Whether you're responsible for a single piece of expensive industrial machinery or an entire fleet, the importance of a preventative maintenance plan can't be stressed enough.
Whether you're responsible for a single piece of expensive industrial machinery or an entire fleet,
the importance of a preventative maintenance plan can't be stressed enough. Unfortunately, it's easy to postpone routine maintenance because of production and operational demands and the costs associated with placing equipment offline, even for a short period of time. While creating a formal preventative maintenance plan won't necessarily eliminate pressure from other managers to postpone scheduled maintenance for "a better time," it can help you deal more effectively with these demands. In fact, depending on how you position the maintenance plan, the other managers may be willing to work around your schedule rather than the other way around.
Why a Preventative Maintenance Plan is Important
You likely understand why preventative maintenance is important. After all, preventing problems before they manifest can avoid breakdowns, lengthy downtime, and costly repairs. Preventative maintenance can also extend the useful life of equipment, resulting in a lower overall cost of ownership and a longer time before the equipment must be replaced.
However, those aren't the only benefits. Preventative maintenance can also improve productivity (fewer breakdowns and less downtime), increase profits (faster production times), and improved safety (fewer injuries related to major breakdowns or equipment malfunctions).
Okay, so everyone agrees that preventative maintenance is essential – but how do you make sure it actually gets done, especially when other managers are inconvenienced by it? That's where your preventative maintenance plan comes in. Your maintenance plan must address both the needs of the equipment and of those who rely on the equipment to get their jobs done. As such, it's important to work closely with those who will be affected by scheduled maintenance.
Selling Your Preventative Maintenance Plan
Because others will be affected by your maintenance plan, it's smart to get their feedback in the planning stages. For example, if your preventative maintenance plan involves maintaining a fleet of flower delivery trucks, you may want to invite a dispatcher or delivery manager to one of your planning meetings. If it involves manufacturing equipment, a production manager should be involved.
Consider the impact downtime has on the other managers. What are some of their concerns? Having an idle workforce for three hours? Production delays? Costs? Disruptions? Just as a salesperson must overcome objections, the same is true of you. For example, if a manager is worried about keeping the workforce occupied, you could position the downtime as an opportunity for training or team-building exercises. If delays are a major concern, the production manager may appreciate being asked about the production schedule and traditionally slower production periods.
In addition to addressing objections, it's also important to reinforce the benefits of your maintenance plan. Again, you need to think like a salesperson and focus on the "what's in it for me?" question. For the manager concerned about costs associated with downtime, a benefit of your maintenance plan is that it saves the department much more in terms of repairs, replacement costs, lifetime cost of ownership, productivity improvements, and so on.
Think like a salesperson. Overcome objections and stress benefits and you'll be more likely to get the buy-in you need for your maintenance plan to be a success.
