In July 2019, when a global label printer approached Heaford in search of a new mounter, we recommended the FTS mounter as the best option based on their specifications and requirements. However, investing over US$ 35,000 in a narrow web mounter is not always an easy decision, especially when the production team, who wants the mounter, is not responsible for the financial decision.

In 2020, one of our international sales managers at Heaford worked closely with the production manager to discuss the return on investment potential of the Heaford FTS mounter. This analysis aimed to assist the management team in making an informed decision and understanding the rapid payback potential.

Over a period of six months, the customer meticulously analysed the amount of press downtime caused by mounting errors across their presses. They calculated the cost of press downtime per hour, which amounted to an average of 11 hours per month, resulting in a cost of US$ 1,430 per press per month*, or US$ 17,160 per year. Considering they had four presses, this translated to a total cost of US$ 68,640 per year. By forecasting a reduction press downtime by 80%, the ROI for the FTS mounter was estimated at 7.6 months and achieving 100% reduction would result in an ROI of 6 months.

Armed with this valuable information, the investment decision for the management team became straightforward, leading to the placement of the order.

In the 12 months following the installation the same detailed records were collected and at a follow up with the customer they reported the ROI was in fact 6.8 months with a 90% reduction in issues related to plate mounting.

At Heaford, we take pride in assisting customers in making strategic investments in new capital equipment, with impressive ROI potential and offer a range of plate mounter models to choose from.

For more information and to work through a calculation based on your own press downtime costs, please feel free to reach out to our team here

*Note: The rate of $130.hr used in this real-life example is from a customer based in Latin America and using their own cost of press downtime per hour. This is considerably lower than the values commonly used in the industry, the higher the rate used then the shorter the ROI period and the greater the benefits of investing in an FTS mounter.