Find answers to frequently asked questions here.

The biggest step is to move from reactive maintenance (waiting for something to break) or preventive maintenance (fixed schedules) to maintenance based on the actual condition of the machine. Sensors on key parts measure vibration and temperature, so you can see a problem developing weeks in advance, instead of finding out when the machine breaks down.

Regular inspections, root-cause tracking and a stock of critical spare parts help too. But condition monitoring is the only one of the three that warns you before a specific machine fails.

For Dutch manufacturers, it typically comes to €500 to €3,000 per hour, and up to €5,000 per hour for high-volume lines with expensive products.

It varies widely, so a useful rule of thumb is: labour cost of idle staff per hour, plus fixed machine cost per hour, plus the margin you lose on output (units per hour × margin per unit in euros).

The problem is widespread: in a 2025 Fluke and Censuswide survey of more than 600 manufacturers, 61% had unplanned downtime in the past year.

Summix places sensors on the critical parts of your machines, continuously monitors their condition, and translates the data into concrete notifications: which machine is at risk of downtime, and when should you intervene. Fully tailored to the machines where downtime hurts the most.

Yes. The sensors from Summix are placed on critical parts and are system-independent: they work independently of the brand, the year of manufacture, or the existing control system (PLC/SCADA) of your machine park. There is no need to replace or modify any existing machines.

No. A CMMS (computerised maintenance management system) or MES (manufacturing execution system) records and schedules work processes, but doesn’t know by itself when a machine actually needs maintenance. Summix provides exactly that information: the sensor data and alerts are meant to be used alongside or in addition to an existing CMMS or MES, not to replace that system.

Predictive maintenance is a form of maintenance in which sensors continuously measure the condition of a machine, such as vibration and temperature, so that you know exactly when a part actually needs maintenance. Summix places these sensors on critical parts of production machines, and translates that data into concrete, timely insight: which machine is at risk of failure, and when intervention is needed.

Corrective maintenance only intervenes after a machine has stopped working. Preventive maintenance follows a fixed schedule, for example every three months, regardless of actual wear and tear, and is therefore often too early and unnecessarily costly. Predictive maintenance determines when maintenance is really necessary based on the current, measured condition of the machine, thus preventing both unexpected downtime and unnecessary maintenance.

Condition monitoring is the continuous measurement of the state of a machine to detect deviations early on, long before they lead to a malfunction. For example, vibration and temperature are two reliable indicators of mechanical wear and tear, such as bearing damage, imbalance or overheating, and are therefore at the heart of the sensors that Summix uses.

Downtime is any period in which a production machine isn’t running when it should be. It is costly because the costs simply keep running: staff, rent, depreciation of the machine, while nothing is being produced and the lost production usually can’t be made up.

Planned downtime is scheduled in advance, such as maintenance, changeovers and holidays, and can be fitted around your production schedule. Unplanned downtime is caused by an unexpected breakdown in the middle of a production run, and is therefore much more expensive: there is no time to move work, deploy staff elsewhere or inform a customer in time.