Preventative maintenance is, perhaps, the most overlooked aspect of a company safety plan. There are no specific OSHA standards covering preventative maintenance, and it doesn’t “feel” like a safety issue. But time and time again, organizations which routinely maintenance their machinery as per the manufacturer’s guidelines are better prepared for an audit, and have fewer potential citations.

This is because the machinery in a facility where the staff is adhering to proper preventative maintenance is less likely to have a dangerous fault. There are two reasons for this. First, the machinery is being properly examined on a routine basis, so if there is a fault that does not interfere with the usability of the machine, it will be spotted. In a facility which does not maintain the machinery, that fault might go unnoticed. The second reason is that these maintenance tasks help to keep the machines, and their safety procedures, working properly. This means that these facilities are less likely to experience a malfunctioning safety device, and should a safety device stop working, it will be found in a timely manner.

So with all of this in mind, it is pretty obvious that properly tracking and maintaining machinery is an important task. But many business owners feel that this task is too cumbersome, and that it is easier to take a chance on the equipment. But in reality, preventative maintenance is extremely easy to monitor and track. All that is required is to determine what the preventative maintenance requirements are, and to then have a preventative maintenance placard drawn up and affixed to the devices.

If you need some help in establishing your preventative maintenance plan, or would like some placards created, please contact us. And if you have anything to add about the importance of preventative maintenance, please leave a comment.