Optimizing Maintenance Work During COVID-19

COVID 19 has limited production in many industries, but some industries like safety equipment, medical gear, food, and protective wear have had to skyrocket their production volume. As a result, they are working under unfamiliar conditions and undue. However, this kind of situation should not become an excuse for overlooking safety compliance standards (OSHA). On the contrary, manufacturers need to be more vigilant than ever, especially in the areas of workers’ safety and optimizing maintenance work.

That’s why in our today’s article we will discuss how manufacturers can plan, schedule, and optimize maintenance work to deliver increased production without overlooking safety concerns.

COVID-19 Awareness for Stuff

It is important to know that COVID-19 spreads through droplets when a carrier coughs or sneezes. Uninfected persons can also get infected by touching contaminated surfaces. To keep everyone safe, staff should be trained on how to avoid placing their bare hands on high-contact surfaces, maintain social distancing and avoid physical contact with one another (touching, handshakes, and hugs) until further notice.

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Go for Automation

With hundreds of workers working shoulder-to-shoulder on hectic schedules, it is almost impossible to maintain physical distancing guidelines (six feet or two meters apart). To manage this situation, manufacturers can choose to reduce the presence of personnel at a time within the facility and run their production in shifts or roasters.

In times like this, management can limit the risk of missed production deadlines by streamlining their maintenance system, reducing the chance of maintenance hiccups by automating their maintenance process.

Optimizing maintenance work with CloudApper CMMS:

CloudApper CMMS is a mobile and cloud application that is used to simplify the management of enterprise assets and equipment, maintenance schedules, inventory, work order routing, and reporting. The solution helps employees to operate more efficiently and provides management with real-time visibility into the status of their assets and maintenance plans.

Upgrade Maintenance Strategy

Important production machines and equipment have to be protected from unexpected failure and shutdowns. For manufacturers that use CloudApper CMMS, they already have a major advantage now as it supports proactive maintenance strategies such as predictive and condition-based maintenance. This kind of maintenance strategy helps to minimize the risk of unexpected shutdowns. Manufacturers that don’t yet have these technologies can use general condition monitoring equipment such as handheld sensors to improve potential failure detection.

Regardless of the maintenance strategy in place, it is also vital to optimize the maintenance work schedule and strictly follow it. Sometimes it can be a delicate task as you might have to shut down a machine for preventive maintenance.  In cases like these, planned shutdowns have to be carefully managed to avoid major production disruptions.

Stock up on Raw Materials

Global supply chains are unpredictable right now due to the lockdown, and manufacturers need to be more creative when managing the raw materials and inventory they need for production. They need to follow up closely with their suppliers to confirm the status of expected deliveries, especially for raw materials and maintenance of their spare parts inventory. This will keep you informed about how different vendors are being affected and allow you to make alternative arrangements if need be. If your required stock is still available, try ordering in bulk if possible. Otherwise, look for local alternatives.

This current pandemic has created a stressful environment for the manufacturers, so they need to be more flexible and willing to try out new strategies. Thinking outside the box will place them in a better position to adapt to the upcoming situation by keeping two things in focus: optimizing maintenance work and worker’s safety.