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HealthandSafetyOntario.ca Why Preventive Maintenance? Preventive maintenance is predetermined work performed to a schedule with the aim of preventing the wear and tear or sudden failure of equipment components. Preventive maintenance helps to: Protect assets and prolong the useful life of production equipment Improve system reliability Decrease cost of replacement Decreases system downtime Reduce injury Mechanical, process or control equipment failure can have adverse results in both human and economic terms. In addition to down time and the costs involved to repair and/or replace equipment parts or components, there is the risk of injury to operators, and of acute exposures to chemical and/ or physical agents. Preventive maintenance, therefore, is a very important ongoing accident prevention activity, which you should integrate into your operations/ product manufacturing process. What is Involved? To be effective, your preventive maintenance function should incorporate the following elements: Planned replacements of components designed around the following: Reliability of components (equipment failure is usually caused by its least reliable component) – check manufacturer's information – check accepted industry best practices Maintaining equipment service records Scheduling replacement of components at the end of their useful service life Acquiring and maintaining inventories of: – least reliable components – critical components – components scheduled for replacements Replacing service-prone equipment with more reliable performers By introducing the element of planning into your maintenance function, you are likely to reduce your repair and manpower requirements. Exploratory maintenance to anticipate and prevent breakdowns. Diagnostic measures to analyze your plant requirements include: Operating and performing specifications of equipment Past experience with components: – inspection records – servicing records – replacement frequency – inspected component failures Regularly scheduled lubrication program: – identify lubrication points on equipment – colour code in order to identify lubrication frequency – consult manufacturer and accepted industry best practices to establish schedule PreventIve MaIntenance

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