How to bring down downtime in manufacturing

For most of us, the word downtime conjures images of relaxation.

- JOHN YOUNG

For plant managers however, downtime is a word that triggers concerns about lost production and lower revenue. That’s especially true for unplanned downtime and there is growing evidence that manufacturers are still unaware of the full impact of the problem. Automation parts supplier, EU Automation (euautomation.com), assesses some of the latest research on manufacturer downtime and the steps manufacturers are taking to address the problem.

A recent report from Senseye based on data from 72 major multinational industrial and manufacturing companies has revealed that cumulatively, Fortune Global 500 companies lose a total of 3.3 million hours per year due to unplanned downtime. The True Cost of Downtime report also found that the average plant in its survey lost US$172 million to unplanned downtime, every year.

The cost of downtime in manufacturing

Accurately calculating downtime costs is a difficult task. Firstly, we need to recognise there are both tangible costs, such as the financial costs arising from lost production, as well as intangible costs such as erosion of customer trust or increased likelihood of workplace accidents. Any financial calculations about the cost of downtime are likely underestimating the true overall cost to manufacturers by ignoring these less obvious and immediate effects.

Secondly, there has until recently been a lack of reliable data upon which to base our judgements. Historically, plant managers relied mostly on human judgement. Nowadays, with the growing availability of connected sensors and data analytics software, a clearer picture is emerging. What is being shown quite consistently in many of these reports, of which The True Cost of Downtime is but the latest, is that when objective data is used as the basis for calculating downtime, the cost is higher than previously imagined.