Learn about the importance of having the right leak inspection system integration and how it saves you money.
If you oversee a production line that produces containers, you are focused on producing as many usable containers as possible, while minimizing your scrap production. Each unfit container that is produced eats into your valuable margin.
We know that it is an exhaustive effort to prepare a production line to manufacture a new container. From laying out the new line to determining which equipment will perform best based on the bottle specifications to ramping up your production with as few errors as possible.
If you can accomplish all of that without error, you are in great shape.
But we have found that there are several barriers that arise to prevent you from achieving your goal: produce usable containers while minimizing scrap production.
Production Delays
False rejects and false positives
Lost revenue
All of the above issue ultimately eat into your profit margins and result in lost revenue.
When errors arise, this may indicate a glitch in the quality assurance process.
While having leak inspection equipment in your production process is a great starting point to preventing manufacturing errors, there are several components that factor into your overall production success.
Improper equipment selection and configuration to fit your process
Configuring your inspection equipment to your manufacturing equipment and process is the first critical step you can take. Certain equipment works better together. If this is not considered, your process could be offline before it ever starts.
Just take it from our Business Development Manager, Dan Caverly:
“If you are producing bottles on a 2-step machine – my mind shifts directly to our rotary platform and our available value-add options, like additional gate inspection sensitivity, being these are fast, high-output PET machines. If a converter says they are manufacturing via extrusion – I know that speeds will be much slower, but they probably run several HDPE bottles and would value flexibility and a different set of options, like inclusion inspection, vs the company or application using a 2-step PET blow molding process. Having multiple leak detection platforms and options allows us to recommend the correct leak detector for the not only the bottle application(s) at hand, but also the big picture around the blow molding platform/machine anchoring the line.”
Quality assessments are not properly quantified – no expectation standard set with your clients
Testing sensitivity is an often-overlooked capability of inspection equipment. For instance, many testers cannot accurately detect a hole size smaller than a paper clip’s diameter. This is often due to their testing air pressure requirements which, if too strong, can distort the results because it may distort the shape of the bottle. The lower the pressure required for each container test, the more accurate the test can be.
Service and support are unavailable or slow to respond, amplifying your downtime
Even the greatest inspection equipment is useless if it is not operational. When equipment runs into issues, how quickly and easily can such issues be resolved? The post-sale support is just as critical as the equipment itself when considering tester options.
Many assume that leak inspection equipment is capital that provides no measurable return on investment.
The truth is that the right leak inspection strategy can increase your margin by producing less scrap and keep your operation online as much as possible. This ultimately differentiates you as a manufacturer and empowers you to win and retain more business.
Ask yourself the following three questions. If you cannot answer YES to all of them, ALPS Inspection can help.
ALPS Inspection implements solutions that consider your entire production process, not just your equipment needs:
Everything you need and nothing you do not.
Contact our team today to set up an equipment audit of an existing production line or free consultation for an upcoming one.