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How to Prepare Your Equipment For Downtime

Throughout the year there may be periods of downtime for your equipment. It is vital that you properly prepare your equipment for any downtime that may occur.

While much of the equipment we offer doesn’t require much or any preparation, some equipment may be damaged if the system is not prepared. Damaged resulting from failure to properly shut down the system is not covered by warranty.

You can often find information about properly shutting your system down in the machine’s user manual. However we understand that many of our customers do not have time to search for this information when they need it.

For this reason, we have provided specific instructions for some of the equipment we offer that does require proper shutdown below.

If you have other equipment that is not listed below and are unsure about if you need to prepare it for downtime, please contact us.

For many of our customers, there are periods of equipment downtime throughout the year. For our educational customers these periods typically include fall, winter, spring, and summer breaks. When it comes to FDM/FFF printers that use reels of plastic filament there are a few things you can do to prepare for the downtime and make sure your printer is ready to go for the next time you need them.

All filament will absorb moisture from the air and eventually become unusable if left for long enough. It’s a good idea to take steps to preserve any unused filament as well as possible. It can also be helpful to keep filament usage in mind as the school year comes to a close. This means avoiding opening any new filament packs that will go largely unused until the fall, as filament keeps best in its original unopened packaging.

Here are some recommended steps for preparing your 3D printers for downtime:

  • Unload all filament and remove it from the printer.
  • Seal filament in airtight bags. Many filament reels come with desiccant built in, but it can be beneficial to add additional desiccant packs to the bag.
  • Store filament in a temperature controlled climate. If only part of the building will remain air conditioned during the summer, such as administrative offices, it’s recommended to move the filament to that location. Keep filament in a cool, dry, away from direct sunlight whenever possible.
  • Shut down and unplug printers. This will prevent power surges from harming the electronics, or improper shutdowns if cleaning crews need to unplug them.
  • If your printer uses a soluble support material that requires a support removal tank, it is a good idea to drain the tank and flush it with clean water, then unplug the tank.
  • Now is a great time to take inventory of the remaining stock of materials and request additional materials that you may need for the fall semester.

For those of you who own an Objet 24, Objet 30, Objet 30 Pro or Objet 30 Prime 3D printer who may be taking a long-term break from using your system, you will want to follow this guidance.

As outlined in the Objet User Guides, you’ll only need to shut down if the printers will not be used for a week or more. Otherwise, the printer can remain on, in Idle mode. Before shutting down for any extended downtime, it is a good idea to take inventory of your remaining materials. Use the remainder of anything that will expire before you return and make sure to have the necessary cleaning cartridges for the shutdown process.

Since damage resulting from lack of proper shutdown is not covered by warranty, it is critical you properly prepare your system for downtime.

To properly shut down, the printer needs to perform several processes. Do not attempt to shut down the printer by simply closing the computer interface (the printer‐control application), and never disconnect power to the printer before completing the Shutdown wizard.

In addition to the written instructions below, a video of this process can be found on the Stratasys Support website.

Objet 24/30 Shutdown Video

Before shutting down the printer or the printer computer for one week or more, first run the Material Flush/Fill Wizard. Using the Material Flush/Fill wizard before and after an extended period of inactivity ensures proper printer maintenance and quality printing. Each time you run the wizard; you select one of the following processes:

-draining printing materials and flushing the system with cleaning fluid; Use this process to prepare the printer for a shutdown of more than one week. This process takes about 60 minutes and requires four (4) cleaning-fluid cartridges in the materials drawer.

-filling the system with fresh printing materials; Use this process to restore the printer to working condition. This process takes about 30 minutes and requires two (2) cartridges of Model material and two (2) cartridges of Support material in the materials drawer.

To run the Material Flush/Fill Wizard:

  1. Start Material Flush/Fill wizard from the Options menu.
  2. In the opening screen, click Next.
  3. Select the required procedure and click Next. For shutting down, select the Drain materials and flush system with cleaning fluid option. Before continuing, make sure the required cartridges of material are available for the procedure selected.
  4. Load the required cartridges, close the drawer, and confirm this in the wizard screen.
  5. In the next wizard screen, confirm that the printer cover is closed, and click next.  The wizard runs the material-flushing cycles.
  6. If cleaning-fluid cartridges are loaded in the printer, the wizard prompts you to remove them. Confirm this in the wizard screen, and click Next.
  7. Proceed to the Shutdown wizard.

To run the Shutdown wizard:

  1. Select Shutdown wizard from the Options menu or press F8.
  2. Select Run wizard unattended, unless you want more control over the shutdown process.

