A breakdown never happens at the right time. Whether on a construction site, in a workshop, or across a fleet spread across multiple locations, an unexpected machine shutdown can slow down an entire team. On top of repair costs, there are hidden costs: unproductive hours, delays, penalties, emergency equipment rentals, or the purchase of a tool that’s already available elsewhere.
A filter that hasn’t been replaced, an oil level that hasn’t been checked, or a missed inspection can be enough to take equipment out of service. The situation becomes more complicated when equipment is shared: a supervisor may know that an aerial work platform needs to be inspected, but may not know its current job site or who is using it.
The economic stakes are considerable. In its report *The True Cost of Downtime 2024*, Siemens estimates that unplanned downtime accounts for the equivalent of 11% of the revenue of the world’s 500 largest companies. Obviously, not all organizations suffer losses on this scale, but the logic remains the same for an SME: it’s better to spend an hour on scheduled maintenance than to lose an entire day dealing with a breakdown.
A preventive maintenance plan makes it possible to move from ad hoc management to a structured approach. It defines the equipment to be monitored, the tasks to be performed, their frequency, the people responsible, and the records to be kept. For a company operating across multiple job sites or locations, it provides a shared view of the equipment fleet and ensures that information isn’t confined to a notebook, an email inbox, or the memory of a single employee.
What is a preventive maintenance plan?
A preventive maintenance plan is a document or organized system that schedules maintenance tasks before a breakdown occurs. It may apply to industrial machinery, construction equipment, power tools, vehicles, generators, compressors, ladders, or safety equipment.
For each piece of equipment, the plan specifies the inspections, their frequency, the person responsible, the resources required, and how to document the work. Some tasks are simple; others require a qualified technician, an outside contractor, or the temporary shutdown of the equipment.
Preventive maintenance differs primarily from corrective maintenance. Corrective maintenance occurs after a failure has occurred: a machine breaks down, and then the company repairs it. The corrective approach remains necessary for incidents that cannot be anticipated, but it should not be the only method used to manage critical equipment.
It also differs from predictive maintenance. Predictive maintenance relies on data such as vibrations, temperature, pressure, or operating hours to detect early warning signs of a failure. Preventive maintenance, on the other hand, follows a schedule, a set number of hours, or a defined cycle. The two approaches can complement each other: maintenance is scheduled every six months, while certain data may trigger earlier intervention if the machine’s actual condition requires it.
The goal, therefore, is not to maintain all equipment as often as possible. Rather, it is to perform the right maintenance task on the right equipment at the right time, taking into account the manufacturer’s recommendations, actual usage, the environment, and the level of risk.
Why Implement a Preventive Maintenance Plan?
A well-designed plan improves fleet availability, but its benefits go beyond simply preventing breakdowns.
Reduce unplanned outages
Regular inspections help identify wear, leaks, unusual noises, or loose parts before a complete failure occurs. Maintenance can then be scheduled for a time that causes the least disruption, such as between projects or during a period of low activity.
This foresight makes it possible to prepare the necessary parts, tools, and technicians. As a result, the company avoids rush orders and long downtimes caused by waiting for a component.
Extend the service life of equipment
Well-maintained equipment retains its performance for longer. Cleaning, lubrication, replacing consumables, and adhering to specifications help prevent premature wear. For expensive equipment, a few extra years of use can result in significant savings.
Reduce repair costs
It is generally less expensive to fix a minor problem than to deal with a major breakdown. Replacing a worn belt costs less than repairing the damage caused by its failure. Preventive maintenance also reduces indirect costs, such as emergency rentals, additional travel, overtime, and lost productivity.
Improving Team Safety
Defective equipment can endanger its user and people nearby. Damaged safety guards, a worn electrical cord, a faulty brake, or a weakened ladder pose more than just a risk of malfunction.
The plan must include safety checks and a clear procedure for when a malfunction is detected. The affected equipment must be reported, taken out of service, and repaired before it is used again.
Comply with regulatory requirements in Belgium and France
In Belgium, the Code on Workplace Well-Being sets forth general and specific provisions regarding work equipment. Certain types of equipment are subject to inspections, for which the frequency or the involvement of an approved external service is mandated. In France, employers must ensure that equipment remains in compliance and arrange for the required inspections, particularly for certain lifting devices and accessories.
Requirements vary depending on the type of equipment, its use, and the associated risks. An internal plan does not replace a regulatory inspection conducted by a competent authority, but it helps track deadlines and maintain records.
