Your equipment and machinery is the lifeblood of your sheet metal forming operation. Without high-quality equipment performing at maximum proficiency, it is almost impossible to continue to meet production schedules and keep your business operating efficiently. Buying new equipment is a major expense and is not always in the budget. Fortunately, there is another option. In many cases, equipment and software can potentially be brought up to the current standard through carefully considered retrofit services.
In order to help you decide if a retrofit or replacement is the better option for your operation, we've put together some guidelines for equipment performance, downtime, repair costs, and safety considerations.
Machine and Equipment Retrofitting vs. Replacement
In many cases, retrofitting an aging piece of equipment can be a more cost-effective and time-efficient solution than full replacement, restoring an older, well-maintained machine to a level of performance that may surprise you. That older machine may be very capable mechanically for years to come, but aging electronics can make it impossible to keep that machine in top operating condition.
In order to determine if a retrofit is suitable, a professionally trained service technician should provide the following services:
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Tear down machine
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Clean machine
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Inspect all components
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Identify broken or excessively worn parts and provide potential replacement costs
By weighing the potential costs of getting a machine up to standard in terms of replacement parts vs. purchasing a replacement machine, you can make an informed decision about the best investment for your business. In simple terms, replacing worn parts and choosing a retrofitted software solution can often be a faster and more economical solution if older equipment has been well maintained.
Control Retrofitting from Mestek Machinery
Mestek Machinery understands the investment that our customers put into their equipment, and while we can’t control constant changes in software updates, we can certainly provide solutions to bring older equipment back up to current standards. Mestek Machinery continues its role as an industry leader by providing equipment control retrofits for both its starter and complete duct lines and its plasma and waterjet cutting tables.
Mestek Machinery will design, program, and build a complete replacement control system for your older Mestek Machinery plasma, waterjet, or coil line. Each new control we supply is quality checked to meet rigorous performance standards.
Supplied With Each New Control Application:
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Solid state components with industrial grade touch screen
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Intuitive user interface provides At-A-Glance operational assessment
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Status messages prompt user for required information
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New operator manual and complete electrical drawings
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Designed to NFPA 79-Standards for Industrial Machinery
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New drive and motor for brake
Optional & Add-Ons:
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Controls capable of supplying future expansion and updated add-ons
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Electric roll drive
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Hydraulic CDA
Learn more about Mestek Machinery Controls Retrofitting here.
Beyond Retrofitting: Rebuilds, Reconditioning, and More
Mestek Machinery offers services for older and used equipment to bring it back to life and up to par to meet modern needs of sheet metal forming industry. We offer services for used equipment including rebuilds, retrofits, and reconditioning. Depending on the condition of the machinery and the future uses for the machinery, Mestek Machinery can help you determine which service is best.
Rebuilds and reconditioning services are available for all Mestek Machinery brand machines: Engel, Lockformer, Roto-Die, and Iowa Precision.
Visit our page on Machine and Equipment Rebuilds, Reconditioning, and Retrofitting for more information and to request a 1-on-1 consultation with our equipment experts today.