Note: If you select Run wizard unattended, the wizard automatically turns off the printer computer at the end of the process.

  1. Click Next.

The options in the following screens are enabled only if you selected Run wizard manually in the opening wizard screen.

  1. In the next screen, indicate whether the tray is empty and click Next.

The shutdown procedure begins. The shutdown procedure may take up to 10 minutes while the following tasks are performed:

  1. The print block returns to its starting point on all axes.
  2. The print heads are heated.
  3. The print heads are cleared of any remaining material.

After these tasks are completed, the final wizard screen appears, in which you choose whether or not to shut down the computer in the Objet printer at this time.

  1. When completely shutting down the Objet printer and turning the power off, select Yes and click Next.
  2. After the printer computer shuts down, turn off the main power switch at the back of the printer.

Now your Objet printer is ready for inactivity. When you return, run the Material Flush/Fill wizard again to restore the printer.

Before you head out for the summer, please remember to take the necessary steps to prepare your equipment for downtime. Just as you would properly hydrate and apply sunscreen to your body before a day on the beach, so too is proper preparation key to protecting your printers.

Since damage resulting from lack of proper shutdown is not covered by warranty, it is critical you properly prepare your system for downtime.

As outlined in the J-Series User Guides, you only need to shut down the printer if it will not be used for more than 10 days. Otherwise, the printer can remain on, in Idle mode. Before shutting down for the summer, it is a good idea to take inventory of your remaining materials. Use the remainder of anything that will expire before you return and make sure to have the necessary cleaning cartridges for the shutdown process. Since damage resulting from lack of proper shutdown is not covered by warranty, it is critical you properly prepare your system for downtime.

To properly shut down, the printer needs to perform several processes, depending on the length of time that the printer will not be used. These are controlled by the Shutdown wizard. Do not shut down the printer by simply turning off the power at the switch or by disconnecting the power to the printer.

It is recommended to review the full shutdown procedure found in the Shutting Down the Printer section of the user’s manual. Please contact us if you need help locating your user’s guide. A summary of the procedure is written below.

To run the Shutdown wizard:

  1. From the Wizards screen, select Shutdown or press the printer power button for 2 seconds (not more.)
  2. Select the option corresponding to the length of time that the printer will not be used. Note: Before selecting More than 30 days, make sure that the proper number of cleaning-fluid cartridges are available, each with a minimum of 250g. Four (4) for the J35 or Six (6) for the J55.
  3. In the next screen, verify that the tray is empty and click Next. The Shutdown procedure begins.
  4. When shutting down the printer for an extended time, turn off the main power switch at the back of the printer.

For more information on the shutdown procedures, reference your User Manual or contact support@amtekcompany.com

For many of our customers, there are periods of equipment downtime throughout the year. For our educational customers these periods typically include fall, winter, spring, and summer breaks.

Luckily, for Universal laser cutters there’s not much you need to do to prepare for this downtime. The primary concern is damage from power surges. Our recommendation is to unplug your machine to avoid any potential issues.

Aside from unplugging the machine, it can be beneficial to run the laser periodically during this time to prevent degradation of the laser tube. The laser tube that provides the cutting power for the machine degrades naturally over time. This can happen more quickly when the laser is not used for extended periods, and periods of nonuse tend to affect older laser tubes more than newer ones.

For this reason it’s recommended to activate the laser by running a job every few weeks when possible. Ideally this would be done every two weeks, but if that can’t be done it’s still beneficial to perform this procedure every month or so or at whatever interval can be managed.

One option is to have a series of jobs prepared to run ahead of time, however it’s not actually necessary to cut or engrave material to get this done. Instead, you can set up the laser to run without using material. The basic process involves sending a large black rectangle graphic to the machine and set the rectangle to run at 100% power. Then manually move the machine’s bed so that the laser is well out of focus and run the job for 15 minutes or so.

This will cause the machine to supply 100% power to the laser tube and exercise it without cutting any material or damaging the machine. To exercise the machine in this way, follow the steps below.

 

  • First, make sure your cutting table is clean and that there is no debris inside. You may need to remove your cutting table and vacuum it out or even open it up to clean it fully. Since we’ll be sending the laser power directly into the cutting table, we need to ensure there is no flammable debris inside.
  • Then, in your selected graphics software draw a rectangle 6” by 6” and fill it with black, then click Print to send it to the UCP software.
  • In UCP go to the System tab. If Enabled is checked under Auto Z, uncheck it as seen in the screenshot below:

  • Turn the laser cutter on and lower the bed height to its lowest position.
  • In UCP click Settings, then click the Manual Control tab. Click on the line where it says “Black” to highlight it, then set Power to 100% as seen here:

  • Run the job for about 5-10 minutes then click stop. You can run it for longer if trying to re-energize a laser whose power output has noticeably decreased.
  • Don’t forget to re-enable Auto Z if this option is typically checked.
  • Turn off and unplug the laser cutter.

