Many industrial professionals use heavy equipment daily on the job. If you find that your equipment breaks down on the job more often than it should, you might want to start practicing preventive maintenance. Running equipment until it breaks down is going to lead to a shorter tool lifespan and expensive costs for your business. However, by practicing preventive care, you can increase the lifetime of your equipment and stretch your budget further. These maintenance and care tips will change how you use your heavy equipment for the better. Use this guide to heavy equipment preventive maintenance to learn more about this concept and which strategies to start practicing.

What Is Preventive Maintenance?

Preventive maintenance is the process of performing and scheduling proactive service on a piece of equipment or other physical assets. Contractors perform preventive maintenance before construction or an industrial job to prevent equipment breakdown. Don’t confuse preventive care with reactive repairs, as preventive maintenance occurs while the equipment is still in working order. However, proactive repairs can still be a part of preventive maintenance if a contractor catches an issue early enough. Contractors should schedule these proactive repairs regularly to keep equipment in working order and prevent accidents and breakdowns on the job.

Why Is Preventive Maintenance Important for Heavy Equipment?

Preventive maintenance is vital for any type of tools and equipment, but it’s especially crucial for the longevity of your heavy equipment. In addition, proactive service is crucial to promote safety and efficiency on the job site. Without preventive maintenance, you increase the risk of your equipment breaking down when you need it most. Routine tune-ups, inspections, and maintenance help your equipment operate at peak performance. You’ll also be more likely to catch issues like faulty parts or malfunctions before they become more serious.

In the process of preventing breakdowns and serious issues, preventive maintenance can help your business save money. Small, routine repairs are less expensive than breakdown repairs and the time and money lost to heavy equipment downtime. Regular tune-ups and inspections can also help extend the life span of your heavy equipment, so you don’t have to buy replacements as frequently.

Types of Preventive Maintenance for Heavy Equipment

Now that you know the basics of preventive maintenance and its benefits, you can better understand the main maintenance techniques. Here are several ways you can practice preventive services within your own construction company, warehouse, or any other industry that uses heavy equipment. You can apply these to any type of machinery, heavy equipment, tools, and more.

Visual Inspections

If you don’t already conduct regular visual inspections of your heavy equipment, you should start now. Inspections are a crucial step in the preventive maintenance process and help you discover issues with equipment before they can worsen. Always look for signs of damage during your heavy equipment inspections, such as low fluid levels, access wear and tear, and unusual noises or odors. Don’t forget to inspect hard-to-reach areas, such as the undercarriage and exhaust—and only do so once the machine is powered down.

Keeping Equipment Clean and Lubricated

Once you have completed an initial inspection, you can move on to the cleaning and lubricating process. Cleaning your equipment isn’t just for aesthetic purposes, although a clean and readable machine is important for building branding and trust with clients. Keeping your equipment clean is also a part of preventive maintenance and avoiding breakdowns. Cleaning the dirt, grime, and grease off your equipment regularly will prevent it from aging and hardening later. Use pressure washers and degreasers to remove dirt and stuck-on grease and grime. Don’t forget to finish the equipment by lubricating any moving parts.

Routine Service Scheduling

All types of heavy equipment need regular services and tune-ups to keep them running at their best. Don’t put off servicing and repairs until your equipment breaks down on the job; not only does this hurt the longevity of your equipment, but it will also cost you more than regular, smaller maintenance jobs. The best way to stay on top of your heavy equipment tune-ups, especially if you have a large fleet of machines, is to keep a log of your services. Keep tabs on every piece of heavy equipment in your warehouse and record when you schedule services for each one. Glancing back at your log can help remind you when it’s time to schedule another tune-up.

Replacing Parts

Conducting regular equipment inspections and scheduling services can help you identify weakened equipment parts. Industrial mechanics can identify when you need to replace a part to prevent future issues. If any of your equipment’s parts are showing signs of wear and tear or approaching the end of their lifetime, it can be helpful to swap out these parts to prevent breakdowns in advance. This is a core strategy of preventive maintenance for heavy equipment and any other type of machinery.

You may find it helpful and useful to stock up on spare parts for the equipment your business utilizes the most. This way, you can make the replacement or schedule one as soon as you notice issues with a specific part.

How To Create a Preventive Maintenance Plan

If you’re interested in extending the life span of your equipment and wish to start practicing preventive maintenance, remember these types of services. Use these different categories of maintenance as steps to follow in your own warehouse. Start by inspecting your equipment after every use and recording your findings or scheduling proactive tune-ups. You can also consider stocking up on spare parts for your heavy equipment through Tractor Zone. For example, if your business has several Caterpillar excavators in its fleet, stock up on the Caterpillar heavy equipment parts that you replace most often. Start keeping a log of your equipment maintenance and schedule reoccurring tune-ups.

We hope this guide to heavy equipment care has helped you better understand preventive maintenance and why it’s so crucial in the industrial space. If you’re interested in learning more about replacement parts for your specific make or model, contact our experts at Tractor Zone today. We can help you practice better preventive maintenance by stocking all the replacement parts you’ll need ahead of any future breakdowns.