Cleaning System Down? Then Consider Contract Cleaning Outsourcing offers a viable option for meeting production demands. By Paul Zaglauer, Regional Manager, and Darwin Keeton, Facilities Manager, Parts Cleaning Technologies, Indianapolis

~ n today's competi t ive production environment , most companies operate with limited resources. For those that have to clean the parts they pro-

duce, this generally means using the existing clean- ing system(s) to meet production demands.

When specific situations occur to disrupt the nor- mal cleaning process work flow or new issues arise demanding t ime compressed solutions, out-source contract cleaning may provide the answer.

Contract cleaning has recently evolved as a viable alternative to in-plant operations. With the incep- tion of the Montreal Protocol dealing with environ- menta l concerns of certain solvents and the U.S. EPA enac tment of N E S H A P regulations, - - - - many companies have reduced or el iminated sol- vent degreasing operations.

The aqueous cleaning sys- tems marke t experienced substantial growth as many companies' solvent cleaning systems were replaced. Some of the end results were positive while some were less than desired.

This reduction/el imina- t ion/replacement of clean- ing systems in combination PaT monorail trichloroeth with low economic growth over the last several years have contributed to some restriction of any excess in-plant cleaning capacity. The typical rat ional was to "only replace what is absolu te ly required and we will get more systems when we need them."

Under ideal situations where one has the time to predict the future production requirements, plan for such, assess any environmental impact, obtain fund- ing, obtain any required operational and installa- tion permits, obtain any required equipment, install said equipment, and initiate operation within the planned time frame. All issues are addressed and everything goes smoothly as planned.

But for the company that needs additional clean-

trichloroethylene degreaser entry.

ing capacity for a limited period of time brought on by customer demands, regular production cleaning in the event of in-plant sys tem break down or scheduled down-time, new par ts requir ing larger size or a different type cleaning system than exists, solvent cleaning process but cannot perform at their p lant due to envi ronmenta l issues or corporate direction, and various other reasons, contract clean- ing works well for these producers.

The evolution of contract cleaning to address these issues has created a market that is serviced by differ- ent companies in various geographical locations. New businesses have been started to address this market.

Some existing busi- nesses tha t worked with the manufactur- ers as a materials sup- plier now contract clean certain items for them. Some manufac- turers have their incoming parts cleaned prior to arrival so they don't have to process at their site. Some manu- facturers tha t have excess capacity with

. . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . . their in-plant cleaning system(s) now offer out- source cleaning to other

companies. The above stated items support the out- source cleaning market growth.

The contract cleaning processes vary between sol- vent and aqueous applications. This var ia t ion is based on the following: • Type of products to be cleaned in regards to com-

patibility; • type of contaminants to be removed; • end user or internal cleanliness specifications; • product to be cleaned (size/material handling/

process); • production throughput/ turn around time; • familiari ty/confidence with exist ing cleaning

process at the out-source contractor;

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• and environmental compliance. Most of the large contract cleaning companies typ-

ically use a combination of both processes. The aque- ous systems tend to be smaller in size and more process specific dedicated whereas the solvent sys- tems tend to be larger in size.

This is mainly based on general solvent compati- bility with most lubricants, most production parts, and speed of throughput. Over the recent years, great strides have been made with aqueous com- pounds to improve cleaning, bath life, and multiple lubricant compatibility. However, for all-purpose cleaning with multiple lubricants, heavy through- put, difficult cleaning that the contract cleaner sees everyday, solvent systems are preferred.

Large capacity equipment means that even long distance customers can count on fast and efficient turn around. The major contract cleaning companies are committed to high quality, cost efficiency, and timely scheduling to ensure customer satisfaction as well as profitability for themselves. This business arrangement results in a mutually beneficial associ- ation, hopefully long term. Contract cleaners recog- nize this and operate their sites with multiple sys-

PCT monora i l t r ich loroethy lene degreaser exit .

terns based on the customer's specific quantity, qual- ity, and time frame for turn around. Any cleaning system used by contract cleaners should meet all environmental compliance issues as well as yield economy/efficiency to the operators.

If your business cannot afford the time to select the correct type of cleaning equipment, select the correct chemistry, assess environmental impact of operations, obtain operation/installation permits, procure selected equipment, install purchased equipment and any required support systems, and initiate operation within a short time frame, it

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might be easier to have someone else clean your parts for you. The customer that selects out-source contract cleaning saves operating funds by reducing or eliminating the following in-plant items: • Cleaning equipment; • chemical agents used in the cleaning system; • utilities to operate the equipment; • manpower to operate the cleaning system; • was te disposal of chemicals used and contami-

nants removed; • EPA/OSHA concerns, permits, inspections, etc.; • periodic maintenance of cleaning system; • replacement parts for equipment; • ff aqueous process, elimination of r insewater sup-

ply, recycle, or disposal cost; • and other miscellaneous items.

There is manufacturer 's time/cost associated with the following items that must be addressed: • In-plant mater ia l handling to prepare par ts for

out-bound shipment to contract cleaner; • any required containers~packing~etc.; • freight charges; • in-plant material handling to receive parts upon

in-bound return;

• quality inspection upon receiving; • and shipment coordination with production control.

Sometimes it is feasible to direct the out-going parts to a contract cleaner that will accept the dirty parts, process them, provide any required optional packaging, and forward the cleaned parts to the end user. If this is possible, then the cost for this action is reduced to the original manufacturer.

As with all production related processes, the total cost must be obtained by acquiring the individual steps and associated costs and then adding them together. Most companies do not have an accurate cost per manufactured piece because of all variances in the process. Most companies track the cost of the chemicals used, can identify the cost of any waste disposal, identify capital equipment cost and instal- lation of such, and can assign total labor hours. But most do not further breakdown the cost per piece based on permits, inspections, compliance reports, maintenance, replacement parts, utilities used, and any additional support systems operational cost.

When one t ruly es tabl ishes this cost, contract cleaning might be advantageous for your company.

The prices for contract cleaning vary in many dif-

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ferent ways. Several items that must be considered are: quanti ty of parts to be cleaned; size and geome- try of parts to be processed; cleaning process select- ed to match contaminants to be removed; chemistry to be used; and turn around time.

Time is money in contract cleaning. Once the equipment is in place and operational, the focus is to keep the system running as much as possible to cap- italize on the efficiency produced by a fully loaded unit(s). The final cost to the customer is generally es tabl i shed by the above s ta ted cri teria and the experience of the contract cleaner from processing previous type products.

The end price is typically set at a "price per piece" if small or l imited quant i t ies are to be processed "and/or" the end price can be set using an "hourly operational rate for bulk volume processing." Long term contracts tend to yield more economy over the short term ones. However, in cases of emergency or the immediate need for special services, one can be flexible in choices of options selected.

Most contract cleaners can and will provide any in te res ted cus tomer wi th a pre l iminary cost for their review upon request. It will require the accu-

mulation of information concerning the parts to be processed, contaminants to be removed, qual i ty expectations, shipping container types, return con- ditions, and many more items. The contract cleaner will work closely with the manufacturer to gather this info and prepare the proposal based on project scope. But the requesting party must be prepared to obtain and provide the required info in order to get an accurate proposal covering all aspects.

In today's busy world with l imited personnel staffing and res t r ic ted capital expenditures , it makes good bus iness sense to out-source certain processes tha t are not sui table or economical or environmentally compliant with your in-plant pro- duction methods. There are many other reasons to consider this option. The evolution of out-source con- tract cleaning into a readily available service with nat ionwide locations offers today's manufac tu re r alternatives to meet his demands. /Dr

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