Why you shouldn’t delay in changing the Battery in your Automatic Press?
keeping on top of press maintenance is a very important part of running a print shop, the last thing you need is your press failing when you are right in the middle of a 2000 garment print run. The most important part of your machine is the ‘brain’ which is powered by the battery. This ‘brain’ holds the programme of your machine and all the records (print count etc) when that battery comes to the end of its life it can wipe all of that information. This renders the machine useless until you get it reprogrammed and a new battery, which unfortunately comes at a large cost, compared to changing your battery when needed.
When to change your battery?
Your machines manual will have a maintenance section, which will give you the exact timeframe of when you will need to carry out important maintenance and how to do this. Your machine will also flash up with an error code, but ideally you want to get it changed on schedule as waiting for the code is risky. It could mean it is already very close to loosing power and could be to late.
What happens if the battery runs out ?
Your machine will loose it’s memory and will need reprogramming. As mentioned above, the ‘brain’ also known as the PLC, will need to be sent back to the suppliers (who are located in Poland or America depending on where your machine was manufactured) to be reprogrammed and could take up to 5 working days to be reprogrammed and sent back.
One thing to also consider is the age of your press, sometimes older presses are harder to reprogram and could require a whole new PLC, which would cost £££££ , so it’s always best to to keep a log of when your battery is changed and when it needs to be replaced next, so you don’t run into this problem.
Cost of reprogramming compared to battery cost ?
Batteries can range between £60-£100 depending on your machine, different models require different batteries. They should take a few minutes to replace.
Cost of reprogramming can vary from anywhere between £500-£1000 again depending on the machine. It can take up to 5 working days or more, meaning your machine will be out of action for a while.
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