Preventative Maintenance for CNC machines

Regular preventive machine maintenance is critical to achieving consistent and reliable surfboard cuts every time. Without this maintenance, the accuracy of the cuts diminishes and machine breakdowns can slow down a factory for weeks at a time.

In this blog post, we'll summarise the common aspects of a thorough maintenance program, which can give you repeatable cuts, boost efficiency, extend equipment lifespan, and ultimately save you time and money. They are categorised into “daily care” and “periodic care”

Speak to your machine manufacturer about what specific maintenance your machine needs, and on what schedule. 

Here are some common preventive maintenance practices: 

Daily care

Cleaning
The most important part of daily care is keeping your CNC machine clean and free of dust and residue build up. This keeps guideways moving smoothly and stops dust getting into sensitive areas, like the electronics and bearings, which could fail prematurely with excessive exposure to dust. Over time dust build up will also lead to premature wear on the machine structure, throwing the machine out of calibration, and resulting in inaccurate cuts. 

Check your vacuum suction

If your machine has a vacuum pump for work holding, it should be properly ventilated, without obstructions, and you should monitor the work holding suction. This will keep the blank always held to the same place on the supports for repeatable cuts, and prevent the cutter from ripping the board off the suction cups in the middle of a cut. Without paying attention to the proper operation of your vacuum system, the consistency of your cuts will vary and more blanks will need to be scrapped.

Periodic care:

Consumables 

Consumables should be regularly inspected, topped up, and replaced if needed. This will increase the life of your machine’s moving parts by minimising wear and tear. Cutting disks should be inspected and can be cleaned with a wire brush to remove glue buildup which will increase blade life and give cleaner cuts. All machine control belts should be regularly inspected for tears and wear, because old belts will result in machine chatter and gradual misalignment of cuts. Finally, filters on the vacuum system should be monitored and replaced if needed, so that blanks are accurately positioned for the cut.

Deep clean of moving parts

Machines should receive a periodic deep clean of all dust. This includes all work holdings, belts, blade, controller and slide bearings. Some bearings can and should be periodically removed and cleaned of all dust and residue. The lubrication tubing and fittings should also be examined to ensure their integrity and that they’re away from the moving parts of the machine. If you use compressed air to clean your CNC machine, ensure your water separator is working properly to prevent moisture from being blown on the machine. Excess moisture will corrode the metal parts of CNC machines.

Conclusion

A well maintained CNC machine will ensure more accurate cuts and give you the longest life out of your machine. This will save you time, money, reduce stress, and please your shapers.

Speak to your machine’s manufacturer about preventative maintenance checklists and be sure that all operators know what to do and when to do it.