In this post, we will look specifically at how Acumence cuts bodymaker scrap in the can manufacturing industry.
Bodymakers in the Plant
The front end of a beverage can plant is made up of dozens of identical bodymakers. Keeping track of individual bodymaker performance is challenging in the thick of operations.
Additionally, because they look alike, operators and maintenance personnel have a hard time remembering exactly which machine has been causing most of the problems. As a result, a bodymaker is usually not serviced until it becomes a significant operational nuisance.
Malfunctioning Bodymakers
When a bodymaker starts to degrade, the result is usually a higher-than-average number of short cans, a result of wear and tear on the progressive dies. This creates a significant cause of scrap and lost productivity if left unattended. The following image shows the Acumence Realtime Client tracking the number of short cans.
Acumence Keeps Track
With Acumence’s high-resolution tracking, performance trends can be clearly identified before performance degrades to the point of major negative impact.
Users can view production efficiency for each bodymaker in the Acumence Client. It tells users exactly which bodymakers have higher-than-average scrap or downtime. Users can drill down further and see if a certain bodymaker is showing an increasing frequency of short cans.
With this information, the plant can prepare new tooling, and service the machine before major operational impact occurs. The result is higher productivity from the bodymakers, reduction in scrap, and better production flow through the rest of the process.
In summation, Acumence…
- Keeps track of performance trends before performance degrades to the point of major negative impact
- Increases productivity of bodymakers
- Reduces scrap
- Enables a better production flow through the entire plant process
