The preventive maintenance schedule is vital for organizations to ensure equipment reliability, cost savings, safety, compliance, operational efficiency, and customer satisfaction. But when it comes to asset maintenance, most organizations tend to depend on reactive maintenance approaches, which can lead to costly breakdowns and repairs. That’s precisely why a well-designed preventive maintenance scheduling is crucial for any business that relies on machinery. However, implementing a well-designed preventative maintenance plan can help enterprises proactively prevent such issues.
This comprehensive guide will walk you through the steps on how to set up an effective preventative maintenance plan to keep your assets in top shape. Let’s get started!
What is a Preventive Maintenance Schedule?
Preventive maintenance is considered a well-planned and systematic approach to scheduling and conducting maintenance tasks on assets and equipment in an organization. To make sure that equipment runs smoothly and reduces breakdowns or failures. It also prevents minor issues from escalating into more significant, expensive problems.
A PM schedule for equipment includes various tasks such as inspections, lubrication, cleaning, replacement, calibrations, and performance tests. The plan outlines when an asset will require servicing and what maintenance it requires. The manufacturers, industrial best practices, historical data, and regulatory requirements on asset performances often recommend these schedules.
For example, a car’s PM schedule might include an oil change every 5,000 miles, a tire rotation every 10,000 miles, and a tune-up for every 20,000 miles.
Types of Preventive Maintenance Scheduling
The two types of Preventative Maintenance Scheduling includes :
Floating Preventive Maintenance Scheduling
Floating PM scheduling enables more adaptability and optimization to organizations while conducting maintenance tasks. Here the asset maintenance tasks are scheduled based on the predetermined intervals but with the flexibility of date and time. Floating PM scheduling enables the organization to adjust the time and date of maintenance depending on operational needs or other factors. The time intervals between the schedules remain constant, whereas the actual scheduling of maintenance tasks is adaptable Condition-based and Predictive maintenance scheduling are some floating preventive maintenance scheduling types.
Fixed Preventive Maintenance Scheduling
Fixed PM scheduling offers a structured approach with set timelines and ensures compliance with regulations. Here the maintenance tasks are scheduled based on predetermined dates or times. The maintenance activities are performed at regular intervals strictly according to the schedule, regardless of operational conditions or any other external factors. Time-based, calendar-based, and usage-based are some floating preventive maintenance scheduling types.
Fixed and Floating preventive maintenance scheduling methods have their advantages and are utilized by the organization based on its requirement. Sometimes organizations select both maintenance scheduling methods together is required. These scheduling practices depend on the factors such as industry regulations, asset criticality, asset conditions, and the organization’s maintenance strategies.
Learn more about the Types of preventive maintenance scheduling and how they can benefit your organization.
Why Preventive Maintenance Schedule is Important?
By practicing the PM schedule, organizations ensure that all maintenance activities are conducted on time according to the predetermined schedule.
This schedule helps run your facility smoothly and avoids unexpected downtime. By regularly inspecting and maintaining your equipment, you can determine potential problems before they cause significant issues. A well-designed pm schedule will save you time and money in the long run, as it extends the asset lifespan, reduces downtime, improves asset reliability, and enhances overall operational effectiveness.
Benefits of a Preventive Maintenance Schedule
Improved Equipment Performance and Longevity
A proper maintenance schedule helps reduce wear on your equipment, prolonging its life. It reduces asset downtime, increases reliability, improves the efficiency of assets, and ensures optimal equipment conditions by recognizing and addressing potential issues before they escalate into something big.
Increased Safety
Regularly servicing your equipment can reduce the probability of accidents due to malfunctioning parts or improper usage. Preventative maintenance enhances equipment safety by conducting regular inspections, verifying safety features, aligning, and calibrating assets, providing training, and improving emergency preparedness. These measures reduce the possibility of accidents, injuries, and property damage while creating a safer work environment for the employees.
Reduced Costs Associated with Repairs or Replacements
Regular preventive maintenance scheduling reduces the cost of replacement or repairs by addressing potential issues early on. It prevents significant breakdowns and minimizes equipment failures. Regular maintenance allows worn-out parts to be identified and replaced before they cause extensive damage or lead to complete equipment failure. Which eventually reduces the need for expensive emergency repairs or premature asset replacements, resulting in cost savings for the organization.
