When a vending machine is working as it should, there is little obvious reason to worry about it. However, problems do not necessarily begin with a breakdown. Efficiency can gradually fall, components can come under greater strain and running costs can creep up long before a machine stops working altogether.
Limescale is a good example here. As it builds up on boilers and heating elements, it can reduce heat transfer and force equipment to use more energy to heat water. Just 1mm of limescale can increase energy consumption by around 7%. It can also accumulate around valves, pumps and water lines, potentially contributing to reduced performance, additional maintenance and, eventually, costly breakdowns. So, while tackling limescale might seem like a relatively small part of equipment maintenance, it can have significant implications for energy use, reliability and the working life of the machine.
Making maintenance easier to plan
For vending equipment, filtration can help manage the effects of hard water by reducing limescale and other deposits. But filtration also needs to be managed properly. A filter that is left in place too long, or changed without reference to actual usage, can undermine the benefits operators are trying to achieve. This is where connected products can help. BRITA Professional’s PURITY C iQ monitors water conditions, consumption and remaining filter capacity, giving operators and service partners a clearer view of when a cartridge is likely to need replacing. Rather than relying entirely on fixed replacement schedules, operators can use the BRITA iQ Portal to monitor filter performance and consumption across single or multiple sites, helping them plan filter changes more accurately and make better use of available cartridge capacity.
The hidden cost of waiting
When equipment does fail, the engineer’s bill is only one part of the cost. There can also be lost sales, staff time spent dealing with the problem and, if customers are repeatedly met with an out-of-order machine, an impact on their experience too. BRITA Professional research found that, among businesses that had experienced an unexpected equipment failure, the average reported financial impact was almost £2,500*. Seven in ten operators said unreliable equipment costs valuable staff time, while more than half believed a single period of unplanned downtime could cause lasting reputational damage.
This is why a preventative approach to maintenance matters. Rather than waiting for equipment to fail and reacting to the consequences, the aim is to identify issues earlier, reduce unplanned downtime and keep equipment performing reliably and efficiently.
*Source: Research was conducted by BRITA Professional, using independent research partner 3Gem, among UK hospitality leaders and decision-makers to explore operational pain points and priorities for long-term business resilience.
What happens after use matters too
Looking after equipment is only one part of the picture. There is also the question of what happens to filters once they reach the end of their working life, and how their materials are managed afterwards.
BRITA Professional has operated a filter cartridge recycling programme for more than 30 years, with up to 85% of cartridge material recovered and reused on some programmes. Materials including ion exchange resin, activated carbon and plastics are reused or recycled where technically feasible, while materials that cannot be recycled are recovered for energy.
For the vending industry, this means looking at different stages of equipment and filter use together. Filtration can help protect equipment from limescale and reduce the additional energy consumption associated with scale build-up; monitoring can help operators make better use of available filter capacity; and BRITA Professional’s recycling programme provides a route for recovering materials from used cartridges.
