A preventative maintenance schedule is a systematic approach to identifying issues and correcting equipment failures before they happen. That means performing preventive maintenance on a regular basis and coming up with a preventive maintenance plan in which someone conducts routine checkups on equipment to ensure operating efficiency.
In order to be effective, a preventative maintenance schedule needs to be constantly adjusted, which is why old methods of providing preventative maintenance may not work as well (i.e, pen and paper, email, spreadsheets, etc.). Use technology to your advantage and create your preventative maintenance schedule using a robust preventative maintenance scheduling tool like the one we’ll discuss in detail below. But first, let’s take a look at four tips to help improve your preventive maintenance schedule.
1. Set Goals & Monitor Them
It’s great to have a preventative maintenance schedule, but you need to know what you’re trying to accomplish. And if you do use one, there are a few things to think about. For example, are machines and assets running more efficiently? Are you having less downtime? Figure out what your goals are and write them down (and remember to be specific).
Set goals and consistently monitor them so that it’s easier for you to stay on track to meet them. Updating your goals as your business grows is important if you want it to keep growing. That means keeping your goals in a place where you can always refer back to them and make quick and easy updates when you need to.
2. Assess All of Your Machines and Assets, Not Just the Most Critical Ones
Assessing all of your machines and assets is essential to making sure all of your equipment is running at maximum efficiency. If you only pay attention to the most critical ones, you’re essentially running around putting out fires instead of taking the most efficient route to managing your equipment. If you want your assets and equipment to last, you’ve got to come up with a preventative maintenance plan that’s beneficial for all of your assets — not just the oldest or most critical ones.
3. Stop Performing Unnecessary Maintenance and Learn About Preventative Maintenance Schedules
Performing unnecessary maintenance is something no one wants to do and if you want to avoid it as well, you’ll need to find a way to make maintenance more routine. That’s where preventative maintenance schedules come in.
Preventative maintenance schedules can help you avoid performing unnecessary maintenance by establishing priorities based on the criticality of the assets. Creating a preventative maintenance schedule can also define all of the tasks that need to be performed throughout the year to ensure everything runs smoothly and few (if any) maintenance issues arise.
4. Continue to Improve Your PM Schedule By Analyzing and Adjusting Accordingly
Once you’ve created a preventative maintenance schedule, start analyzing it so you can make adjustments accordingly. See what’s working and what isn’t and make the necessary changes. Make sure to include key stakeholders in your preventative maintenance scheduling plan so everyone impacted can be involved in the design and implementation. It will ensure it’s the most effective plan it can be.
Finding a Preventative Maintenance Scheduling Solution
A comprehensive preventative maintenance scheduling solution is crucial to managing your field assets adequately. Field asset management software can help improve efficiency and increase equipment uptime because you’ll have all of your asset information in one, easy-to-access location.
Field asset management software like BlueFolder’s allows you to schedule preventative maintenance and track serial numbers, service histories, warranties, and more. Providing greater attention to detail is seamless with asset management software. Imagine being able to impress your customers with detailed information tracking all of the equipment you service.
Using BlueFolder’s customizable features can help you streamline your equipment maintenance. Some of those features include:
- Equipment records – This allows you to keep track of customer equipment and assets, track manufacturer and model information and serial numbers, as well as warranty expiration, and more.
- File attachments – This allows you to upload user manuals, photos, or other types of attachments to any asset or piece of equipment.
- Maintenance schedule – Get reminders when an asset or piece of equipment is due for service and create new work orders quickly and easily for the service. Or reset the next service date so you can set a reminder for the next service date.
- Custom fields – Create customized, searchable fields so you can keep track of all the data for each customer to make it easy to find the information you need quickly.
- Service history – Get instant access to each customer’s service history to keep your team organized and efficient, and allowing them to provide great customer service.
- Import/Export capabilities – If you have existing customer records or data, you can import them into BlueFolder using the built-in import tools.
You’ll also have access to service dashboards and custom reports and customizable equipment fields.
The service dashboard and custom reports help you maximize your equipment and asset management by helping you quickly access equipment information (like model numbers and serial numbers), helping you identify equipment replacement sales opportunities, and providing insights into which pieces of equipment are past due for service or have an approaching service date.
You can track equipment fields like Location, Item Name, Manufacturer Name, Status, Service Interval (the amount of time between service dates), and more. With custom fields, you’ll have the ability to track information for equipment that’s specific to your industry.
Simplify Managing Your Assets and Equipment
Creating a preventative maintenance schedule will make managing your assets and equipment seamless. BlueFolder’s easy-to-use asset management software can help you create an easy-to-follow preventative maintenance schedule that keeps all of the equipment you service in tip-top shape and saves you the most time and money. If you’re ready to take your preventative maintenance to the next level and partner with a provider that makes customers a priority, schedule a personalized one-on-one demo so you can see exactly what you’re getting before you spend a dime.
