Problem explained
Molds are cleaned and repaired after they stop a press, not before.
How it works today
The plant shapes plastic parts in steel molds, which open and close all day.
Each shot, one filling of the mold, leaves residue that clogs the vents, the thin channels that let air out.
Nobody counts a mold's shots between cleanings, so it runs until a part sticks or plastic leaks out where it closes.
The press then stops mid-job, about nine times per week on the eight molds that stop most, by the plant's downtime log.
What we saw
- On the visit we saw a mold being cleaned inside a stopped press, and no counter on 14 molds on the rack.
- We did not see a mold fail, so the time and plastic lost per stop are our estimates.
What it costs
- Preventing five of the nine stops per week could save about $13,700 per year, after the mold shop's added cleaning hours.
- A freed press hour is money only when an order fills it, so we count 70 percent of them at $55.