WHEELABRATOR launched a new digital tool that tracks and displays the overall effectiveness of a shot-blasting machine in the wider context of plant production. It allows machine operators to identify issues and bottlenecks that cause their blast machines to run below the optimal level, with a view to continuously improving production and saving time, money, and resources.
The “Machine Effectiveness” tool was developed in conjunction with the Norican Group’s Digital Lab on the Monitizer IIoT platform.
It is the fourth digital tool launched by Wheelabrator for addressing problems and cost drivers of running shot-blast equipment.
The new tool is particularly useful in highly integrated settings with inline shot-blast machines (i.e., advanced molding lines) where all parts of the line have to be in tune with each another to achieve maximum performance and efficiency.
“Most blast machine operators currently have no easy way of tracking their machine’s operating mode. They don’t have an overview of periods of downtime or idle time and their causes, whether it’s faults, delays at the point of loading/unloading, maintenance or breaks,” according to Wheelabrator’s Heinrich Dropmann, SVP, Global Wheel:
“That means they cannot compare the efficiency of different product runs or shifts, or pinpoint where something’s not running smoothly and why. Our new tool gives them instant access to all of this information to identify bottlenecks, reduce idle time and operate the machine ever more efficiently and productively. It can be retrofitted really easily for an instant performance boost.”
To deploy Machine Effectiveness tool or any of its other digital tools, Wheelabrator can digitally enable virtually any type of shot-blast machine, new or old, using its NoriGate data gateway and Monitizer | DISCOVER software.
Learn more at www.wheelabratorgroup.com