When a component goes obsolete, one of the most common fixes on the OEM side is the conversion kit: a machine upgrade or retrofit that swaps an obsolete part for a non-obsolete alternative. Yet OEMs and their customers describe using this solution at very different rates.
According to PMMI's Managing Obsolescence report, 89% of OEMs said they have created conversion kits to address obsolescence for their customers, their single most-reported strategy, ahead of one-for-one alternative parts (79%) and selling new machinery (71%). But only 48% of end users reported using conversion kits to replace obsolete components. The 41-point spread stands out because, for the most part, OEM strategies and end user needs track closely: alternative components, new machinery, and backstocking rank among the top approaches for both groups.
The report reads the conversion-kit gap as an opening for better communication rather than a mismatch in demand. End users and OEMs may benefit from a clearer conversation about when a kit is the right answer versus a single one-for-one replacement, and about which kits already exist for a given obsolete component.
OEMs that are proactive about what kits are available—and transparent about plans to develop or support kits in the future—can better equip end users to plan ahead instead of scrambling once a line is down.
A president at a processing and packaging OEM described what obsolescence looks like without a kit in hand.
"When machines are down at our customers, it becomes a 911 emergency,” he says. “We may have engineers design something on a napkin and use 3D printers, search eBay, or have three different people working on three different approaches simultaneously. It's an hour-by-hour race to see who can fix the problem."
The broader takeaway from the data is that no single solution covers every obsolescence event. OEMs and end users alike draw from a toolbox of approaches, and greater transparency into kit-based options gives both sides more room to match the right fix to the right problem before disruption sets in.
SOURCE: 2026 Managing Obsolescence
For more insights from PMMI's Business Intelligence team, find reports, including Managing Obsolescence, The Ripple Effect: CPG Sustainability and the New OEM Spec Sheet, and Processing State of the Industry at https://www.pmmi.org/business-intelligence.
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