Maintenance missions (and how to avoid them)
Regular maintenance on pallet wrappers is obviously highly important to deliver a healthy ROI on the equipment. This involves a comprehensive and integrated approach to the unit, ensuring it’s set up correctly, treated with care and frequently assessed by those with the right expertise.
The symptoms
There are a number of issues to look for when assessing how your equipment is actually doing the job. Are you changing rolls before they have even finished? Are strapping tools are not feeding correctly? Are you struggling to create custom settings? Is the wrap not sealing properly?
One key factor – how often are your operators complaining about the machine? After all, they should be happy to be using it. All of these issues may be prevented with an ongoing maintenance schedule, a one-off tech site visit or greater care around the unit from all operators. Of course, sometimes the unit simply won’t start…
One key factor to consider: How often are your operators complaining about the machine?
Common causes of wrapper damage or malfunction
We find there are three main causes of damage to wrapping units. Operator error is a big one. Forklift damage is an issue and can be a costly fix. We’ve also had to warn certain companies to make certain nobody is ‘riding’ the unit – sitting on the cartridge as it goes up and down!
Damage from rubbish or pallet wrap blown under the turntable is another issue – why it pays to always be a tidy kiwi! Finally, blown fuses from power surges have been known to occur.
Setting it right
Make sure you set a password that only the right people know. With too many chefs in the kitchen, it’s easy for settings to be messed with and changed, making the final recipe (a well-wrapped pallet) rather unappetizing. Otherwise, you can write down each setting for the different types of loads so they are easily reset if things go wrong. This is important to get right. Re-setting everything can’t be done over the phone so we often have to send someone out on-site to fix such an issue.
Safety first
Protect your people and your wrapper with a robust and usable safety system. With proper fencing, light barriers and other appropriate processes we can protect your company’s most important resources and avoid unnecessary pain in the future.
Of course, the solution isn’t always simple. That’s why we’ve got our dedicated service department ready to help when things go a bit pear-shaped.
You can request a service or breakdown/ repair through our website here, email us here, or give us a call anytime!