Improved Customer Satisfaction
Preventive maintenance schedule improves customer satisfaction by offering reliable and uninterrupted service or product delivery. Proactive equipment maintenance enables organizations to minimize delays, disruptions, and quality relate-issues caused by asset malfunctioning or breakdowns. All this results in a consistent and reliable customer experience, increasing customer loyalty and satisfaction.
How to Set Up a Preventive Maintenance Schedule?
PM schedule is a tool that can help you keep your equipment and machinery running smoothly and efficiently. By regularly scheduling maintenance tasks, you can identify and fix potential concerns before they cause downtime or expensive repairs.
To create an effective preventative maintenance schedule, you’ll need to consider a few key factors :
- What equipment do you need to include on the schedule?
- How often should each piece of equipment be serviced?
- Who will be responsible for completing the preventive maintenance schedule?
Once you’ve answered these questions, you can create your PM schedule. Here’s a step-by-step guide to help get you started:
- List all the equipment essential for maintenance in the schedule. Be sure to include both large and small pieces of equipment.
- For each piece of equipment, determine how often it needs servicing, which will be based on factors such as its expected lifespan, how often it is used, and manufacturer recommendations.
- Assign responsibility for each piece of equipment to a specific person or team to ensure the maintenance tasks are completed promptly.
- Create a timeline for completing the preventive maintenance schedule. Depending on your needs, this can be weekly, monthly, or quarterly.
- Add preventive maintenance tasks to your company’s overall task management system so that it is easily tracked and completed on time.
Once you have created your maintenance scheduling, it is essential to stick to it as closely as possible. If you miss scheduled maintenance tasks or delay them for too long, equipment problems can quickly become expensive repairs.
How Can You Create a PM Schedule with Fogwing Asset+?
To create a Preventive Maintenance Schedule with Fogwing Asset+, you can follow these easy steps:
- Access the Fogwing Asset+ Platform: Log in your Fogwing Asset+ account at https://app.assetplus.ai/ using your credentials. If you don’t have an account, sign up for one.
- Navigate to the PM Scheduler: Once you are logged in, navigate to the PM Scheduler module or section within the Fogwing Asset+ platform.
- Create a New Schedule: Look for an option to create a new PM schedule or task. Click on it to begin the creation process.
- Specify Preventive Maintenance Details: Fill in the necessary details for the PM task. This may include a title or description of the task, the type of maintenance required, any specific instructions or checklist items, and any additional information relevant to the maintenance.
- Define the Asset: Select the asset or equipment for which you want to create the Preventative Maintenance schedule. This could be a specific machine, vehicle, or any other item that requires regular maintenance.
- Set the Maintenance Frequency: Specify the frequency at which the maintenance task should be performed. This can be daily, weekly, monthly, or any other interval that suits your requirements.
- Assign Responsible Parties: Assign individuals responsible for performing the PM task. This ensures that the maintenance activities are carried out by the appropriate personnel.
- Assign Checklists: Assign checklist required to perform the PM schedule task. To ensures that the maintenance activities are carried out appropriately by the maintenance personnel.
- Save the PM Schedule: Once you have filled in all the necessary information, save the Preventative Maintenance schedule. The schedule will then be stored within the Fogwing Asset+ platform and will be activated according to the specified frequency.
- Monitor and Manage PM Schedules: After creating the schedules, you can monitor its progress, track completed maintenance tasks, and manage any changes or updates as needed.
The Fogwing Asset+ platform provides tools and dashboards to help you track and manage your maintenance activities effectively.
Conclusion
A well-crafted preventive maintenance schedule helps to maintain equipment productively while reducing downtime, increasing safety, and extending its expected lifespan – all of which contribute to helping maximize profitability. By following these steps and using the provided guidelines, you can build a robust preventive maintenance plan that minimizes breakdowns and keeps your machines running efficiently.
Fogwing Asset+ CMMS and Asset performance monitoring platform enable organizations to reduce maintenance-related costs, extend asset life, improve reliability, enhance efficiency, ensure safety and compliance, and reduce distractions. It also allows the business to maximize the value and performance of its assets while reducing operational challenges and risks with the preventive maintenance schedule.
