Predictive maintenance software has enabled management of industrial facilities and plants to realize significant benefits, including reduced asset downtime, extended asset service life, and increased production efficiency. Consequently, a robust predictive maintenance program has become synonymous with a performant and effective facility. What exactly is predictive maintenance, though, and what are its advantages over other maintenance strategies? What unique attributes does predictive maintenance software contribute to your maintenance strategy?
To answer these questions, we will explore the evolution from reactive maintenance to predictive maintenance. Then, we’ll take a close look at the features of predictive maintenance software and examine LLumin’s computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS+) software as a leading solution for implementing condition-based monitoring with predictive maintenance to integrate manufacturing and industrial plant assets.
The Journey From Reactive to Preventive to Predictive Maintenance
Reactive Maintenance
In the past, facilities often utilized a reactive maintenance strategy for asset management. Under this method of maintenance, engineering and maintenance managers considered repair or maintenance procedures only after an event of machine malfunction or failure. Although some benefits accompanied this strategy, such as short-term cost savings, the reactive maintenance approach ultimately proved a costly and highly unproductive methodology for facility and machine maintenance. Consult the table below for a more detailed enumeration of the benefits and drawbacks of a reactive maintenance strategy.
| Benefits of Reactive Maintenance | Drawbacks of Reactive Maintenance |
|
|
Preventive Maintenance
As industrial machinery proliferated and machine malfunctions resulted in costly repairs and time-consuming production and delivery interruptions, preventative maintenance strategies became the industry standard. As an improvement on reactive maintenance processes, preventive maintenance applied a deliberate and ordered maintenance methodology to asset and facility management. The table below outlines improvements manufacturing and industrial plants could attain with an effective preventive maintenance plan.
| Benefits of Preventive Maintenance | Drawbacks of Preventive Maintenance |
|
|
Predictive Maintenance
With the availability of integrated technology and adaptive software systems, predictive maintenance strategies have enabled manufacturing and industrial plants to monitor assets and visualize repair and replacement requirements before an asset malfunctions or fails. As a result, drastically increased machinery uptime allows facilities to increase production efficiency while saving components from unnecessary wear and tear.
When assets run poorly, the proper personnel are alerted, and assets are repaired before a lengthy downtime occurs. There are many benefits to this type of maintenance over reactive maintenance.
| Benefits of Predictive Maintenance | Drawbacks of Predictive Maintenance |
|
|
In addition to the benefits of predictive maintenance described above, manufacturers and industrial plants can also expect significant improvements across maintenance key performance indicators (KPIs), including:
Percent unscheduled downtime
Unscheduled downtime losses
Percent reactive maintenance
Mean Time to Repair (MTTR)
Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF)
Mean Time to Failure (MTTF)
Mean Time to Acknowledge (MTTA)
Predictive maintenance improves these maintenance KPIs by preventing additional wear and tear on assets by initiating repair to poorly performing components and machinery before further severe damage occurs. By providing early alerts to maintenance personnel, assets can be repaired faster, less expensively, and more efficiently.
Facilities that switch to a predictive maintenance strategy will realize these improvements and more. However, facilities need a leading-edge predictive maintenance software solution to take full advantage of the benefits.
LLumin’s Predictive Maintenance Learning Center
The Expanding Utilization of Predictive Maintenance Software in Manufacturing and Industrial Plants
Predictive maintenance leverages condition-based monitoring to identify asset maintenance, repair, or replacement requirements. Key advances in predictive maintenance software include:
- Real-time data sharing: Predictive maintenance software utilizes the cloud to integrate asset management, personnel, and supply chain partners. As a result, essential stakeholders can quickly identify asset issues and alert appropriate personnel. Additionally, predictive maintenance software allows assets to be monitored remotely. With an integrated and cloud-based approach to predictive maintenance, organizations can seamlessly coordinate their approach and strategy on asset management.
- Data compilation and analysis: Advances in predictive maintenance software allow assets to be interconnected and monitored by compiling data from each asset. This can be extremely beneficial because assets do not operate independently of each other. By interconnecting assets and analyzing the compiled data, it is much easier to identify a problematic machine.
In conjunction with advances in predictive maintenance software, predictive maintenance has also improved from advances in condition-based monitoring. Condition-based monitoring utilizes sensors to collect data on asset performance. This data will indicate if assets are running effectively and may indicate the amount of wear and tear they have accumulated. Advances in condition-based monitoring include:
- Advances in machine sensors: Advances in sensors have allowed for measurements from multiple sources of an asset. Very reasonably priced sensors can now make high quantities of measurements on the number of rotations, liquid and airflow, electrical conductivity, and operating speed. Not only do these advances in sensors allow for an indication of asset problems, but they allow for pinpointing where problems are occurring.
- The advent of smart assets: The benefits of predictive maintenance have increased exponentially with the introduction of smart assets. By interconnecting machine with integrated sensors using internet of things (IoT) technology, data can be collected and communicated to determine the operational condition of assets.
The evolution from reactive to preventive to predictive maintenance has increased plant efficiency, maintenance KPIs, and ultimately the bottom line. These benefits have become more pronounced with computer maintenance software and predictive maintenance management technology innovations.
How LLumin Can Help You Achieve Your Predictive Maintenance Goals
To fully implement the insights obtained through a predictive maintenance strategy, you’ll want a CMMS that seamlessly incorporates and integrates data to facilitate decision-making and action. LLumin’s CMMS+ software aggregates data from machine sensors and applies condition-based workflows to execute immediate responses for optimal asset management. Moreover, your implementation will be configured to match your unique company goals and business processes. The CMMS+ software is easy to deploy, and your dedicated project manager will help you throughout the implementation process.
Getting Started With LLumin
LLumin develops innovative CMMS and asset management software to manage and track assets in industrial plants, facilities, municipalities, and universities. If you want to know more about predictive maintenance software for manufacturing and industrial plants, schedule a free demo or contact the experts at LLumin.