One of the critical assets in the customer’s manufacturing process is extruders, which are used to melt and shape plastic, and other materials into various forms. Extruders are used to produce a wide range of components, such as refrigerator door seals, dishwasher baskets, and range drip pans. 

Recently, Shoreline AI’s predictive model comparing current extruder behavior to baseline operating characteristics initiated a predictive maintenance alarm notifying the team of excessive temperature on one of the extruders. At first glance, the high temperature readings seemed puzzling, given that extruders naturally generate heat under load. However, as the team dug into the problem using the predictive AI APM platform, it became clear that the shift operator had been running the machine without activating the heat exchanger consistently. This oversight not only led to excessive wear and tear on the gearbox but also posed the risk of catastrophic failure. 

Thanks to early warning of the temperature anomaly sent to a smartphone via the Shoreline AI mobile app, the team was able to quickly diagnose the root cause and prevent machine failure. A failure of this type would have resulted in significant disruption. Extruders take hours to warm up, load, and begin production. Had this issue gone unchecked, it could have led to a bottleneck and an entire shift’s shutdown, causing substantial production and machine losses estimated at almost $6,000 per hour of downtime. Extruder replacement or repair can take up to 3-4 months, resulting in massive downtime and lost production.