Several years ago, if you had a preventive maintenance program, you were considered to have a solid grasp on maintaining your equipment. As technology has evolved and the ability to collect and use data has become more prevalent in recent years, having a predictive maintenance plan is now the gold standard for manufacturers. Let’s dive into what predictive maintenance is and how a smart strategy combined with the right software can save your organization significant time and money.
What is Predictive Maintenance?
Despite the similar name, predictive maintenance (PdM) differs from preventive maintenance. When you adopt a preventive maintenance strategy, you take preventive measures to keep your equipment in good condition so you don’t end up with an unexpected breakdown that leaves you with equipment downtime and costly repairs. While preventive maintenance can definitely help you improve operations, predictive maintenance takes being proactive to the next level.
Predictive maintenance software allows manufacturers to collect and track equipment so granularly that you can precisely pinpoint when a piece of equipment will require certain maintenance. Over time, this software forms a data story about each piece of equipment so that it provides the insight to help you schedule maintenance at the most convenient and cost-efficient moment. You’ll be able to correct issues before equipment is compromised, optimizing your equipment’s lifespan.
Predictive maintenance software utilizes nondestructive testing methods such as acoustic, corona detection, infrared, oil analysis, sound level measurements, vibration analysis and thermal imaging. These technologies work together to gather real-time data that gives you extensive visibility into the condition and performance of your equipment.
The typical process flow for a predictive maintenance program looks like:
- Determine equipment and failure mode to be monitored.
- Establish frequency.
- Monitor condition.
- Issue report.
- If there is no abnormality, return to Step 3. If there is, continue to Step 6.
- Create a work order.
- Plan a work date.
- Ensure parts and labor are available.
- Perform repair.
- Close work order and return to Step 3.
Predictive Maintenance vs. Inspection for Defects
There has been a lot of debate in the manufacturing world about how best to identify defects so that the process of creating work orders, ordering parts, and scheduling and completing the work happens smoothly before reaching a high probability of equipment failure. Let’s look at a few popular inspection techniques.
Sensory Inspections
Traditional sensory inspections have long been used to detect potential equipment issues. A technician would go around and use sight, sound and touch to identify any changes since the last inspection and note any problems. This would be investigated and work would follow if needed. While it’s nice to have actual eyes and ears on the floor, this method runs the risk of missing quite a bit. Sensory inspections can typically only recognize obvious problems that are either severe or have been building for a while and are now hard to overlook. A sensory-only inspection is likely to miss more subtle issues or catch problems when they first begin, which can result in a lot of wasted time, a more expensive repair and inconvenient equipment failure.
Enhanced Sensory Inspections
Enhanced sensory inspections do improve upon the traditional, consisting of both a sensory inspection and a quantitative measurement with condition-monitoring characteristics. This method uses spot radiometers, strobe lights, handheld vibration pens and ultrasonic meters to identify defects further up the P-F curve. While this is a step up from basic sensory inspections, these tools still shouldn’t replace a comprehensive condition-monitoring program.
Quantitative Inspections
This type of inspection can certainly provide valuable information when it comes to generating and analyzing data. These measurements provide useful data to the planner and engineer and help determine the need for maintenance attention. A quantitative inspection procedure details limits and typically expected measurements. It should have the minimum, maximum and typical values, with conditional tasks defined for when limits are exceeded. A quantitative inspection performed at the proper inspection frequency, however, will rarely have a measurement that exceeds the limits.
Predictive Maintenance
Predictive maintenance, sometimes known as condition monitoring, uses statistical process control or equipment performance to detect and eliminate equipment defects early. This method is conducted while equipment is in normal operation with little to no process interruption. Utilizing tools such as vibration analysis, infrared thermography, motor circuit analysis and others allows teams to find defects often missed by other inspection techniques. Manufacturers who adopt a predictive maintenance program experience far fewer equipment issues and avoid preventable downtime and costly repair.
Types of Predictive Maintenance Technologies
Predictive maintenance and manufacturing uses several types of technologies. See common predictive maintenance tools below.
Vibrational Analysis
Machine Speed: High | Machine Type: Mechanical | Cost: Medium
A machine in peak condition exhibits a particular vibration pattern. A vibrational analysis allows a technician to monitor a machine’s vibrations by using a handheld analyzer or real-time sensors built into the equipment. For plants with high-rotating machinery, vibrational analysis is the go-to means of analysis. Given how long it’s been utilized, it’s more cost-effective, and it can detect looseness, imbalance, misalignment and bearing wear.
Acoustical Analysis (Sonic)
Machine Speed: Low, High | Machine Type: Mechanical | Cost: Low
Using acoustic technologies, teams can detect gas, liquid or vacuum leaks in equipment on a sonic or ultrasonic level. An acoustical analysis is less expensive to implement and is used for low- and high-rotating machinery. It’s similar to vibrational analysis; however, acoustical analysis is meant more for lubrication technicians and focuses on proactive lubrication measures.
Infrared Analysis
Machine Speed: Low, High | Machine Type: Mechanical, Electrical | Cost: Low
Infrared technologies are widely used in predictive maintenance. Using IR cameras, teams can detect high temperatures (hotspots) in equipment likely generated from worn components. An infrared analysis doesn’t depend on an asset’s rotational speed or loudness, making it suitable for a variety of equipment types.
Industries Utilizing Predictive Maintenance
Predictive maintenance software benefits a variety of industries. Some of the top growing fields utilizing predictive maintenance strategies include:
- Industrial Manufacturers
- Pharmaceuticals and Medical Devices
- Food and Beverage
- Electronics and High-Tech
- Life Sciences & Medical Device ERP
Those in the manufacturing industry are now seeing how valuable a predictive maintenance program is to stay competitive in a market that frequently changes.
Benefits of Predictive Maintenance
The benefits of predictive maintenance software are many.
- Reduced unplanned downtime: Avoid inconvenient breakdowns by predicting asset failure.
- Improved asset utilization: Use assets more efficiently and make the most of equipment lifetime.
- Increased asset life: Identify operational performance factors and enhance maintenance practices and reliability.
- Optimized output: Make processes and products more efficient to deliver higher production output.
- Reduced maintenance costs: Eliminate over-maintaining assets using scheduled maintenance before failure based on data-backed early warnings.
The ROI of Predictive Maintenance
Predictive maintenance is able to greatly reduce costs and other vital factors for larger organizations that have outgrown planned maintenance activities. Adopting a predictive maintenance program does, however, require significant investment in funds, personnel and education. This investment can understandably feel overwhelming for manufacturers, but ask any organization that abides by a PdM program if the return on investment is worth it and you’ll likely hear a resounding yes.
In a study by Deloitte, poor maintenance strategies reduce a plant’s overall productive capacity by 5 to 20%. The same study notes that the digital transformation we’ve seen in manufacturing in recent years and the use of modern technologies and strategies like predictive maintenance have the potential to:
- Save 5 to 10% in material cost
- Increase equipment uptime and availability by 10 to 20%
- Reduce maintenance planning time by 20 to 50%
- Lower overall maintenance costs 5 to 10%
Manage the Full Asset Lifecycle with QAD
As part of QAD Adaptive ERP, QAD EAM (Enterprise Asset Management) is an integrated solution that enables manufacturers to manage the full asset lifecycle, improving equipment agility and maximizing lifetime value. You can learn more about predictive maintenance in our blog, Cashing the Check on Predictive Maintenance.
