Machine downtime tracking to reduce downtime: capture, explain and eliminate every stop

SYMESTIC's machine downtime tracking detects every stop automatically at the machine. The operator selects the reason at the workstation, and the analysis shows which machine stops how often and why. That turns “the line stops a lot” into a list of causes.

Machine downtime tracking: downtime monitoring and most frequent downtime reasons in SYMESTIC

The most expensive stops are the ones nobody writes down

Everyone notices long outages. The many short stops, waiting for material, the extended changeovers show up on no list because they cannot be captured by hand. And where reasons are noted, “Other” and “Fault” end up on top.

Downtime reasons · Line 2 · Wk 38 · Example

147 stops · 1,260 minCaptured automatically

ReasonDurationMinutesShare

Micro-stops under 5 minnewly visible38030%

Waiting for materialnewly visible31025%

Changeover longer than plannednewly visible24019%

Tool changenewly visible15012%

Feeder faultnewly visible12010%

Quality inspectionnewly visible605%

Captured automatically: micro-stops and waiting times that were missing from the tally sheet.

How SYMESTIC reduces your downtime

Detect automatically.

If the machine itself reports that it is stopped, SYMESTIC uses that signal, which is the most accurate. If it does not, SYMESTIC still detects the stop: because no more parts are being counted. Connected via plug and play over OPC UA or, for older machines, through the IoT Box on the digital signals. No stop gets lost, not even a short one.

06:0010:0014:00

running4 stops, 3 of them under 2 min

Give the reason at the workstation.

Operators select the reason from your downtime reason catalog on the touch display, in just a few clicks. They write in their native language, and everyone else sees the translation.

Press 4 stopped since 06:42 · Select reason

Material missingChangeoverToolFeederQualityMaintenance

PL “Brak materiału” → EN “Material missing”

Eliminate causes.

The analysis shows the most frequent and the longest reasons per machine, line and shift. Maintenance is notified immediately by push or email when a machine stops.

Maintenance notified

Push · Press 4 stopped · Feeder

Top 3 · Press 4 · Week

Material missing131 min

Feeder86 min

Changeover50 min

What is included

Automatic downtime detection on every machine

Downtime reason catalog you maintain yourself

Translation of downtime reasons (AI, live today)

Notification on downtime according to rules you define

Analysis by machine, reason, shift and period

KPIs such as availability, MTBF and MTTR

Linked to order and material

What our customers achieve

−10%

Downtime

+7%

Output

4 plants

productive in 6 months

What does one hour of downtime cost you?

The downtime cost calculator works it out, the MTBF/MTTR calculator shows how reliably your machine runs.

Parts per hour pcs Contribution margin per part €

1 hour of downtime 540 €

Works well with

Use case Measure and increase OEE Make losses visible per factor. View Use case Manage alarms centrally Classify and escalate faults. View Role Production management Run orders and shifts in real time. View Industry Plastics processing Injection molding with EUROMAP connection. View

Frequently asked questions

How do you capture downtime automatically?

Via the machine's signal: if it is not running, a stop begins. SYMESTIC reads that via OPC UA or, on older machines, via the IoT Box on the digital signals. The operator adds the reason at the workstation.

How do you reduce downtime?

Measure first, then tackle the most frequent reasons: material, changeovers, faults. Anyone who sees downtime by reason and machine can prioritize measures and check their effect over the following weeks.

What is the difference between downtime and a fault?

Downtime is any time the machine is not producing, whether planned or unplanned. A fault is unplanned downtime caused by an error. For availability in OEE, the unplanned downtime counts.

Do I need new hardware for this?

Usually not. The Cloud Gateway captures all data via OPC UA, software we provide free of charge that runs on your server or another computer. Alternatively there is the IoT Box, dedicated hardware for a one-time purchase: it captures digital signals or OPC UA without you having to provide a server or computer.

See where your machines stand and why.

30 minutes, free of charge.

Christian Fieg

Head of Sales · SYMESTIC

Over 25 years in the manufacturing industry · Six Sigma Black Belt · global MES rollouts in automotive

“I will also tell you in the conversation if SYMESTIC does not fit your production. That saves us both time.”

What you take away from the call

A first assessment of what will measurably improve in your plant: OEE, downtime, reporting effort

The answer to how your machines and your ERP would actually be connected (via OPC UA, digital signals or the REST API)

A realistic pilot scope: one line, one use case, a clear time frame

Book a demo with Christian

30 minutes · Microsoft Teams · no obligation

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No preparation needed. All that helps is: which machines do you run, and which ERP do you use?

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Customers in 15 countries ISO 9001 “SYMESTIC gives us end-to-end real-time transparency that we did not have in this form before.” Thorsten Manns, Technical Director, Schmiedetechnik Plettenberg