Research shows the average packaging facility loses 5% to 20% of its annual productivity to unplanned downtime. However, recent studies show this may be a conservative estimate, and packaging facilities may underestimate this by a whopping +200%.
Today, 80% of savvy manufacturers rely on preventive maintenance to avoid costly unplanned downtime. This proactive approach not only saves time, money and labor but also significantly reduces the risk of unexpected disruptions in high-stakes manufacturing environments.
The question is, how do you implement preventative maintenance effectively? What’s the process you should follow for your unique equipment, particularly in medical or healthcare operations?
This article explores how to reduce downtime and keep your packaging lines running strong. It also covers how preventive maintenance and Serpa’s U.S.-made machinery deliver unmatched performance, compliance and cleanability — plus the benefits of expert third-party support.
Why Packaging Machine Maintenance Can Avoid 4 in 5 Instances of Downtime
Extensive downtime can be disastrous for sensitive and highly regulated packaging environments, especially for pharmaceutical packagers, medical device manufacturers, nutraceutical brands, and similar industries. The numbers don’t lie:
- The average manufacturing or packaging operation experiences 15 hours of downtime per week, which translates to frustrated customers and millions of dollars in lost revenue.
- Most packaging companies lose $260,000 per downtime incident, up to $2 million per year for the average business.
- A whopping 40% of all workplace accidents take place during downtime, adding more costs, complexity and downtime considerations to an already expensive and stressful event.
While it’s impossible to avoid all instances of downtime, as many as four in five could be offset with preventative maintenance.
Research shows roughly 80% of all unplanned downtime is due to equipment failure rooted in poor equipment care. This means regularly surveying your equipment and providing general maintenance can dramatically reduce the risk of unexpected outages — as well as the side effects listed above.
How to Maintain Your Packaging Line With Preventive Maintenance
Preventive maintenance plays a role in improving overall productivity, shrinking MRO inventory and improving customer service workflows. You simply need to learn how to implement it correctly.
Here’s the seven-step process required to make it happen:
1. Build a Preventive Maintenance Schedule
Only 10% of industrial facility equipment technically “wears out,” meaning the remaining 90% are designed to work a lifetime or longer. This means the vast majority of equipment failures are avoidable with a preventative maintenance schedule, preferably with regular visits to avoid unplanned downtime.
You may want to proactively schedule inspections, cleanings and part replacements based on recommended guidelines or expert support. A good rule of thumb is to write down daily, weekly and monthly tasks (think lubrication, general cleaning or replacing belts on high-wear equipment).
Speaking of replacing belts, it’s wise to purchase equipment designed for longevity with easy access points that simplify routine maintenance. That way, your internal team or third-party support can quickly provide maintenance without extended periods of downtime.
2. Choose Equipment Designed for Reliability
Considering the world’s biggest manufacturers can lose up to $1 trillion per year from failing equipment, it pays to plan ahead with high-quality, highly reliable equipment. The equipment you choose should remain within your budget without skimping on quality, availability, maintenance access, and productivity capabilities.
For packagers in regulated industries such as dairy, medication or cosmetics, Serpa USA-built packaging machinery is an increasingly popular option. All equipment is proudly designed and manufactured in the U.S. and built with high-quality materials and craftsmanship that both meet and exceed customer expectations.
Serpa’s equipment easily accommodates preventative maintenance with access ports and forward-thinking design. A few examples of our equipment include:
- FM100 Continuous Motion Cartoner: Features a built-in preventative maintenance program accessible via HMI.
- FG Carton/Tray/Case Former: Designed for easy maintenance with tool-less changeovers and robust construction.
- FM150 Intermittent Motion Beverage Cartoner: Maintenance-friendly changeover takes 10 minutes or less.
For all these reasons and many more, Serpa offers some of the most reliable machinery in the packaging industry. Users enjoy 98% uptime guaranteed due to simplified maintenance, easy operations and best-in-class operational support.
3. Utilize Advanced Diagnostic Tools
Preventive maintenance pairs well with predictive maintenance, which is defined as using software or systems to diagnose problems before they start. Think of it like bloodwork for manufacturing equipment: If anything looks “off,” you can assess and correct the root cause quickly.
Some packaging equipment comes with built-in diagnostics so you don’t need to purchase secondary tools.
Case in point: Many Serpa machines, such as the FM100 Cartoner, feature integrated HMI-based maintenance programs that alert operators to wear and service intervals. They also allow you to monitor real-time machine health and quickly address problems before they get worse.
Imagine a team member receiving a real-time alert indicating a potential issue with your packaging machinery. With advanced diagnostic tools, they can quickly pinpoint the root cause, whether it’s low fluids, a disconnected cable or a jammed product.
This allows them to address the issue immediately or bring in additional support, boosting the reliability and uptime of your packaging equipment.
4. Invest in Operator and Technician Training
Approximately 73% of equipment maintenance operators say it can be difficult or impossible to hire new maintenance technicians. What’s more, only 55% have formal methods of sharing information between technicians.
This means if you only have one technician running maintenance on a critical machine, a sick day, vacation or a two-week notice could significantly impact your uptime.
You may wish to search for professionals like Serpa offering training and support to ensure your team knows how to maintain and operate each system. This not only democratizes maintenance, but potentially cuts costs — between 15% and 98% according to government surveys.
5. Keep Critical Spare Parts On-Hand
If manufacturing equipment does fail on you, a small inventory of common parts could prevent you from prolonging downtime periods. You may want to stock up on high-wear items to drastically reduce delays caused by part ordering.
What if you could eliminate downtime surprises? With Serpa’s Annual Service Plans, you gain access to early detection of part wear and failures, reducing spare parts cost. For even more advanced support, our plans also offer augmented reality assistance through headsets.
6. Leverage Nationwide Technical Support
Approximately 88% of manufacturing facilities outsource some or all of their maintenance operations (an average of one in four tasks). This offers significant cost savings in comparison to in-house technicians, and depending on your equipment, could potentially avert maintenance snafus such as missed warning signs.
It may be wise to partner with a third-party provider offering external support for packaging maintenance needs. For example, Serpa employs a nationwide network of service technicians. We also provide a PMMI Certified Trainer Program to provide the highest level of confidence to both companies and end-consumers.
7. Focus on Your Unique Industry Tools
No two packaging machines are exactly alike — and neither are their use cases, customers and goals. For example:
- Pharma packaging systems meet stringent industry regulations and offer tool-less, repeatable changeovers to minimize downtime between runs.
- Packagers in the dairy industry must follow sanitation, speed and testing guidelines with low-touch, low-impact tools that do not introduce contaminants to products.
- Nutraceutical producers are subject to the Federal Food, Drug and Cosmetic Act and must produce safe, sanitary, highly stable products via machinery that can be easily cleaned.
A trusted industry expert like Serpa can develop a tailored preventive maintenance schedule built around your specific equipment, compliance standards and business goals. Our team is ready to help you create a custom plan that keeps your packaging workflow running smoothly and efficiently.
Serpa: The Easiest Way to Reduce Packaging Machine Downtime
Preventive maintenance doesn’t have to be complicated, but creating a plan is just the beginning. The real impact comes from putting it into action by aligning plant managers, maintenance teams and key stakeholders around the process.
Need external support for staying accountable? Serpa employs experienced service technicians located across the country who are ready to assist you with troubleshooting, parts, training, and maintenance strategies and keep your packaging lines running smoothly.
Reach out online to our trained team of professionals, and one of our technicians will follow up right away.