As a maintenance manager or supervisor, you’ll often find yourself under pressure to reduce the expenses incurred by the maintenance department. A report from E. I. DuPont de Nemours Co. (Delaware) states that the largest and only controllable expense in a manufacturing plant is maintenance. In many manufacturing plants, the maintenance budget exceeds the annual net profit. Maintenance department costs can also be a significant expense in other types of commercial establishments.
As a maintenance manager or supervisor, you’ll often find yourself under pressure to reduce the expenses incurred by the maintenance department. A report from E. I. DuPont de Nemours Co. (Delaware) states that the largest and only controllable expense in a manufacturing plant is maintenance. In many manufacturing plants, the maintenance budget exceeds the annual net profit. Maintenance department costs can also be a significant expense in other types of commercial establishments.
When maintenance department machines are overused, and equipment fails, it can seem impossible to find ways to reduce costs. However, there are some strategies that can help control maintenance expenses while still meeting the department's expectations.
Maintenance Cost Reduction Strategies
Review and Simplify All Maintenance Procedures. Over time, many procedures become more complex. Some steps may no longer be necessary due to better spare parts or new procedures. Often, numerous steps are included to ensure that a work order is completed on time. However, the human mind can get confused with too much complexity. It is known that most people tend to check off items on a checklist without actually completing the steps. To avoid this, identify the most important steps of the task and specify them.
Understand and Follow Safety Procedures. It can be tempting to cut some procedures to get the job done faster. However, having an accident or a technician getting injured can result in a higher expense. Make sure technicians and equipment operators know and follow safety procedures.
Better Manage Unplanned or Unpredictable Maintenance. Schedule maintenance on a daily or weekly basis based on three categories: Category A (must be done urgently), Category B (must be done soon), and Category C (would be good to do). Unplanned maintenance can be scheduled in Category C or B. This can prevent ongoing maintenance issues.
Create a Maintenance Work Schedule for the next month, semester, or year by equipment and location. Share dates with critical teams and their respective operations.
Train Non-Maintenance Staff to detect potential issues and report them. For example, detecting an unusual noise in a machine could be a sign that a bearing is failing. Use the work request module of your maintenance software. This will make it easier for them to request or report potential failures.
Ensure You Have the Right Tools—Maintenance Management Software for your needs. You should obtain a CMMS that suits your needs, is easy to use, and can be implemented by your staff with minimal effort.
If you are looking for maintenance management software to handle your corrective and preventive maintenance, EasyMaint Software is an excellent choice.