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Case Studies

XYBEX^® Coolant Recycling System Cuts Operating Costs by $2.65 Million

As a leader in the large-scale aerospace manufacturing sector, the customer has become increasingly interested in producing more sustainably while also reducing operating costs. They partnered with Master Fluid Solutions^® for deep insight into coolant maintenance as well as education and training.

THE CHALLENGE

With productivity maxed out, the customer realized that improving coolant management was another way to reduce their environmental footprint and find opportunities for savings. They partnered with Master Fluid Solutions to form a coolant management committee composed of representatives from plant management, health and safety, engineering, purchasing, manufacturing, maintenance, and even machine operators. The goal was to update their coolant management processes to improve key performance indicators (KPIs) such as waste disposal, coolant life, and tool life.

THE SOLUTION

After assessing plant operations, layout, and needs, Master Fluid Solutions created a large-scale custom XYBEX^® coolant recycling system to serve as a full end-to-end solution for the plant. The centrifuge and central tank were optimized for the factory's specific needs, with a number of components designed to address the potential contaminants most likely to occur in their operation. The most important feature was the high-speed, liquid-from-liquid centrifuge that removes tramp oil as well as solid particles as small as two microns in size. The XYBEX system enabled automated operation to improve efficiency while reducing labor.

Master Fluid Solutions experts also provided comprehensive coolant management training sessions for all key departments and staff as well as ongoing monitoring of cutting fluid and machine sump conditions.

THE RESULTS

The XYBEX system and training improved nearly every aspect of the customer's operation. Due to automation and enhanced efficiency from training, the customer was able to reallocate labor and cut the coolant management crew in half, resulting in $210,000 in annual savings. The customer drastically reduced coolant consumption, lowering the number of drums purchased annually from 600 to 42 - a 93% reduction. This saved the company over $301,000 per year. This also lowered waste disposal volume from 1 million pounds of fluid per year to just 30,000 pounds, saving an additional $46,746. Machine efficiency was also improved by over 42%, allowing the customer to consolidate equipment from 600 machines to just 350. By far the biggest improvement from fluid management was the massive improvement in tool life, reducing annual costs by 75% and saving over $2.1 million.

Simply improving coolant management led to more than $2.65 million in annual savings.

THE NUMBERS

Reduced coolant management crew by 50%
Cut coolant consumption by 93%
Reduced fluid waste disposal by 95%
Extended tool life by 75%
Generated over $2.65 million in annual savings