Here is a video we put together to show this process using a VLS 3.60DT laser system. If you have a different Universal Laser model, the process will be very similar.

Your Roland equipment may get utilized to varying degrees throughout the year. This includes periods of partial or complete downtime. The article below will help you understand how to best prepare your system for different amounts of downtime.

The inks used in Roland products are designed to dry or cure when exposed to air or UV light. As long as you are consistently using your machine and performing basic user maintenance, the machine will operate properly. However, if you have periods of downtime throughout the year, it is critical you understand how to properly prepare your machine for them based on the length of downtime. If the machines sit unused for too long, damage can occur. Damage resulting from non-use is not covered by a warranty.

The information below will help you understand what you need to do to prepare your machine for extended downtime, depending on your situation.

Click here to view our downtime guide pdf.

When to Leave Your Roland Printer On

If you can stop in and run basic maintenance procedures on your Roland printer throughout your downtime, you will not need to run a head wash and shut it down. You will simply run test prints, manual cleanings, and make sure the waste container does not get full. Perform a manual cleaning and a test print once per week during this period of up to a month. If it will sit on for more than a month, you should shut it down completely per the instructions below.

If you can run a few short jobs with each weekly visit, you can keep it on longer than a month, but continue to perform a manual cleaning and test print each visit as well.

If you choose to keep your printer on, it is critical that it stays plugged in with the main power turned on.

For our educational customers who are preparing for summer downtime: if your building’s maintenance crew will come in and wax the floors, many times they will unplug everything and move it out of the room to wax the floors. Often they do not plug equipment back in once it has been moved back in. Please consider this possibility when deciding how to proceed.

If you will leave your system on and stop in periodically, it is a good idea to put a sign on the machine that states it must not be unplugged or turned off.

When to Shut Your System Down Completely

If you cannot stop in and perform periodic maintenance every week throughout your period of downtime, you need to fully flush and shut down the system. In this state, the system can be safely powered off completely. If you think there is the possiblity that the machine will be powered off or unplugged, it is also safest to flush it with cleaning fluid and power it off completely.

The shutdown process flushes the ink out of the system completely and replaces it with cleaning fluid. While this wastes some ink, it is better than letting the machine sit and coming back to clogged heads or clogged lines. Repairs and part damage resulting from lack of proper shutdown is not covered under warranty.

If you need to shut your system down completely, find your model below and follow the procedure:

Next, Take Inventory of Your Remaining Inks

Before shutting down for a longer period of time, it is a good idea to take inventory of your remaining materials. Use the remainder of anything that will expire before you return and make sure to have the necessary cleaning cartridges for the shutdown process. Remember that the printed date on the inks is not the expiration date but the manufacturing date. Using this date and the guides below will give you the expirations date.

When ordering new inks Roland can guarantee at least 4 months of use before becoming expired. For this reason, we do not recommend buying ink until you need it, even if you have left over funds.

For large format print/vinyl cutters such as the SG/VG, SG2/VG2, and SG3/VG3 series printers – these machines us TR2 ink.

  • Shelf life – 24 months from production date
  • Storage conditions – 5 to 30 degrees Celsius (41 to 86 degrees Fahrenheit).

For UV resin-based printers such as the LEF and LEF2 series UV printers – these machine use EcoUV Version 2/EcoUV 4/EcoUV S.

  • Shelf life – 12 months from production date (if it has been stored properly)
  • Storage conditions – 5 to 30 degrees Celsius (41 to 86 degrees Fahrenheit).

For the BT-12 direct to garment printer – these use TPG ink.

  • Shelf life – 18 months from date of production
  • Recommended usable time: within 90 days from start of use.

This list contains the equipment that we feel is most critical you properly prepare for downtime. However, you may have other equipment in your space that you are wondering if you need to prepare.

Here are some questions you can ask your supplier/reseller to determine if you need to do anything specific to prepare for downtime.

  • Does this equipment use inks or other materials that may expire?
  • Does this equipment use ink or other materials that may clog the machine if it sits inside it unused?
  • Does the equipment have problems if left in a non-temperature controlled environment?
  • Does the machine use materials that can go bad if left in a non-temperature controlled environment?
  • Does this equipment need to stay plugged in and powered on in order to run automatic maintenance cycles?
  • How long can this machine sit unattended before it may experience problems for non-use?
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