Radwell International’s Blog

Being able to maintain equipment is an important part of an operational strategy. Some might argue it is the most important part. In a manufacturing environment, being able to maintain equipment so that it functions reliably is the key to smooth and profitable operations. How can management create a strong maintenance and reliability strategy for their operation? In a recent chat for USA Manufacturing Hour on Twitter, host Neil Hussey from Denco Lubrication Ltd in the UK led a discussion about this very topic.

Having the ability to monitor equipment with real-time capability is a practice that is shown to be important in today’s manufacturing environment. This is directly related to the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) and how we protect our assets. It’s mainly a financially motivated practice, but monitoring systems can assist with altering production in a way that best suits the business.

Obsolescence is an unavoidable part of any manufacturing environment. However, it’s concerning that so many companies admit they do not know when vital equipment requires replacing, or when they do, they scramble to find replacements. The latest developments in additive manufacturing could provide an answer to the obsolescence problems.
Additive manufacturing is a transformative approach to industrial production that enables the creation of components using a variety of 3D-printing techniques.

A sound maintenance plan is key to keeping a factory up and running, as it helps ensure both maximum productivity and minimal downtime. While there are several ways to approach the development of a maintenance plan, the following guidelines are applicable across the board for a wide range of factory types.

If you’re a manufacturing plant manager, what don’t you want to see out to the production floor? Probably a significant number of things, but near the top of that list would probably be a large group of workers congregating around a critical piece of machinery that should be running—yet isn’t. Rarely does such a sight have positive implications.

My name is Matt Gingell and I’m Radwell International’s Building & Aquarium Maintenance Associate.

 My main responsibilities are taking care of over 40 fish tanks. Right now we have 42 that are up and running. That's a total of 7,300 gallons of water.

One of the larger fish tanks is the one embedded in the wall of Brian Radwell’s office. It’s a 650 gallon fish tank that features South American, African, and Central American Cichlids. However, there is also one huge Gourami who is a community fish but is definitely in charge of the tank. 

Remote technology is a growing industry. According to the New York Times, 43 percent of Americans reported in 2016 that they worked remotely for at least part of their workweek. AfterCollege also reported that 68 percent of college graduates surveyed in 2015 said that remote work is one of the most attractive perks that a company could offer. But remote work is not just for people; the concept is changing how maintenance operates, as well. Remote technology can keep workers safer while also saving companies money.

Here are three ways that remote technology is changing the landscape of maintenance operations.

In this day and age, human machine interfaces are everywhere. Think about every point of contact a human has with technology and it becomes a reminder that as humans, we interact with machines in just about every aspect of our lives today. Self-service checkout at the grocery store, plugging an address into your car’s GPS or getting some cash at the ATM are all examples of instances when humans interact with an interface designed to help foster human/machine communication.

As it applies to automation equipment in a manufacturing facility, human machine interface products offer the necessary electronics to easily control automation equipment in an industrial environment. HMI products can range from a simple design with basic screen controls to a more complex touchscreen with numerous features and windows. In most environments, whether for service oriented tasks or in an industrial environment, HMI systems must be resistant to dust, water, moisture, high or low temperatures and even chemicals.

All over the world, manufacturers in the glass fiberizing and glass wool industry are interested in increasing the quality of their products. The Gedevelop GFM System is suited for this process. It works with glass flow and collects data in real time for optimum control of the manufacturing process. This system reduces material costs and shortens production downtime.

How exactly does this system work? The Gedevelop system uses a camera which looks at the glass stream and reads information for stream diameter and stream velocity. The information is then sent to the central unit and based on set parameters, calculates the glass flow. The glass flow meter continuously measures glass flow individually for each fiberizing unit and allows the pull to be controlled within .5%. It also checks that the quality of the glass stream is at the correct level and if it isn’t, the system can make adjustments. This glass flow meter is a
non-contact, optical measurement system that calculates the flow of molten glass that falls from the bushing into the fiberizer. Many installations worldwide have proven that glass flow measurement is a very profitable investment in a short amount of payback time.