Capital equipment like chemical storage tanks, bund linings and ducting are expensive to purchase and even more expensive to replace. Protecting this equipment is crucial to ensure the economic viability of your industrial operation.
Capital equipment includes the physical assets a company uses in its production process to manufacture products. For example, ducting transports air from one process to another and storage tanks feed machines with liquid chemicals.
Here’s why maintaining capital equipment is crucial:
Avoid costly repairs
Repairs to capital equipment are significantly more expensive than routinely checking equipment for problems and resolving small issues.
For example, when spotted early, corrosion in a bund lining can be cut out, and the bund can be fabricated with new material to prevent the need for a large repair.
Likewise, a squeaky fan with a loose bearing could break, destroying the fan and requiring replacement. Preventive maintenance will replace the bearing before this happens.
Avoid unplanned downtime
How much would 24-hours of unplanned downtime cost your company? How about 48-hours, or even seven days?
Maintenance of capital equipment prevents breakdowns associated with wear, significantly reducing the chances of unplanned downtime.
With unplanned downtime, it’s important to remember that many common causes like worn parts, residue build-up, blockages and leaks are predictable. Preventive maintenance helps you avoid downtime from small issues that build up over time.
Assure equipment safety
If you don’t inspect and test capital equipment regularly, how can you be sure that it’s safe to use? How can you assure health and safety?
When working with pressurised containers and tanks, high temperatures, pipes, chemicals, moving parts and heavy equipment, health and safety is a critical concern.
Regular testing is necessary to assure the integrity of capital equipment so that people can safely operate it and maintain it. This applies to pressure vessels, bulk silos and other types of fabrication that are part of your production process.
Maximise equipment performance
Even a small drop in equipment efficiency can significantly set back production times. For example, limescale build-up in a tank will reduce its holding capacity, and leaks in pipes create waste and a shortfall in material supply.
Preventive maintenance tests equipment against pre-defined performance parameters, picking up on inefficiencies so they can be resolved quickly.
When your operation has tight tolerances and demands visibility over its processes, it makes sense for maintenance to form a key part of your strategy.
Lengthen equipment lifespan
The biggest benefit to capital equipment maintenance is lengthening the lifespan of the capital assets, giving you a greater total return on investment.
When equipment has preventive maintenance, it not only functions as intended but often continues to do so for a very long time. By keeping accurate records of every inspection and service, you can also plan future maintenance.
Lastly, if your equipment supplier recommends service intervals, following these may be necessary to maintain your warranty.
At PDFL, we provide preventive maintenance for all capital equipment, including storage and chemical tanks, vent ducting and stacks, piping systems, filters and scrubbers. Call us on +44 (0)1922 418005 today to find out more.
