In today’s world of plastics manufacturing, we are more focused than ever on prices, costs, and expenses. Also, in the international market place, those sales margins are squeezed. Fortunately, with creative methods to increase productivity while reducing waste, efficiency-minded processors that are aware of these important economic principals can succeed and get ahead. Who knows where that could lead you in your career. I give your three important points below, but the true secret is to implement a Cost Savings Analysis. With this tool, you can show your boss what financial savings you can provide.
Observe and reduce waste – Always know what everything costs. Engineering materials can be very expensive, and even commodity resin prices change monthly. Stay on top of what resins cost and regularly update your Cost Savings Analysis. Approximate resin prices can be found weekly in most trade publications.
Use time more wisely –The costs associated with down-time and loss of production can be enormous. Reduce scrap rate and increase productivity by keeping the machine clean with a high performance purge compound. Otherwise you’re just wasting more time and more production resin. A little amount of purge can save you a lot of time. Log the amount of time between jobs on your CSA.
Preventative maintenance mindset – Take care of your processing equipment. Job changes need to go swiftly and you must be prepared for you upcoming production runs. Properly clean out your previous material before changing temperatures. Also, avoid leaving material in the barrel for extended periods time.
If you keep these points in mind and log your processing data into the CSA, you can start saving your company substantial time and money. I can’t think of any better way to make a good impression on your boss.
Learn how to reduce machine downtime with five quick purging compound tips for your injection molding application.