To clean or not to clean?

[fixthecopier]

What is your criteria for cleaning and service of a contract copier. At one place I went for training, the techs that worked there had "minimum call procedures", a list of things that must be done at each visit. Then a manager would go behind and spot audit them, I was wondering about how you deal with duty cycles. I have had a service call to clean and service a Bizhub 250, and when I get there I ask if anything is wrong. Usually the answer is "no, I have been here a year and I have never seen it serviced. My reply may be something like "well, that is because it is three and a half years old, it is supposed to run 5,000 a month, and your total meter is 32,000, and you have never called with a service call." Do you folks dispatch someone to PM your machines by the meter, or by the customer call in? I cleaned 3 today. I told the customer to call them in for cleaning when I saw them while I was doing meters. They had just been moved there from another location and were covered in dust. One of them had 36,000 another had 82,000 and another was at 67,000. I have Bizhub 250's with 800,000 on them that have been regularly serviced and Bizhub 350's that are almost 4 years old and have not reached 20,000 yet. They are very clean from being in an office, I also have machines at training areas where if you cleaned the machine every time it was dirty, you would be there every 2 weeks. The roads are dirt and the dust coming off the uniforms covers the machines. If I see it dirty I will clean it, I was just wondering if others have rules set in stone. Seems like a waste of time to clean a clean machine.

[blackcat4866]

Re: To clean or not to clean?

I'm not a "Rules set in stone" kind of guy.

If the machines is in a clean environment it could literally takes years to get enough dirt to make a difference. I have plenty to do without wiping down clean machines for the sake of some contract clause (going through the motions).

Now in some of the dirty environments, I could come back three days later, and it would look like I never touched it. In those situations there is nothing to do but clean every time.

And in those places in between ... well, it's a judgment call. I certainly hope most everyone in our line of work is capable of making this sort of decision. And the others? Maybe they should be doing something else. =^..^=

[mjarbar]

Re: To clean or not to clean?

I usually find a clean machine is a working machine, in terms of panels I make a judgement call but I always ensure the insides of the machine are clean where they are supposed to be and any rollers that aren't changed are cleaned up with FE10 and WD40.

We do have a minimum call procedure set in place and this means we don't need a PM schedule as such, if the machine has been looked at only a few days before it is the judgement call of the engineer if they do the MCP on the first call so it's out the way or on the second if they are going back to fit parts.

Some of the engineers where I work have said that I do too much on a call but for the past 3 years have had the lowest recalls, lowest parts fitted rate,and highest copies between calls rate per machine. Thinking about it these are also the same engineers that have never bothered to do on line learning, don't look at the manufactures tech bulletins, and only go near the manuals if they get completely lost!

But that is another thread entirely...!

[charm5496]

Re: To clean or not to clean?

I always take 5 minutes and wipe down the machines when I am finished working on them. Plus that gives the customers time to send some print jobs and test things out take make sure that everything is working to their satisfaction.

[Hansoon]

Re: To clean or not to clean?

With the modern digitals I see no need for preventive cleaning most of the time. However, every visit I clean quickly the display and control panel. It gives the customer the feeling that his machine has been "worked on".

Hans

[charm5496]

Re: To clean or not to clean?

With the modern digitals I see no need for preventive cleaning most of the time. However, every visit I clean quickly the display and control panel. It gives the customer the feeling that his machine has been "worked on".

Hans

This is a mentality that will have your customers canceling contracts are looking for service elsewhere. Customers are more aware of what is going on than we give them credit for and if they can find better service at the same cost then they are going to shop around. I do my best every call to make sure that my customer knows they are getting the best service possible and then when it comes time for renewal or for them to lease or purchase a new machine they call my employer and sign papers without any doubt in their mind that they are getting what they pay for.

[RRodgers]

Re: To clean or not to clean?

This is a mentality that will have your customers canceling contracts are looking for service elsewhere. Customers are more aware of what is going on than we give them credit for and if they can find better service at the same cost then they are going to shop around. I do my best every call to make sure that my customer knows they are getting the best service possible and then when it comes time for renewal or for them to lease or purchase a new machine they call my employer and sign papers without any doubt in their mind that they are getting what they pay for.

That might not matter a hill of beans once it comes time to renew. With this economy times are tough and people are really looking for the best price. (in there eyes) I think it would matter if the prices were close to the other guy trying to sell them a new box but that might be about it.
Just my $.02

[Itsthepaper]

Re: To clean or not to clean?

Like previous poster said these digital boxes are less prone to dirty envoriments. Also most machines know are unit swap components, IU, fusers, and belt it's tough to have guys go out and visit a customer for nothing when it's not needed or if machine is not calling for service. Until about 3 years ago we had a list that showed any customer that hasn't been visited in 3 months, this list was given out to guys and if calls are light then they would reach for the the list. Some customers did notice a difference in visits after upgrading to a newer model and those that questioned less visits, all it took was an honest explanation. You get your cleaning when machine calls for an IU, belt or fuser. No customer ever lost in changing our cleaning visits and the added cost for random cleaning could really throw off your expected profits and CPC.

