MACHINERY FEATURE
MANUFACTURING FOR THE FUTURE T
A partnership with Siemens Financial Services is enabling a packaging company to lease its environmentally-friendly machines to customers more easily, flexibly and transparently
here are a number of issues facing UK manufacturers in 2017 with one
particular issue consistently increasing the pressure: the need to invest in or upgrade to new generation production technology in order to avoid being left behind by their competitors. Although 83% of UK manufacturers
report that they have invested in the automation of production processes at some point in the past five years, 31% of those who did not highlighted a lack of investment budget and concerns about the ongoing associated costs as the primary reasons for not doing so. The threat of becoming technologically outdated is very real and means that not investing or upgrading is just too big of a risk for many organisations yet it can be too expensive to action. With bank loans no longer offering a
solution that is flexible enough for some manufacturers, asset finance solutions such as leasing or rental-based options have come to the fore and proved to be an excellent alternative as they offer end clients the option of spreading the cost of equipment over a prearranged period, doing away with the need for large upfront payments. Because the lease cannot be recalled during the life of the agreement these options offer peace of mind to clients who have the option of having the equipment updated or replaced during the lease period. One example of an innovative vendor
finance programme is the arrangement between machine manufacturer to the food and drink industry TrakRap and international provider of business-to-
the savings which are delivered through the use of the equipment. Integrating finance into their sales proposition allows OEMs to facilitate investment in cutting edge equipment and discuss financing with its clients from the beginning of the relationship. For TrakRap in particular the ‘cost per use’ lease has proved to be an important sales tool as it means that it can now offer its innovative technology to a much broader customer base who benefit from the ease, transparency and flexibility of the financing solution.
business financial solutions Siemens Financial Services (SFS). Secondary packaging company TrakRap produces energy efficient packaging solutions for the retail sector, having developed a patented stretch wrapping system that uses 90% less energy and 70% less film than traditional shrink wrapping by removing the need for heat tunnels. As demand for the solution has grown
exponentially TrakRap needed to access a form of finance that would boost its cash flow and make it a more attractive proposition to customers so it turned to SFS to develop a flexible financial product specifically for its business model.
SPREADING THE COST WITH PAY PER WRAP An integral part of the agreement involves SFS paying TrakRap for its equipment before leasing it to the end customer, enabling them to spread the costs for the use of the system over the contractual period on a ‘pay-per-wrap’ basis. The lease costs are then offset by
TrakRap produces energy efficient packaging solutions for the retail sector
ACCURATE ASSESSMENT OF PREDICTED SAVING As a result of the partnership with SFS credit checks can now be processed quicker and customers approved more swiftly while the ‘cost per wrap’ arrangement allows for a more accurate assessment of predicted savings for the end client. Without the need to buy and own the equipment they can benefit from the use of the system without a large upfront capital expenditure while TrakRap receives payment for the machine at the outset of the lease. Working in partnership with a specialist
financier that understands both its business and the needs of its clients has allowed TrakRap to offer the added convenience of a viable financing solution while still remaining focused on its core business, providing its clients with a compelling reason to buy and enabling them to do so without delay.
Siemens Financial Services T: 01753 434333
www.siemens.com/uk
SOFTWARE SIMPLIFIES MACHINERY SAFETY COMPLIANCE
DD IT Solutions has launched COMPLIANCE Risk Software. Based on detailed checklists the software helps users assess and record machinery safety issues in compliance with European standards and regulations. This Software can be used by competent machine designers, control
system designers, safety professionals, consultants and machinery end users. It supports preparation of the Technical File and CE Marking in accordance with the requirements of the Machinery Directive 2006/42/EC as well as CE audits, machinery risk assessments and EN ISO 13849 Control Integrity Assessments. It will shortly be suitable for PUWER (Provision and Use of Work Equipment Regulations) inspections. COMPLIANCE Risk Software is available to purchase; a 30-day demonstration version can be downloaded free of charge. Within the software users organise their work as projects with each
relating to one machine or an assembly of machines. As well as entering the technical details about each, machine users can upload photographs. If the relevant option is selected the photographs are included on the reports generated by the software. User-friendly checklists are used throughout the software; even the most complex requirements of a standard or
regulation are broken down into clear statements with which the user must agree, disagree or dismiss as ‘not applicable’. Where ‘disagree’ is selected the user is prompted to conduct a risk assessment. If ‘agree’ is selected there is an option to add a comment or photograph to demonstrate why compliance is being claimed. EN ISO 12100 compliant risk assessments can be conducted within
COMPLIANCE Risk Software using a Hazard Rating Number (HRN) approach to identify the severity of the risk. For each risk the user simply selects the phrase that matches the Likelihood of Occurrence, Degree of Possible Harm, Frequency of Exposure and Number of People Exposed; an HRN is then calculated automatically, enabling an estimation of the risk to be made. If control measures are necessary to reduce the risk an HRN can be calculated before and after the measure has been applied with accompanying photographs uploaded if desired.
DD IT Solution E:
info@ddits.co.uk www.compliancerisksoftware.co.uk
FACTORY EQUIPMENT | MARCH 2017 17
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