It’s a tough time for UK manufacturers; output fell in 2022 and while we’ve seen a rebound in 2023, there’s no doubt that inflationary pressures and supply chain delays continue to cause concern.
However, what isn’t perhaps so widely appreciated is that last year was also reported to be the hottest year on record by the Met Office. Without being alarmist, that is another serious issue that we cannot ignore. Rising temperatures are a global trend and they will have a major impact on your electrical equipment.
If your cooling system crashes, your critical automation equipment will shut down to prevent further damage to its components, and without functioning electrical controls, your production lines will grind to a halt. Not only will this have an immediate impact on productivity, but there will also be further substantive costs to get the plant up and running again.
However tough the trading conditions, not servicing your vital electrical cooling units is almost always a false economy.
Some of the most common benefits regular servicing should confer:
- Satisfying warranties: cooling equipment manufacturers typically require equipment to have been maintained according to their guidelines for the period they are under warranty. Plus, it’s almost always a requirement for extended cover
- Financial savings: as we’ve indicated, electrical equipment is extremely sensitive to heat. Maintaining your cooling units will help ensure your PLCs and drives work within their optimum temperature range, which will improve their efficiency and extend their lifespan.
- Finding replacement parts: it may not be easy to quickly get hold of replacement parts, especially for older electrical equipment. With shortages in global supply chains causing the lead-times for some electronic equipment to be more than a year, businesses are having to find alternative solutions to get their lines back up and running, but not without delay.
- Customer service expectation & order fulfilment: thanks in part to the efficiency of ecommerce deliveries, we’re seeing a higher number of customers demanding shorter order turnaround. Recurrent operational hold-ups caused by production line failures can quickly escalate into cancelled contracts and impact on repeat business.
- Avoiding the sheer hassle of sorting out failing equipment (i.e. the time-is-money argument): hours spent by managers and operators to sort out equipment failures will be a frustrating headache in an already busy working day.
- Avoiding ‘emergency’ call-out expenses: it’s rare that you won’t have to pay more for emergency or out-of-hours service calls where no service contract exists.
- Falling foul of short-term fixes: some well-intentioned attempts to alleviate overheating, such as opening the door of the enclosure, can cause more problems by allowing contaminants such as moisture, dust and dirt to into your drives. These can cause as many issues as excess heat. Not only that, but open panel doors can present a very real risk to health and safety.
Maintaining Your Cooling Units: Next Steps
We recommend that you arrange for a health check of your cooling, so that any necessary remedial measures can be taken before problems arise.
During one of our free RiAssure Service & Efficiency Checks, a member of our experienced Rittal team will inspect up to 10 cooling units. They will offer practical advice on ways in which the units’ effectiveness and energy efficiency may be improved.
For large installations, or where a more technical inspection is necessary, we can arrange for a more comprehensive RiAssure Advanced Service & Efficiency Check, conducted by one of our trained service engineers. They will perform a series of detailed checks on your climate control units and enclosures, gathering the necessary data to resolve more complex issues. We will provide you with written feedback, including advice around adding value to your business and future best practice guidance.
