Daily Maintenance and Care of the Waxing Machine for Large Pills (GMP Version)

It is categorized and sorted by daily maintenance, weekly maintenance, monthly maintenance, quarterly/annual maintenance. It also takes into account the 304 stainless steel body, pneumatic, temperature control, transmission, and wax pool system. It is suitable for use in the equipment ledger of pharmaceutical factories for archiving purposes.

1. Daily Maintenance (Must be carried out at the end of each production shift)

Whole machine cleaning and disinfection

Cut off the gas supply and the power supply of the equipment. Wait until the wax liquid cools down to a safe temperature.

The hopper, workholding fixtures, conveyor belt, and receiving basket were all disassembled. They were wiped and disinfected with 75% alcohol, rinsed with clean water, and then thoroughly dried. It is strictly prohibited to come into contact with the hot wax pool while wet.

The exterior surface of the equipment, the safety guard cover, and the touch screen cabinet body should be wiped with a dust-free cloth to remove the powder of the medicine, the splashed paraffin, and the oil stains. Ensure there is no residual paraffin or dust.

The cooling water tank is emptied to discharge the wastewater, and the wax debris and impurities inside the tank are cleaned. The filter screen is also washed clean.

2. Inspection of the pneumatic system

Check the three-piece assembly of the air compressor: The water separator and air filter have drained the water properly, the lubricating oil level of the oil mist generator is normal, and the air pressure is stable at 0.4 to 0.6 MPa.

Check that all air pipe connectors are free from leakage and detachment; inspect the suction cups for aging, damage, or leakage. Replace any damaged ones immediately.

3. Temperature Control and Safety Inspection

Check that the temperature sensor and the heating terminals are not loose, carbonized or emitting any burnt smell.

The emergency stop button and safety door limit switch are tested to be sensitive and reliable.

If production continues the next day: Keep the wax pool at a low temperature for insulation; if there is a long period of shutdown, turn off the heating and wait until the wax has completely solidified before sealing the wax pool.

4. Simple Transmission Inspection

Check that the chains, guide rails and cylinders operate smoothly without any jamming or abnormal noises. Remove any exposed residual wax in time to prevent the wax from solidifying and causing the mechanism to get stuck.

II. Weekly Maintenance (Carried out during a half-day shutdown each week)

Deep cleaning of the wax pool

When the paraffin wax has completely melted, remove the floating debris and wax particles on the liquid surface, and extract the impurities at the bottom; avoid the long-term carbonization of impurities which may cause black spots or defective products in the wax seal.

If the wax liquid turns black and contains too many impurities, all the paraffin should be replaced and the inner walls of the wax tank should be thoroughly scrubbed.

Lubrication and maintenance of transmission parts

Linear guides, chains, bearings and gears are lubricated with food-grade high-temperature lubricating grease.

The cylinder guide rods are wiped and cleaned. A small amount of lubricating grease is applied. It is strictly prohibited for the lubricating oil to drip into the wax pool and contaminate the paraffin wax.

Maintenance of the cooling water circulation system

Clean the circulating water pump, inlet and outlet water pipelines, and filters to prevent water scale from blocking and causing poor cooling effect or wax layer adhesion and deformation; if the water quality is poor, the cooling water should be replaced regularly.

Electrical part dust removal

Turn off the main power supply, open the electrical control cabinet, use dry compressed air to blow away the internal dust, wax droplets and condensation stains; check that the connection terminals are securely fastened without any looseness.

Calibrate temperature instrument: Compare the actual wax temperature with the temperature displayed on the touch screen. If there is a deviation, promptly calibrate the temperature probe.

III. Monthly Maintenance (Monthly Equipment Inspection)

Mechanical structure fastening inspection

All the racks, tooling molds, grippers, and fixed screws of the turntable are tightened one by one to prevent loosening due to long-term vibration, which could cause positioning deviation and inconsistent wax application depth.

Check the tightness of the synchronous belt and the transmission chain. If they are too loose, adjust the tensioning wheel. If there is any cracking or wear, replace them immediately.

Comprehensively inspect all photoelectric sensors and proximity switches, clean the wax and dust on the sensing heads to prevent false alarms and malfunction in material shortage detection.

Replace worn-out and damaged parts: Replace worn-out suction cups, aged air tubes, sealing rings and other vulnerable components, and prepare them in advance for stock.

Check the grounding lines to ensure that the equipment is properly grounded and to eliminate the risk of electric leakage.

IV. Quarterly / Annual Maintenance (Major Overhaul Maintenance)

Empty the paraffin in the wax tank, thoroughly polish and clean the wax tank and heating tube, remove carbon deposits and wax accumulation on the tube walls, check if the heating tube is corroded or has any leakage, and replace it if damaged.

Disassemble all the transmission mechanisms, bearings and reducers. Replace the aged lubricating oil and seals. Replace the worn bearings with new ones directly.

Completely verify the temperature control system and the operation parameters of the PLC, back up the program, and check whether the touch screen buttons and displays are functioning properly.

Overall rust removal and rust prevention: Stainless steel parts undergo passivation treatment for maintenance, while non-stainless steel moving parts are treated for rust prevention.

Deep cleaning and maintenance of the air compressor and water circulation system, as well as insulation resistance testing of the motors.

V. Special Maintenance Precautions for Key Areas

The wax pool heating system (the part with the highest failure rate)

It is strictly prohibited to dry-burn the wax pool. Each time the heating is carried out, the stone wax must be fully submerged in the heating tube.

Prevent water from entering the wax tank to avoid the rupture of the heating tube and the splashing of the wax liquid which could cause a fire.

Regularly remove the accumulated carbon at the bottom to prevent local overheating from accelerating the aging of the heating tube.

2. Maintenance of 304 Stainless Steel Body

Just use neutral cleaning agents and alcohol for cleaning. Do not use strong acid or strong alkali cleaning agents as they can cause corrosion and rusting.

After cleaning, it must be dried thoroughly. In humid environments, water stains and rust spots are prone to form.

3. Pneumatic suction cup system

Avoid using solvents to corrode the silica gel suction cups during each cleaning process.

The suction cups are high-frequency and easily damaged parts. It is recommended to keep 5 to 10 spare parts on hand and replace them regularly.

4. Electrical Protection

The electrical control cabinet must not be washed with water. It can only be wiped dry and then blown clean with compressed air.

When the humidity in the workshop is high, take regular measures to prevent moisture and avoid internal short circuits.

VI. Maintenance Precautions

Under high-temperature conditions, it is strictly prohibited to directly use water to rinse the wax tank, the motor, or the electrical control box.

The lubricating oil must be of food-grade quality to prevent contamination of the medicines.

During equipment operation, it is strictly prohibited to open the cover for maintenance or reach into the moving parts for cleaning. Instead, the emergency stop button must be pressed and the power must be cut off for operation.

Do not arbitrarily modify the factory-set process parameters. Make detailed records of the parameter adjustments and keep them for future reference.