5 Signs Your Maintenance
Program Is Actually Reactive
The Floor Tells the Truth — Your Schedule Doesn't
1
Your Schedule Breaks Before Noon
The symptom
PMs get bumped for breakdowns daily. Your schedule isn't a plan — it's a wish list that urgency overrides before the first break.
How to fix
① Freeze 60% of PM slots as non-negotiable
② Separate breakdown crew from PM techs
③ Track PM compliance daily — not monthly
② Separate breakdown crew from PM techs
③ Track PM compliance daily — not monthly
Reality check
Below 90% PM compliance? Your schedule is decoration.
2
Technicians Pick Their Own Work
The symptom
No planner. No priority system. Whoever shows up picks from the pile. That's not autonomy — it's a planning vacuum.
How to fix
① Assign a dedicated planner (even part-time)
② Prioritize by criticality, not complaints
③ Issue daily schedules the night before
② Prioritize by criticality, not complaints
③ Issue daily schedules the night before
Reality check
One planner supports 15-20 techs. No planner means no plan.
3
Parts Room Runs on Panic
The symptom
Emergency POs every week. Expedited shipping is a budget line. "Order when it breaks" costs 3x what planned purchasing does.
How to fix
① Set min/max on top 50 critical spares
② Review storeroom turns quarterly
③ Link BOM to PM work orders for auto-kitting
② Review storeroom turns quarterly
③ Link BOM to PM work orders for auto-kitting
Reality check
If your storeroom strategy is "call the supplier," your costs are out of control.
4
You Celebrate the Save, Not the Prevent
The symptom
The tech who sprinted across the plant is the hero. The one who quietly replaced the bearing last Tuesday? Nobody noticed.
How to fix
① Track avoided failures, not just saves
② Recognize prevention in shift meetings
③ Tie KPIs to uptime, not response speed
② Recognize prevention in shift meetings
③ Tie KPIs to uptime, not response speed
Reality check
If your heroes are firefighters, your culture rewards the wrong behavior.
5
Your Backlog Only Grows
The symptom
Work orders go in, nothing comes out. 3,000 open orders with no way to prioritize. That's not a backlog — it's a graveyard.
How to fix
① Purge orders older than 90 days
② Prioritize and review weekly
③ Keep backlog under 4 weeks of capacity
② Prioritize and review weekly
③ Keep backlog under 4 weeks of capacity
Reality check
If nobody trusts the system, nobody uses it. Clean the backlog first.
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