Although Germany is not as severely affected by the pandemic as other countries, changes are nevertheless clearly noticeable. Digitisation is the keyword and the solution for many companies that have suffered heavy losses in turnover due to Corona. Thus, many offline products are migrating to the e-commerce sector, as demand there continues to rise. However, to meet this demand, suppliers have to produce what is sold online. For these companies, this means that all equipment must function smoothly and be state of the art. So what happens if a plant does not meet these criteria?
In this day and age, we tend to want to get rid of the old and acquire the new. In this way, we promise ourselves the greatest possible benefit, the best quality and topicality. But new does not automatically mean the best solution. An advantageous alternative to a new purchase is the adaptation of an existing system, also known as retrofitting.. Through retrofit measures, all main components are brought up to the latest state of the art – from software to hardware.
Since this year, the retrofit specialist AM-Automation has recorded an increase in demand in this area. Retrofit is one of the company’s three mainstays and takes up about 30 per cent of the daily workload. Why many decide in favour of this and against a new acquisition, especially in Corona times, has mainly to do with system availability and implementation time. In order to guarantee this, the plant must function optimally again as quickly as possible. While the planning and realisation of a new building is very time-consuming, retrofit measures, depending on the project, only take about a quarter of the planning time. The implementation itself usually takes place over the weekend. This means that realisation usually takes place within 48 hours without any operational disruptions. Especially in companies where the workload is increasing, this is an elementary decision point. A coherent implementation concept also ensures that the output is not interrupted. Old components for which spare parts are no longer available are replaced by modern parts with at least ten years of availability. This ensures the long-term existence of the plant.
In times of crisis, however, not only realisation times but also costs are an essential decision-making factor. Compared to new construction, retrofit also scores here with a fraction of the effort. The new control concept additionally ensures higher energy efficiency and optimises both time and wear during production. This reduces maintenance costs. In addition, special products or smaller quantities can be catered for more individually.ßerdem kann individueller auf spezielle Produkte oder geringere Stückzahlen eingegangen werden.
AM-Automation looks after its customers from the planning stage through to realisation and after commissioning. With the latest software support, the system can be accessed at any time and in real time, as monitoring is carried out via a VPN connection. Andreas Lehmann and the entire retrofit expert team are available to answer all your questions on the subject of retrofitting.
