of water is needed.
  • Drain: Same as above. Add a large capacity drain to the sink so that it can be emptied quickly.
  • Brushes and sponges: Try a variety of different brushes to find the ones that work best for you. Then add a shadowboard above the sink to make sure the right brushes are always handy.
  • Sink mounted brushes: Bartenders often use brushes that are permanently mounted in the sink for cleaning glasses. These are available with both fixed brushes and powered brushes. They keep the operator from having to juggle both the brush and the piece being cleaned.

*Bonus Tip*
Cold glue labelers are messy with lots of parts. One bottling plant mounted a $350 home dishwasher next to the labeler under a workbench to wash all the parts. It may not be very heavy duty but even if you have to replace it every couple years, it is still a bargain.

Next time you are in your washroom, look at it with a critical eye. I’d be willing to bet real money that you can improve the process.

Measuring the Cost of Inefficiency

Written on by John Henry

You’re buying a new high speed vertical Form-Fill-Seal machine and have narrowed the choice down to two. Overall, they seem identical but one costs $200,000 the other $300,000. The only difference is that the first machine will run at 75% efficiency and the other at 77%.

Which machine do you buy? Are you willing to pay an extra $100,000 for an extra 2% efficiency? I suspect that most people will say no. It just doesn’t feel like it is worth it and there doesn’t seem to be a way to quantify the cost of the 2% loss.

Until a couple years ago I was the same way. It just seemed like too little to be worth that much money. Then Rich Frain and I wrote our book, Secrets of Buying Packaging Machinery. In the financial chapter I addressed the cost of downtime and how to evaluate it. I realized that that inefficiency was simply a form of downtime and could be evaluated similarly. After talking with several Black Belts, including my go-to expert Vivienne Henry, the concept proved valid and we published it.

Here’s the insight:

A line is running at 100% efficiency, has 0% downtime. Running at 0% efficiency, it has 100% downtime. Assuming linearity, downtime percentage corresponds inversely to the efficiency percentage.

A line running at 50% efficiency will have the equivalent of 50% downtime. A line running at 75% efficiency will have the equivalent of 25% downtime.

In our example, assuming a 2,000 hours per year of scheduled production, the $200,000 machine will run 1,500 hours and the $300,000 machine will run 1,540 hours (or an additional week).

If both machines run 100ppm, 40 hours is worth 240,000 additional products for sale. If each product brings an additional 50 cent margin, that is an additional $120,000 margin, every year. Payback on the additional purchase price is about 10 months.

Not too shabby.

I’ve simplified to illustrate the concept, but even when you start adding other factors, two key concepts remain:

  1. Efficiency can be quantified in terms of time, production and money.
  2. Even minimal efficiency gains pay off big.

Next time you think 1-2% is not enough to worry about, think again.