Industrial maintenance is also known as plant maintenance. It is a procedure that maximizes and maintains an equipment’s lifetime. Manufacturers stay clear of all roadblocks by making sure their equipment is in the correct state.
Industrial maintenance entails a servicing procedure to keep machines safe from a breakdown. It also helps to keep track of the spare parts. Appliances are essential in manufacturing. It would help if you kept them in the best condition always.
This article will discuss some common types of industrial maintenance for dummies.
Table of contents
1. Preventive Maintenance
Preventive maintenance is defined as a strategy that maintains equipment by replacing it. This maintenance practice is done at intervals as the equipment is in the best condition. It mainly aims to reduce failure.
This type of maintenance can be scheduled every week, depending on the organization. It can also happen depending on usage. Kindly read the whole piece to find out what is a maintenance mechanic.
Preventive maintenance is broken down into the following categories;
- Time-Based maintenance
This type of maintenance refers to renewing an item to make it more reliable at a fixed time. Time-based maintenance aims to keep you safe from wearing parts in between your tasks.
- Failure finding maintenance
Failure-finding maintenance activities detect unknown failures that come with protective functions. Remember, these tasks do not prevent machine failure, but they detect them.
- Risk-Based Maintenance
Risk-based maintenance is the use of a risk assessment strategy to assign your resources. It is possible to maintain low-risk equipment with smaller work scope.
Implementation of risk maintenance will reduce the risk of failure in your plant. It also cheaply achieves this.
- Condition Based Maintenance
The majority of failure modes do not occur due to the machine’s age. However, most methods give a warning before failing. You can take action to prevent a device from dying if you find evidence in the initial stages.
Condition-based maintenance searches for evidence that the machine is about to fail. However, CBM does not lower the chances of failure, but it intervenes.
- Predictive Maintenance
Predictive maintenance is an improved approach to CBM. This is because it uses online sensors to see if the machine is about to fail. Its main idea is that it predicts failure and then comes with the right strategy to solve the issue.
Most organizations are moving towards this space, and it is an excellent part of our discipline.
2. Corrective Maintenance
Corrective maintenance restores an item’s function after its users let it fail. This maintenance is based on the fact that failure is acceptable, and it is hard to avoid it.
Corrective maintenance also occurs after the occurrence of unplanned failures on the asset. Most of these failures are also unavoidable using preventive care. It is advisable to confirm that the failure modes do not turn to emergency maintenance.
Reactive maintenance is costly because it will occur in an unplanned environment. Corrective maintenance is broken down into the following sections;
- Deferred Maintenance
This is the repair of assets that become backlogged after a lack of funding. You can lower deferred maintenance by conducting an audit and prioritizing the backlog.
- Emergency Maintenance
This is a type of urgent maintenance that occurs after the assets break down abruptly. It interferes with your plans and puts everything in disarray. It is avoidable if you study your machine frequently.
3. Predetermined Maintenance
The predetermined maintenance is not as popular as others. This is because it relies on programs delivered by the manufacturer. This maintenance is performed with the manufacturer’s programs. However, it has a risk of increased downtime that affects production.
The Most Expensive Maintenance Type
Maintenance needs a good share of the operating costs for specific industries.
These practices cost half of the production costs in most cases. Unplanned repairs are the most expensive.
Emergency maintenance is the most expensive form of maintenance. This is because it occurs at an unexpected time. It is also costly since you will use whatever you have at the moment to correct it.
It is usually up to ten times more than a planned procedure. Emergency maintenance does not entail the entire maintenance planning process. This means it is not effective. Emergency maintenance also takes up time meant for other tasks.
Responsibilities of a Maintenance Technician
A maintenance technician has the following duties;
- Make sure the machinery is in suitable working condition. It achieves this by catering to all maintenance needs.
- Implements preventative practices on the equipment
- Completes work orders while giving high-quality results
- Be available when there is an emergency
- Read and understand all technical processes.
Final Thoughts
Industrial maintenance is an essential task in all companies. It helps to improve an equipment’s span, among other things. From the above information, you now know some benefits of the same.
