There is No Such Thing as a Flawless Installation

After 20 years of selling capital equipment to the corrugated industry, I have come to realize that I may have learned a thing or two and wish to pass some knowledge along. At the risk of pointing out the obvious, the first thing you need to know is this: There is no such thing as a flawless installation and startup. Although this is everyone’s goal, it rarely happens the way we plan. The objective here is to minimize the hiccups along the way.

The Boy Scouts of America have a motto: “Be Prepared.” As manufacturing personnel, you owe it to yourselves and your company to be prepared for every possibility. Do your due diligence. Talk to your vendors’ previous customers. Find out how their installation went and what unexpected events came into play. More importantly, find out how those were handled and solved. It will reveal how the company responds, adjusts, and completes the project, which is imperative.

Help From A to Z

As we all know, the purchase of new equipment requires a lot of justification and is a lengthy process, with many to work through along the way. Step by step, defining the hard and soft costs involves planning. There will be throughput studies, manpower studies, and special requirements—e.g., floor space, power requirements (air, electrical, and temperature), installation time frames, downtime, training of operators, helpers, safety, etc. Sometimes the soft costs just slip through the cracks, only to become a surprise later, and can bite you in the shorts down the road. Here are a few questions, A–Z, that you may find a cause for thought and clarification.

1. Always think before and during the installation: What is my all-in cost?
2. Does the project require concrete work?
3. What is expected at delivery, and is it Ex Works, FOB, arrangement?
4. When do you take delivery, i.e., ownership?
5. If an HMI (human machine interface) panel is part of the machine, is it available in additional languages?
6. Will the new equipment require the installation of a T-1 line for communication, diagnostics, and problem-solving? (If so, make sure the IT department has addressed and created a path for the vendor to get through the firewall.)
7. Do you understand the guarantee and warranty? (What does it cover, and when does it start and end?)
8. Are there taxes, and if so, to whom and how much?
9. Are there any state/federal aid, grants, or incentives that may help with the cost of the project?
10. Are there any green savings, e.g., power/energy, air consumption, etc.?
11. Does transportation/delivery OTR require police assistance and approval?
12. What manpower is required for installation with or without the manufacturer’s staff (e.g., electrical, mechanical personnel)?
13. Is training part of the agreement? If so, where is it given, at what cost, when, and what is the cost of extra training if needed?
14. Are there any city permits or approvals that need to be addressed pre- and post-installation?
15. If dealing with an international company, is everything in the quote the same currency?
16. Has someone from the legal department reviewed the sales order/agreement?
17. What happens if there is a problem (e.g., if it arrives damaged, who handles the replacement)?
18. Are there any new insurance wrinkles that need to be addressed?
19. Is there a check or punch list?
20. How about a service contract (quarterly, semi-annual, or annual)?
21. How frequently is there a need to negotiate machine audits?
22. Is there a cost for the necessary schematics and PM schedules for the maintenance department?
23. What if the delivery date is pushed back? Is there a financial credit or compensation? What would be the backup plan until the new piece of equipment arrives?
24. Did you create a slush fund for unexpected costs?
25. Is the power supply adequate for the machine at the installation site (does it require an additional transformer)?
26. If air and water are required, are they readily accessible at the site of install? Who is responsible?

Don’t Forget the Spare Parts

These are but a few of the things that have caused hiccups within a capital project installation.

As manufacturing personnel, you owe it to yourselves and your company to be prepared for every possibility. Do your due diligence.

Dot your i’s and cross your t’s by going over what is needed, what is required, and possible unexpected events. One of the most important items I have recommended over the years is the purchase of the company’s spare parts package. I cannot tell you how many times I have been told that we do not purchase that or believe that we will not use it. However, time after time a situation arises where this package would come in handy. For example, a sheet plant on the West Coast purchased a machine. The sale was consummated with the installation and completion of first-round training. It’s important to note that the plant purchased the machine from an East Coast OEM. The very next weekend, service received a call (third shift on Saturday) that the machine was down and a part was needed ASAP. Even with overnight weekend delivery, they were not able to get the part until Monday morning. Thus, they lost production for an entire day, plus two-thirds of Monday. The part in question was within the company’s spare parts package.

Most manufacturers will look to see if the part in need is locally sourced and provide distributor information, if available. In this instance and many others, the desired part is often not local. I am sure you can see the writing on the wall. Having that spare parts package would have saved the company the additional costs of overnighting (air freight), machine downtime, and the maintenance department’s man-hours locating the problem, spending time on the phone to zero in on the part and make arrangements to get the part

as quickly as possible—as well as the headaches of finding additional work for the operator and helpers on this production line. Bottom line … Do not skimp on the spare parts package. You will avoid the scramble and will be glad you did. Also, the maintenance guys

will appreciate you all the more.

As a side note, AICC and TAPPI are excellent sources of additional information, research, education, events, camaraderie, and so much more. Make sure you attend meetings locally or nationally.

Don Bogardus is vice president of corrugated sales at Can-Am Packaging Equipment Corp. He may be reached at 630-463-8320 or don@canampackaging.com.