Certain categories of equipment are subject to mandatory periodic inspections, and the deadlines and reports for these inspections must be properly tracked.
Traceability is essential: inspection date, inspector’s identity, observations, defects found, and corrective actions taken. In the event of an audit, an accident, or a customer inquiry, the company must be able to demonstrate that the inspections were carried out.
The Essential Elements of a Good Preventive Maintenance Plan
A useful plan must be detailed enough to guide teams, yet simple enough to be effectively implemented. The following elements provide a solid foundation.
|
Element
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Information to Provide
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Example
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Identification
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unique number, category, make, model, and serial number
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COM-024 compressor
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Location
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Current warehouse, vehicle, workshop, or job site
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Brussels-Center Construction Site
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Criticality Level
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Impact of an Outage on Safety, Operations, and Costs
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High criticality
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Tasks
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Inspections, cleaning, adjustments, and parts to be replaced
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Draining and Inspecting Hoses
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Trigger
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Date, hours of use, cycles, or observed condition
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Every 500 hours
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Manager
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Employee, technician, supplier, or external organization
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Equipment Manager
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| Resources |
Parts, supplies, procedure, and estimated duration
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Filter, oil
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| Status |
scheduled, scheduled, in progress, completed, or on hold
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Scheduled for September 15
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| Evidence |
Report, photo, invoice, signature, or certificate
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Signed report and photo
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| Next due date |
Date or counter reading at which to take action
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at 2,500 hours
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The plan must also specify the procedure to follow when a defect is discovered. Just because a repair is considered complete does not automatically mean that the equipment is ready to resume service. If a critical anomaly persists, its status must remain visible and its use must be blocked.
How to Create a Preventive Maintenance Plan, Step by Step
Creating a plan does not require transforming everything all at once. A company can start with its most expensive or most critical equipment and then gradually expand the initiative.
1. Identify all equipment
The first step is to create a reliable inventory. Each piece of equipment is assigned a unique identifier along with relevant information: brand, model, serial number, date of purchase, warranty, location, and technical documentation.
This inventory often reveals duplicates, unused tools, or equipment whose location is unknown. A company may thus discover that it is renting a tool even though an equivalent model is sitting in another warehouse.
2. Prioritize critical equipment
Not all assets require the same level of monitoring. A breakdown involving an easily replaceable drill does not have the same impact as a shutdown of a crane, a central compressor, or a generator that is essential to the construction site.
To determine criticality, it is necessary to assess the impact on safety, production, timelines, quality, and costs. It is also important to consider the repair time and the availability of backup equipment. This analysis helps focus resources where they add the most value.
3. Define maintenance tasks
Tasks must be specific and clear. An instruction such as “check the machine” is too vague. It is better to specify: check the oil level, inspect the hoses, clean the filter, test the emergency stop, and read the meter.
The manufacturer's recommendations serve as a starting point, to be supplemented by the technicians' experience, actual operating conditions, and regulatory requirements. A dusty environment, for example, may require more frequent cleaning.
4. Determine the frequency of interventions
Maintenance can be scheduled based on elapsed time—weekly, quarterly, or annually—or based on usage: number of hours, kilometers, or cycles. A combination of the two is sometimes necessary.
Let’s take a forklift as an example: a visual inspection can be performed before each shift, maintenance can be carried out after a certain number of hours, and a regulatory inspection can be conducted according to the applicable schedule. The frequency should be reviewed if incidents become more frequent or, conversely, if repeated interventions do not add any value.
5. Centralize the data
Technical data sheets, reports, invoices, photos, and comments must be linked to the relevant equipment. This centralized approach eliminates the need to search for information in multiple files or ask a colleague who is absent.
It is particularly important in a multi-site environment. A manager based at headquarters must be able to view the history of a piece of equipment that was moved from Liège to Lille without having to start tracking it from scratch.
6. Automate reminders and follow-ups
A deadline listed in a spreadsheet is only useful if someone checks it at the right time. Automatic reminders alert managers before the scheduled date and can send follow-ups when a task remains incomplete.
On a construction site, a QR code affixed to a piece of equipment can provide access to its data sheet. The user can report an issue, add a photo, or confirm an inspection directly from their phone. The information is then immediately forwarded, without having to wait for a paper form to be returned to the depot.
7. Measure Results
A plan should evolve based on data. A few simple metrics are enough to get started: number of breakdowns, downtime, maintenance costs, on-time service rate, and percentage of equipment available.
Suppose a fleet of twenty generators experienced twelve breakdowns in six months. After implementing checks on fluid levels, filters, and batteries, that number dropped to five over the following period. The company now has concrete results, but it must also examine the remaining five incidents to improve the plan.
