Buy local, repair and rebuild. Maintenance goes sustainable at Carmeuse Winchester

Timely access to spare parts is an essential aspect to reduce the length of time that critical machinery is down for maintenance. However, in recent years spare parts lead times from the original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) have steadily increased. Relatively, costs have also gone up. 

The challenge prompted the Carmeuse Northern Virginia Maintenance Teams to look for an alternative to OEM-supplied spare parts. They found one in the form of their local machine shops. 

As an example, the cost of repairing a kiln skip gear reducer is about 26% lower than sourcing a new part from the OEM. And instead of waiting several months to receive the part, the local machine shop turned around this rush job in a couple of days. Similarly, the cost of repairing the essential kiln shaft level indicator is over 41% lower than purchasing a new part and can be turned around in about a third of the time.   

“We have made a habit of having motors repaired or critical parts rebuilt locally, rather than relying on new spares. This helps improve the resiliency of our operations, as well as saving on maintenance, shipping and storage costs,” explained Maintenance Supervisor, Don Dulyea. 

The move to locally-sourced repairs and rebuilds is also a practical example of the Circular Economy, helping to reduce materials consumption and emissions associated with manufacturing and shipping new spare parts.