Machine Maintenance: A Core of Productive Machine Shop Operations

In any machine shop, machine maintenance is at the core of sustained productivity. Timely and disciplined preventive maintenance ensures higher machine uptime, directly contributing to better throughput and efficiency. This not only guarantees on-time deliveries to customers but also plays a crucial role in enhancing customer satisfaction, improving customer ratings, and ultimately boosting overall business turnover.

OurSys offers a focused yet robust Maintenance module that supports both Preventive Maintenance (PM) and Breakdown Maintenance (BM). To maximise its potential, here are some recommended best practices:

Best Practices Using the OurSys Maintenance Module

1. Set Machine Master Correctly:

1. Mark whether the machine is within warranty. If yes, enter the warranty expiry date, warranty provider’s name and the details of the warranty coverage.
2. Mark whether the machine is a production machine, non-production machine or a rental machine.
3. Enter the required frequency for calibration and also the last calibration date. OurSys will remind based on this information.
4. Upload Machine Maintenance Manual in the machine master. Thus it will be easier to fetch the manual.

2. Schedule Preventive Maintenance Proactively:

1. Define PM schedules based on equipment usage hours, calendar frequency, or production cycles.
2. Set up automated alerts for upcoming maintenance tasks to avoid overdue checks.
3. OurSys also allows you to add SOP for Preventive maintenance along with spares to be replaced

3. Categorise Equipment and Criticality:

1. Use Machine Type to categorise criticality
2. Tag machines by criticality (High/Medium/Low) and prioritise PM accordingly.
3. Use classification to allocate resources efficiently during busy periods.

4. Maintain Detailed Maintenance Records:

1. Record every PM and BM activity, including issues found, actions taken, parts replaced, and technician notes.
2. Use these records to analyse recurring issues and improve future maintenance planning.

5. Track Spare Parts and Consumables:

1. Use OurSys to maintain minimum stock levels for critical spare parts. Set minimum level and reorder level thresholds in the Item master.
2. Set Item Category as "Spares" for spares items. These items will appear in the PM & BM log screen.

6. Analyse Downtime Trends:

1. Use downtime logs and reports to identify frequently failing machines or components.
2. Implement corrective measures or design changes to reduce future breakdowns.

7. Leverage Maintenance KPIs:

1. Monitor key metrics such as MTTR (Mean Time to Repair), MTBF (Mean Time Between Failures), and uptime percentages.
2. These figures are available in OurSys report

8. Assign and Track Maintenance Jobs:

1. Use the Calendar feature to assign maintenance tasks to specific personnel and track job completion.
2. Monitor pending and overdue jobs for better accountability.

9. Ensure Machine Manual & FAQ availability to Operators:

1. Upload Machine Manuals and FAQ documents in the "System Documents" feature. This way these manuals can be made easily accessible to operators through OurSys.
2. Conduct basic maintenance training for operators to perform routine checks.

By embedding these best practices into your operations using the OurSys Maintenance module, you can enhance machine reliability, reduce unexpected downtimes, and maintain a consistent production flow that aligns with customer expectations and business growth.