Inventory management is one of the most decisive factors in unplanned downtime outcomes. This increases in importance for PacDrive M as the platform moves deeper into its end-of-life phase. Critical components will only increase in their difficulty to source leading to increases in both operational and financial risks.
Our recent Customer Survey showed that 32% of sites maintained full coverage and therefore are low risk. However, nearly 60% still operate with partial gaps and 6% have no meaningful spares at all. For PacDrive 3 this can be an issue due to some current long lead times: for PacDrive M due to obsolescence it could have very severe consequences. Identifying the root cause of failure for 71% of engineers is the biggest hurdle in delaying recovery. However, spares availability stands at 55%, so in more than half of cases MTTR is delayed by simply not having access to stock.
Clearly parts availability is a principal contributor to any extended downtime. For those 15.4% whose downtime costs are in the £10K to £50K range, not having the necessary replacement parts is hugely costly. Even for customers who report sufficient levels of onsite stock, same-day access is a top priority when it comes to service requirements.
Realistically no site can stock every legacy component and it is rare for modules to fail frequently. Treating a service partner as a managed extension of the site’s own inventory though goes a long way to contributing to an effective resilience strategy. For PacDrive M this can be vital in mitigating the risk of not being able to readily access required parts. Emergency sourcing during downtime is something to be avoided to maintain business continuity.
Although PacDrive M continues to age, many parts do remain available. However, some items, such as MAx-4 controllers, have become almost impossible to source and some motors are now also beginning to follow. Sites which rely on supplier stock for items they don’t hold onsite are most vulnerable. A combination of higher failure rates in ageing equipment and a diminishing pool of spares will leave companies exposed unless they have a defined spares strategy. The time to act is now – not when the next critical failure occurs.