Determining Conveyor Parts Availability Guidelines |
Posted: April 15, 2021 |
There are multiple considerations that go into determining what conveyor components to keep on hand as part of convey parts stock. And while every consideration doesn’t apply in every manufacturer’s environment, they all have equal importance to maintaining uptime and production throughput.
Regular maintenance in the form of predictive and preventive maintenance (PdM, PM) schedules and the guidance of manufacturer recommendations will be the chief determinants in the makeup of conveyor parts stock. The leading conveyor manufacturers all include a list of recommended spare belt conveyor parts with each model. This will often take the form of kits that include pulleys, belts, or other common parts.
Importance of PdM and PM to Parts List Guidelines Today’s modern manufacturing needs and production processes are so varied that these lists are just a starting point. That’s because conveyors combine standardized and customized configurations and designs meant to fit highly specific needs. As a result, PdM and PM provide the most accurate determinant of how individual production line processes and schedules are affecting conveyor components over time.
Regular maintenance processes should both drive and inform PdM and PM practices. An integrated and meticulously developed maintenance strategy with the processes, methodologies and updated training of maintenance teams will enable you to perform regular parts audits. These help you develop a parts plan by streamlining the inspection, repair, and maintenance process for your conveyor system.
The goal is to make sure these aspects are part of a holistic approach to maintenance and operational optimization. This provides a production environment with the means to make accurate predictions about which conveyor parts to keep in stock and in what quantity.
Developing a Holistic Parts Database Belts, motors, and other conveyor parts can have vastly different design and operational parameters depending on the chosen manufacturer’s overall conveyor make and model. The customization of an individual conveyor system draws from a conveyor manufacturer’s broader list of make and model-specific conveyor components. Their placement and use within the system will affect how these additional “customized” components will wear over time in each specific production environment. This makes it important to have a conveyor parts and inventory database to make it easier to manage the life cycle of each part, component, section, and the overall system over time. This will contain important information such as:
- Conveyor make and model
Manufacturing evolution and production process changes naturally happen as time goes by. Some result from product and process innovation while market changes or a combination of all three spur others. These change factors can impact throughput demands and even conveyor system configurations (retooling needs).
This is just one reason for creation of a holistic system that tracks every aspect of the conveyor system and the maintenance practices/schedules. Each manufacture can then meet the combination of uncommon and common conveyor operational needs over the conveyor’s life cycle.
The nexus point for such a streamlined system always comes down to the choice of conveyor manufacturer and the systems they have in place for consulting, design, manufacturing and parts ordering. If they have developed an extremely holistic system across these aspects, then the ordering of parts can be predictable and simple while eliminating cost overruns and downtime. To learn how Conovey makes parts ordering online a simple, cost-effective and intuitive process, visit our online conveyor parts page.
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