Introduction At a Glance What are change parts? They are the components swapped onto the machine to fit different SKUs. And they take time and money throughout the life of the machine through: Part and part-set costs Storage and management Swapping, adjusting, and verification downtime The way your machine handles change parts – hard-tooled or … Read more
Mean Time Between Failures (MTBF) is a common spec sheet number, and one that many buyers don’t understand. We’ll outline what MTBF is, how to calculate it, and what it means for your line.
Introduction At a Glance Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) measures how often a packaging line is doing what you bought it to do, expressed as a percentage. The formula is simple: OEE = Availability × Performance × Quality Availability is the percentage of planned production time the line was actually running. Performance is the percentage of … Read more
Vertical startup is the achievement of design throughput and stable quality within days of going live, not the event of installation itself. Understanding the distinction transforms how operations leaders evaluate, plan, and contract for equipment projects.
Preventive maintenance performs work on a schedule (every 5,000 hours, every 24 months, every quarter) regardless of equipment condition. Predictive maintenance monitors the actual health of equipment in real time and performs work only when condition data signals that failure is imminent.
© 2026 Copyright Douglas Machine Inc.