Who Should Do Your Repairs?

When a machine fails, what do you do? In some facilities, high-priced engineers are called in to do troubleshooting and repairs on the machine. These are the guys who know this particular machine inside out and backwards, and over the decades they’ve been working in the factory they’ve perfected their knowledge and can get you back up and running fast.

Or that’s how it used to be. Now most of those guys have retired or are about to. The closest you might now be able to get is a contracted service.

You could also have repairs done at the factory… if you can get through to the manufacturer instead of seeing the salesperson for the manufacturer. If you end up with the salesperson, which is likely, you may find yourself ordering a brand new upgraded replacement instead of a repair.

It’s tempting to turn instead to a local handyman or third party repair shop. This is something you can often repent at leisure. They may not have any experience with your specific machinery. They may not have access to the original parts. They may be unable to align your motor properly. They may not actually be able to repair your motor at all, but they may do their best and then try to make it look roughly the same as when they picked it up, so that you have no idea what they’ve done until the motor fails again.

The problem is, downtime can be the biggest cost when your machinery needs repair. It’s not the repairs or the parts that add up. It’s the time your machinery is down and your workers are standing around being paid while they can’t work — or being sent home, with possible loss of your most valuable workers if they can’t tolerate the loss of income and go work for your competitors instead. It’s the number of units you could have produced in that time, and the profit you would turn on each unit if they were being made. It’s the electricity being used while nothing is produced. It’s the customer goodwill you lose by not getting those units out the door.

Problems mount if the repair is not completed adequately and has to be redone.

Who should complete repairs for your facility? The answer will be different in different circumstances, depending on your needs and resources. But one thing is sure: it doesn’t make sense to try to cut corners. Find the right solution so you can complete your repairs with confidence — and get back to work.

 

Photo credit: Stuck in Customs via Foter.com / CC BY-NC-SA

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