Originally Posted by
haastec
IMO most people do not see the value in such a service relative to the cost unless some type of unknown or potential problem is found during the PM.
How many people take their car/truck in to the dealer for PM work or just to have it looked over once or twice a year? If they charged you even 300 bucks and they said all was good, no problems. Most, I feel, would drive away thinking it was a waste of time and/or money, or wonder if they even did anything.
Now if they came back and said they discovered and fixed a potential problem that could have easily resulted in a several thosand dollars repair, then you would feel you got a good deal.
Bottom line is some people value the service as a true long term reduction in expenses and/or down time while others are willing to gamble that the money saved will far exceed any expenses that arise from unknown repairs.
Who is right and who is wrong? Let me know when you find out.
Overall, paying the high prices that are charged for periodic maintenance by factory service personnel is not a money saving proposition. Maybe if you had 20 machines and a dealer in town---MAYBE. Most of the customers are not located near a factory outlet and of course travel costs kill you. Right now I would pay at least 6 hours travel time for service.
I have maintained my machines for the last 19 years. My 1992 VF-1 is still in service at my former business.
Truth is that the basic maintenance of the Haas machines is pretty simple. If you maintain fluid levels like oils and note if they are not being consumed (like waylube), you can prevent almost any related problem. If I had employees now I would print out a simple daily, weekly, and monthly checklist for the operators to perform. Other than oils and filters, not much else to check to prevent anything.
Little if anything can be done to prevent electrical problems. If the cabinet door is kept closed and why would you not keep it closed, the electronics will stay clean. Sometimes you may get a cable failure, but most of those can be caused by poor cleaning practices getting chips where they don't belong. Unless a tech takes your machine apart, he will not find that anyway. No one is going to agree to replacing servo boards every five years to try to prevent future failures.
I always have operators keep the machines clean. The bulk of the chips cleaned out at the end of the day and thoroughly cleaned out everywhere at the end of the week. An operator who pushes a button then stands there watching is not doing his job. That is the time for light cleaning of external surfaces. I see machines for sale or in some shops that look like they have never been cleaned at all.
I guess the bottom line is that if the operator is smart enough to operate your machine, he or she should be smart enough to read and perform basic maintenance.
Two Haas VF-2's, Haas HA5C, Haas HRT-9, Hardinge CHNC 1, Bother HS-300 Wire EDM, BobCAD V23, BobCAD V28