A Concrete Example of a Preventive Maintenance Plan
Let’s consider the case of a company that uses several portable compressors on its job sites. Each unit is assigned an ID and a QR code. Before use, the operator performs a visual inspection: condition of the hoses, oil level, potential leaks, and safety devices. An alert is scheduled every 250 hours for filter cleaning and every 500 hours for the manufacturer-recommended technical maintenance.
When the counter reaches 450 hours, the supervisor receives a notification. He sees that the compressor is at a job site in Namur and schedules its temporary replacement for two days later. The technician has the necessary filter and oil on hand in advance. After the service call, he logs the work performed, adds a photo of the counter, and schedules the next maintenance date.
If an operator detects a leak in the meantime, they scan the QR code, select “critical anomaly,” and attach a photo. The compressor’s status changes to “unavailable.” Other teams can immediately see that it cannot be reserved. This process reduces the risk of unsafe use and prevents defective equipment from simply being moved to another job site.
Common Mistakes to Avoid in a Preventive Maintenance Plan
The first mistake is to spread out management across multiple Excel files. A single spreadsheet may be sufficient for a small, stable fleet, but it becomes unreliable when multiple people edit it or when equipment is moved around. Versions multiply, data is no longer synchronized, and reminders depend on manual checks.
The lack of a history is another problem. If only the next date is recorded, it becomes impossible to understand recurring failures, track costs, or verify that an inspection was actually performed.
An inappropriate maintenance schedule can also render the plan ineffective. Maintenance performed too infrequently increases the risk of breakdowns. Excessive maintenance unnecessarily takes equipment out of service and wastes parts that are still usable. Maintenance intervals should be adjusted based on recommendations, field conditions, and observed results.
It is also important to avoid confusing internal maintenance with regulatory inspections. An inspection conducted by an operator does not replace the mandatory inspection by an external organization when such an inspection is required. The two types of inspections must be clearly distinguished.
Finally, a company cannot claim to be proactive if it only takes action after breakdowns occur. A lack of time is often cited as a reason to postpone maintenance, but each postponement increases the likelihood of a longer downtime. Management must therefore set aside dedicated time slots, assign responsibilities, and allocate a budget.
Why use software to manage preventive maintenance?
Maintenance software or a CMMS centralizes equipment, tasks, deadlines, and history. Unlike a standalone calendar, it links each maintenance task to the relevant equipment and provides authorized teams with an up-to-date view.
Managers receive notifications before a deadline; overdue tasks remain visible; and the next due date can be calculated as soon as a task is completed. Technicians log their activities from the field.
QR codes further simplify this process. A single scan is all it takes to identify the equipment, check its status, or report a malfunction. This method reduces data entry errors, especially when multiple identical machines are moved between different sites.
The software also facilitates multi-site management. The manager can filter equipment by job site and review scheduled operations. The history remains linked to the asset even when it changes locations.
However, a full-featured CMMS is not always necessary. The choice depends on the size of the equipment fleet, the complexity of the tasks, and the company’s needs. For organizations whose priority is to know where their tools are while organizing their inspections and maintenance, a solution that combines equipment tracking and maintenance notifications may be easier to implement.
How HeronTrack Facilitates Preventive Equipment Maintenance
HeronTrack combines equipment management with tracking. This approach addresses a very practical challenge: it is impossible to effectively organize equipment maintenance if you do not know which job site it is located on.
The platform compiles an inventory of equipment and its last known location. Using GPS/LTE or Bluetooth technology—depending on the type of equipment—managers have an up-to-date view of their fleet. They can locate a piece of equipment, identify its site, and better organize its downtime for maintenance.
Automatic alerts help track maintenance and inspection deadlines. The history log records completed tasks, reports, and information useful for traceability. This allows teams to verify what has been done before putting equipment back into service or transferring it to another job site.
Tracking hours of use also makes it possible to move beyond a one-size-fits-all schedule for all machines. Equipment that is used heavily may reach its maintenance threshold more quickly than a model that is used infrequently. By basing certain maintenance tasks on actual usage, the company avoids both delays and premature maintenance.
HeronTrack does not replace the expertise of a technician or the inspections required by regulations. Rather, the solution provides a framework for inventorying, locating, planning, notifying, and documenting. It thus helps managers transform a series of scattered actions into a coordinated process.
To learn more about the location, alert, and fleet management features, visit the page dedicated to HeronTrack equipment tracking software.
