It is that time again. Time to clean house.
We are talking about machine maintenance. Not cleaning out the break room fridge or laying off employees. Though, those might need to happen as well. That is up to you.Every spring, as the weather heats up, our service calls increase. This increase can usually be linked to maintenance being postponed or operators making adjustments. So, when you have a slow time there needs to be a to-do list that will keep your machinery in proper working order.
What should be on this list?
Every machine on your production floor has items that regularly need cleaning, changing or adjusting. These items should be listed and this list should be kept for reference. A log of when the maintenance was performed is a great idea. This is a sample maintenance log for a vehicle but the idea is the same as printing equipment. A list of required items is on one side with the dates of completion. A list of unscheduled repairs in on the other.
Each machine would have a different list and all of these logs should be kept together.
Conveyor ovens
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| TRX Conveyor Oven |
- Clean all fan filters
- Clean and check all fan blades
- Clean lint from all surfaces
- Clean lint from inside the control panel
- Clean and oil the drive system. Adjust the chain tension if necessary
- If the oven uses quartz heaters, check with the manufacturer for cleaning instructions and schedule
- Test all the cal-rod heaters
- Clean the conveyor belt
Automatic printers
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| ElectraPrint |
- Clean all surfaces
- Clean all platens
- Check platen rubber for wear. Replace rubber if necessary
- Grease all moving parts
- If this is an air machine, clean the lines and confirm the air connections
- If this is an air machine, maintain the compressor
- Clean all fan filters
- Clean all fan blades
- Clean lint from the control panel
- Clean lasers
- Clean skippy sensors
- Check the chain tension on each print head
- Check carriage stiffness for each print head
- Grease all knobs and replace any that are stripped
- Lubricate the registration gates
Manual printers
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| MasterPrinter |
- Clean all surfaces
- Grease all knob threads
- Replace any broken or stripped knobs
- Grease any open bearings
- Lubricate registration gates
- Check springs for wear and replace suspect springs
- Check gas lifters for leaks. Replace any leaking lifters
- Confirm platen leveling to the print head. Check with the press manufacturer for guidelines on this procedure
Screen room
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| LED Exposure System |
- Clean all glass with glass cleaner
- Clean all surfaces
- Clean all fan filters
- Clean all fan blades
- Replace any non-functioning fans
- Replace any non-LED bulbs that are more than 2 years old
- Clean vacuum rubber and replace if torn or worn
- Clean washout sink. Remove any built up emulsion
Notice a trend?
Yes, CLEAN is the main word here. Most textile printing machinery will last for years with simple cleaning and maintenance. We find that lint build up on fans and filters will cause early failure of electronic parts. Also, unclean registration gates and pivot points will affect the registration of a press.
While we appreciate all of the parts orders that we receive. We know that your costs of downtime and spare parts are higher than your cost of preventative maintenance. Every manufacturer will have a maintenance suggestion for their machinery. If this schedule is followed in your facility, then the life span of your investment will be extended.
