Meet Joe A. Pretty neat guy. He has ordered a Kreuzmayr Single Belt Press.
Setting up a cidery is a dream that Joe A has been working on for years. He’s perfected his craft cider recipe using a rack and cloth press in small quantities and now he’s ready for full production.
Joe A has chosen a single belt press from Juicing Systems to keep up with the upcoming demand. Joe is a smart guy and has done his homework to know that single belt presses have the high yields he’s looking for. Their continuous usage transforms production days from hard labor to consistent results while reducing labor hours.
It’s like Christmas time at the orchard as Joe A is eager for its arrival. He has studied the manual and it seems pretty easy to set up, so he decides against having the service technician come to set up.
*suspenseful music plays in the background*
It arrives. Joe A unpacks it. Sets it into its place. It runs beautifully. Wow. This is going to give me the production that I’ve been waiting for, he thinks giddily!
A month later, Joe A finds he is not getting the yields that he expected so he calls us. Our service tech comes out to see what’s going on. He makes a few adjustments to the way Joe A was operating the machine and shows him correct pressure washing procedures so that the belt can press the same yields as when it was brand-new, except now with the tweaks Joe A is actually getting better yields. As well, having operated these machines for years, the technician shows him the best cleaning and sanitizing processes. Now Joe A is thinking, what if I’d done this a month ago?
The Other Side
Let’s meet our other protagonist in this anecdote, Joe B. Original names, we know.
Joe B has a humble background in farming with his family orchard. Just recently he has started making apple cider from his orchard yields. He has put together one too many IKEA shelves to know that his strengths do not lie in engineering or production set up so figures that the investment of the installation is most likely worth it.
Turns out Joe B, you are very right indeed.
Let’s Do Some (Simple) Math
There’s a dollar value in it. Setting up and cleaning your machine systematically and efficiently starts saving you an hour of cleaning time each day you run the machine. Let’s say you are pressing for 20 days, so the savings of one hour for each day = 20 hours of a total clean up time. At a dollar rate of $20/hour each day, that’s a savings of $400.
The extra adjustments from the service rep allow Joe B to work the machine to its full capacity. He has gained in production. Joe B is now making 100 liters more juice a day. At $.30/liter x 100 liters, that’s another 30 dollars made. Now times that by the 20 days he is pressing, that’s an extra earning of $600. Let’s say Joe B gets 200 liters more, he has made an extra $1200. The dollars add up. Add this to the extra cleaning savings and Joe B has an extra $1600 in your pocket. Keep at it, and that service call has paid for itself and Joe B continues to press at this increased rate.
No one likes production mishaps.
While we always hope nothing will break down, machines have moving parts, and things do break. Having the peripheral vision of the machine sure helps us problem solve from far away. Having been to the location to see the location and know the set up of the machine allows us to better problem solve over the phone, saving you on downtime.
What Is The Service?
You decide to opt-in for the service and training from our experts. They arrive, know-how loaded, ready to get started on the job. While installing, they explain to you what each part is and what it does for the overall machine. They also show you precise methods of taking apart these parts to clean them as this is a crucial part of keeping the machinery running smoothly with high yields as promised. Different machines require different ways of cleaning to ensure it is in the optimal condition for performance. The service also allows you to be more comfortable with the equipment as well as ask any questions you may have. With proper usage and maintenance, your machine will have fewer breakdowns allowing to maximize your investment
Keep in mind that you hopefully outgrow this machine sooner than later. A well-cared machine has a higher resell value because we do buy them back as well. But you’ll just have to wait for those juicy details in another blog post.