Downtime is a time-consuming and expensive disruption for tissue converters. It can be managed in some instances — such as for machine maintenance. By and large, though, downtime is a detriment that the American Productivity and Quality Center (APQC) estimates accounts for losses of up to $1.20 for every $20 in revenue.1
That’s a potentially steep price to pay, yet accurately calculating downtime eludes many tissue converter management teams, in some cases being underestimated by as much as 300%.2
Understanding the causes of downtime — not just the cost of it — is imperative for tissue converters. Maximum Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) and, ultimately, profitability hinge on the knowledge, as does implementing appropriate solutions.
Helping converters to identify downtime triggers and prevent them from interfering with productivity was the impetus behind the Tissue Performance Center.
A customer-centric control center, the Tissue Performance Center allows ongoing monitoring of Körber machines installed on production lines throughout the world.
Equipment data continuously gathered and stored through Microsoft Azure cloud computing services gives expert engineers and company data scientists uninterrupted — and unprecedented — access to information on any given machine’s status. In turn, the Tissue Performance Center team can proactively suggest performance improvements to maximize overall production line OEE.
Direct Connectivity
The insights provided by the Tissue Performance Center are the result of direct connectivity. By choosing to have Fabio Perini equipment interfaced with the Tissue Performance Center, converters are better able to:
- Understand the causes and impacts of downtime that lead to the loss of production time and performance capacity.
- Identify and implement time- and cost-effective solutions for increasing tissue converting efficiency.
- Compare a machine’s current and historic production data and parameters (output, engine temperature, settings, etc.) to maintain production standards.
Likewise, direct connectivity provides opportunities for Körber experts within the Tissue Performance Center to:
- Constantly monitor equipment operation.
- Use Microsoft IoT technologies and customized dashboards to gather, aggregate, and compare equipment data.
- Remotely implement corrections to enhance production line OEE.
- Detect possible causes of malfunctions and administer predetermined action plans for resolution.
- Generate performance reports, perform background analyses to evaluate situational cause/effect, and control certain production elements such as energy consumption during converting processes.
Next-Level Customer Service
The Tissue Performance Center isn’t solely focused on production line performance. The platform is also capable of detecting anomalies on Fabio Perini equipment by noting discrepancies between expected data and that actually reported by the machine.
Anomalies trigger next-level customer service for converters connected to the Tissue Performance Center. In the event of an anomaly — for example, three alarms triggered within a six hour timeframe — sms or email alerts are issued to converters so they can check the status and rectify the situation, with or without the remote help of Körber experts.
Further, converters using the Tissue Performance Center receive a weekly report from Fabio Perini detailing the overall health of the line and suggested solutions for maximizing performance. True to the Körber commitment to exceptional customer service, all of the documentation is supported by a priority channel of remote assistance from a dedicated technician. This expert is assigned to individual customer converter lines and is tasked with guiding each toward achieving their OEE goals.
What’s Next?
Not surprisingly, a second phase of the Tissue Performance Center is already in development. The big data stored in the Microsoft Azure cloud during the initial phase is proving useful for predictive analyses that find patterns in uncorrelated data and suggest solutions. Converters can then rely on the platform to plan preventive maintenance of the equipment, reducing line disruptions and stops, and ultimately augmenting OEE and production outcomes.
Fabio Perini and its collaborative partners continue to push the boundaries of what’s possible en route to a future where machines are capable of autonomously interpreting their own data and adjusting to optimize their individual performance.
The Tissue Performance Center is a substantial step forward, and we welcome the opportunity to discuss how we can put it to work for you. Contact Körber today!
SOURCES
1Presenso, Will IIoT Result in a Shift from Downtime Dollar Savings to Uptime Revenue Generation?, January 24, 2018/p>
2Markets Insider, Garvey Bi-Flo Accumulation Tables Keep Production Lines Running with No Jamming, No Dead Plate, and Easy Changeover, September 17, 2019
