For most companies, maintenance represents a very significant function within the overall production and operation environment, and it is important to be up to date with the maintenance of equipment and machines. With the correct maintenance strategy, you can avoid future problems and unwanted costs, like breakdowns and costly repairs. Hence Knowing the difference between Predictive, Preventive and Corrective Maintenance essential.

For a maintenance manager or supervisor, it is necessary to know the different types of maintenance.

Preventive maintenance measures are planned and performed on equipment with the purpose of ensuring that failures do not occur and to lessen the consequences of breakdowns. A preventive maintenance plan is ideal when a maintenance manager can prevent any malfunction of their equipment or can predict and plan for this failure so it has the least possible impact.

Example: An elevator undergoes regular inspections that include a diagnostic test to determine if parts should be replaced.

Predictive maintenance is maintenance that monitors the performance and condition of equipment during normal operation to reduce the likelihood of failures. It predicts when equipment failures might occur and to prevent the occurrence of the failure by performing maintenance.

Example: Using real-time data, you can analyze your machine’s health over a set time to determine what predictive maintenance is needed to reduce downtime or failures. Using sensors to monitor pieces of equipment critical to your production can automatically create work orders based on triggers. Equipment that becomes unexpectedly overheated can compromise operations and result in unexpected delays, additional costs, and customer disappointment.

Corrective Maintenance is only performed after equipment failures or breakdowns are reported, it is the technical activity carried out after a failure has occurred and its purpose is to repair an asset to a condition in which it can perform its intended function.

Example: A conveyor in a manufacturing maintenance environment fails. This results in unexpected downtime and immediate repairs are done to restore production capability.

To ensure your assets remain in working order you need to have a maintenance strategy in place.

A large part of implementing a preventive maintenance plan using a CMMS solution involves data entry for important assets. After the data has been entered, a CMMS solution can be programmed to automate work orders focused around a preventive maintenance schedule. Eagle Technology’s Proteus CMMS software does this best, by giving users the ability to create a master record for preventive maintenance.

Proteus CMMS allows users to set up a preventive maintenance schedule at daily, weekly, and monthly intervals. Work orders are generated automatically, which can record the technician name, time, and parts that were used. Over time, the data comes together and shows that downtime has been reduced and machines are operating better, or ideally at peak performance.

Things are going to break, wear and tear is natural and going to exist regardless of how well managed your maintenance team is, but with help from a CMMS solution like Eagle’s Proteus, you’re putting your team in a position where it’s no longer playing from behind. For more information, call +1-262-241-3845 or schedule a demo.