Preventive maintenance is maintenance that is carried out on a regular schedule in order to reduce the risk of equipment failures. For example, if your business depends on heavy equipment, which includes cranes, forklifts, bulldozers and any heavy vehicles that are designed for construction purposes, your maintenance plan should include regular oil changes and lubrication.

Like preventive maintenance, predictive maintenance is a proactive approach to maintaining equipment functionality and extending lifespan. Unlike preventive maintenance, however, predictive maintenance relies on real-time data about a piece of equipment’s condition to predict when it will fail. This data is provided using a network of sensors embedded in physical objects known as The Internet of Things, or IoT. Maintenance software such as enterprise asset management (EAM) or a computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) centralizes maintenance information and facilitiates the processes of maintenance operations. 

Reactive maintenance, or corrective maintenance, refers to a strategy of repairing equipment once it has broken down. This type of approach is based on the belief that costs sustained during downtime or as a result of necessary repair are typically lower than that of a regular maintenance program. While fine for low-cost, low-importance pieces of equipment this approach can have a negative impact on the life cycle of your most critical assets.

Run-to-failure maintenance is a maintenance strategy that relies on using assets until they break down completely and must be replaced. This maintenance plan is typically only effective if the cost of replacing a piece of equipment is less costly than repairing it using another maintenance strategy.

Regularly scheduled maintenance prevents equipment breakdowns that cost companies hundreds of millions of dollars every year. Some examples of recent incidents include:

• 2015: A store outage cost a massive tech company USD 25,000,000.00 (1)
• 2016: A power outage at a major airline caused the cancellation of 2,000 flights and an estimated loss of USD 150,000,000.00 (2)
• 2019: An outage cost a giant social media company an estimated USD 90,000,000.00 (3)

Proper maintenance management keeps employees safer according to the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) (link resides outside ibm.com). Their research found a strong link between poor equipment maintenance and workplace injuries—even fatalities. Researchers estimated that 35% of workplace incidents were related to failures of equipment.

In addition to reducing costs associated with downtime, proper equipment maintenance preserves equipment for longer, meaning it doesn’t have to be replaced as often. Thanks to modern tools such as IoT and EAM software which allow for real-time monitoring of performance, businesses are extending the lifespans of their most valuable assets.

A maintenance manager is critical in developing and implementing your equipment maintenance strategy, managing staff, supervising work and budgeting/forecasting for any future repairs.

A maintenance technician is a highly skilled worker that performs both regular maintenance tasks as well as repairs that arise from breakdowns.

A Maintenance engineer makes sure that equipment is installed and running smoothly. Their background in engineering helps them perform regular diagnostic testing and managerial duties as well as more hands-on repair work.