Case Study: AI-Based Predictive Maintenance Tools Save $16,000 per Machine

Every minute of downtime is expensive, making it important to keep your machines running using predictive maintenance tools. Artificial intelligence (AI) platforms — like the Festo Automation Experience (AX) — can help.

Here’s how this innovative software works, along with the ways it has optimized a machine tool application using its predictive maintenance capabilities.

What Is Festo AX?

Festo AX is an easy-to-use software that uses AI and machine learning to help you extract the most value from the data produced by your assets. As soon as your assets generate data, the information is sent directly to Festo AX for analysis. The platform then alerts you if and when the data deviates from a healthy state. It also informs you which sensors are affected and recommends a course of action.

Thanks to these predictive maintenance capabilities, Festo AX can help you detect anomalies early, preventing unexpected downtime and ensuring you can plan maintenance in a way that doesn’t negatively impact your production.

Addressing Machine Tools Challenges

To give you a sense of how Festo AX can benefit your operation, our case study explores the ways this platform has reduced downtime and maintenance costs in a machine tool application.

In this case, the doors of a tool magazine grew stiff due to the presence of cuttings, coolant and lubricant. Initially, this issue affected the machine’s cycle time. Eventually, it increased the risk of downtime and production outages. In addition to the contamination created by the machining materials, the high load on the machine tool and constant changeovers meant that a highly flexible, adaptive AI platform would be the best solution.

Festo AX fit the bill. Its AI model detects anomalies — even with varying orders. Using root cause analysis, it identified the frequent cause of machine faults, while its “Smartenance” feature facilitated the fault management and maintenance process. As a result, Festo AX unlocked annual cost savings of $16,000 per machine and achieved an ROI of less than one year.

To read the full story — and learn more about these and other benefits of Festo AX — download our case study.