To clean or not to clean? Only if it's Dirty.

[kingpd@businessprints.net]

Re: To clean or not to clean?

I do a quick wipe down on displays, buttons, glass platen, and rollers/separation pads.

Displays and glass are my pet peave. I don't like dust, smudges or smears on anything glass or plastic like a monitor or tv or a mirror. Just the way I am.

I mostly check for white out, yes people still use it on the glass.

It's really quick to apply a little rubber rejuv. on the rollers and a lot of times I see a little paper dust in the paper path so I clean it if I can. The whole thing should only take about 5 minutes.

As far as doing a whole scrub down on panels etc., or cleaning huge dust bunnies behind the machine; I don't usually have a need to do that.

I think the rollers make the biggest difference...sometimes I do a quick wipe on the fuser rollers or take a q-tip along the pick fingers. I suppose it helps.

[prntrfxr]

Re: To clean or not to clean?

85-90% of our job IS cleaning. Most of the places I've worked it was in the contract that we would clean it every time. In one place, we were required to use the vacuum every time. If it's a clean machine, cleaning's done faster. If it's a dirty one, it takes longer. Cleaning is very important especially on the newer machines as they don't work well with even a bit of toner/dirt in them. Not like the older machines you could set up at a construction site and would work better dirty than clean. Cleaning reduces down time and repeat calls (by about 60-70% per year). Plus there's the perception issue that a clean machine means a tech did his/her job. A dirty machine tells a customer their tech did nothing and charged them for it. Even if it is clean and you run the vacuum for ten seconds, you give the impression that you are thorough to the client. You can do what you like, but I've written techs up for not using their vacuum on-site.

[cccjjn]

Re: To clean or not to clean?

One of my biggest pet peeves is when I visit accounts and find that one of our technicians is not cleaning the exterior of the machines. I'm old school and when I was a tech you cleaned the inside AND the outside of the machine on every single call. With light colored machines like Canon or Ricoh it really makes the machines look shabby and un-cared for when the exterior of the machine is filthy. I don't care if its a dirty environment either......when a technician leaves the machine it had better be as clean as he can get it.

Machines that look un-cared for will lose you accounts.

[rthonpm]

Re: To clean or not to clean?

Cleaning the exterior of a machine is nice, but I've always gone with the rule that the machine should be as much like a maintained part of its environment as possible. Why spend an extra forty-five minutes in a coal mine or a chicken farm cleaning covers only to have the machine look like a tornado, dust storm and a hurricane blew over it within a day or two? I'd much rather ensure the optics, laser glass and sensors are in good shape than worrying over whether or not the dealer's name can be clearly read on the cover. So long as it looks like the machine got the care it needed, I could care less about a few smudges or mud from miner's boots along the bottom of the machine.

Also, with more and more dealerships looking to do the infamous 'more with less' techs are stretched further than ever even though the metrics don't change so if it comes down to the extra time or hitting two more calls to hit the target numbers that keep me fed what would you choose?
Plus, I've worked for some managers who seemed to think they were Howard Hughes when it came to cleaning copiers. Of course, on ride alongs they'd spend more time cleaning than the actual repair took.

[prntrfxr]

Re: To clean or not to clean?

Machines that look un-cared for will lose you accounts.

I agree wholeheartedly. The world is becoming the "something for nothing" (costs nothing) mentality. Those companies who want to sell "value" and "quality" will step up to the plate. The old addage "you get what you pay for" will bite clients in the backside and they will go back to value and quality service companies eventually, and when they do if your company didn't step up to the plate, you will lose bad. Companies that treat their help bad by cutting workforce or demanding more than is reasonable out of their help will lose, too. When the job market gets better their employees will leave them in droves for companies that treat their people right.

[CanonSco]

Re: To clean or not to clean?

Machines that look un-cared for will lose you accounts.

I have to say that this is at the bottom of a very long list of things that will lose you an account.

I do agree with cleaning a machine. But as for spending longer cleaning it than servicing it just to add "service" - forget it. I am just too busy. I cant think of one single customer who would rather I waste my time polishing the outside of their machines than fixing them quickly and with a quick response time. ( I have many customers with 4hr response targets ) Maybe it is just my customers though. Also, what are your thoughts on a customer cleaning the outside of their machines?

That said, I spent a good 45 mins yesterday vac'ing and cleaning a Canon IR4570. As the fault was caused by a dirty laser. In a dirty environment. It will be just as dirty by today.

[nmfaxman]

Re: To clean or not to clean?

A clean machine is one of the best troubleshooting tools that is free.
If a DV unit is leaking, it is obvious if you cleaned the machine at last call.
A bushing that is wearing out will leave a pile under it making it easy to spot.
If the machine is left dirty the deposits just mix with the rest of the dirt and dust.