No matter how well a CNC machine tool is designed and built, certain components will eventually wear out over time. In the same way, no matter how well trained your staff is, it’s human nature that accidents, such as turret crashes, can happen. When breakdowns occur, for whatever reasons, you’ll want to get your machines up and running as soon as possible. 

The quickest and easiest way to recover from these incidents is to have an inventory of critical spare parts on hand. Of course, you don’t want to tie up dollars unnecessarily so it makes sense to have a well thought out list of spare parts to keep on hand. The specific items on that list will not only depend on the kind of equipment you have, but also on the nature of the work you perform. CNC machines that run 24/7 making complex parts or working with hard to machine materials, will have different replacement parts issues than machines that run intermittently.

Regardless of how the machines are used, your spare parts list should begin with normal maintenance items, as indicated in the operator’s manual where you’ll also find the part identification numbers. If you have a planned preventative maintenance program in place (strongly suggested), keeping the appropriate amount of parts on hand is much simpler and you are less likely to be caught short or incur damage to a machine tool because you didn’t replace worn parts. Typical maintenance items include such things as batteries, filters, way wipers, certain covers, coolant pins and other consumables.

Depending on your specific situation, it may make sense to maintain an inventory of other mechanical or electrical components. For example, you may want to keep a small inventory of less expensive electrical parts such as switches on hand. However, unless it is critical to always have a particular CNC machine running, it probably doesn’t make sense to stock major components such as drives, encoders, ball screws, tool changer assemblies or attachment heads.

Of course, every CNC machine operation has its own unique requirements. Additionally, it’s important to know how available certain parts are and how quickly you can get them if necessary. The Gosiger Product Support team can help you construct a spare parts inventory that makes sense for your unique circumstances. They have the experience and knowledge of parts availabilities to help you make the most cost-effective decisions. 

And when you do need to order a replacement or spare part, it’s comforting to know that Gosiger maintains a $10,000,000 spare parts inventory for its CNC machine customers, uses an automated picking system and has immediate access to the parts inventories of its OEM partners. That’s why Gosiger can immediately ship a requested part 90% of the time. To order spare parts or to learn more, call us at (866) 385-2798.