TABLE OF CONTENTS If you ask twenty different people to write their definition of preventive maintenance, you will get twenty different answers. The term has varied definitions. For the purpose of this text, preventive maintenance is defined as a fundamental, planned maintenance activity designed to improve equipment life and avoid any unplanned maintenance activity. In its simplest form, preventive maintenance can be compared to the service schedule for an automobile. Certain tasks must be scheduled at varying frequencies, all designed to keep the automobile from experiencing any unexpected breakdowns. Preventive maintenance for industrial equipment is no different.
Preventive maintenance is the foundation of the entire maintenance strategy. Unless the PM program is effective, all subsequent maintenance strategies will take longer to implement, incur higher costs to implement, and have a higher probability of failure.
This may seem to be an overstatement, but publications from authors around the world echo the same thought. Because the preventive maintenance program receives this type of solid endorsement from successful companies, it appears that companies would focus on their preventive maintenance programs, attempting to insure their success. However, this is not the case. Figure 1-1 shows the result of a survey that involved 5000 companies. As the figure highlights, the majority were not satisfied with the effectiveness of their preventive maintenance program. How is the effectiveness measured? Effectiveness occurs when 80% or more of the maintenance activities can be planned and scheduled at least one week in advance. This level is an...
