When it comes to building and asset maintenance, there are many approaches to take, but two of the most widely used are planned preventative and reactive. Of course, this naturally fuels the ‘planned preventative vs reactive maintenance’ debate, and it’s something businesses have to consider when establishing and implementing maintenance plans.
Updated NHS data has reported a maintenance backlog of £11.6bn, an increase from the previous figure of £10.2bn. This reflects a much wider issue of the state of effective facility maintenance in the healthcare sector.
Paul Bullard, Product Director at SFG20, has shared his insights on the importance of following a planned preventative maintenance strategy for your healthcare facility and how this can help building owners deal with the growing maintenance backlog across the sector as well as ensuring the safety of staff and patients.
What is planned preventative maintenance?
‘Planned maintenance’ is a term used to describe forms of maintenance designed to prolong the lifespan of assets, resources, equipment and a business’s infrastructure. Also, it offers the means to prevent the breakdown and malfunction of equipment and the expenses and downtime it incurs. For some, planned maintenance can be simple tasks such as cleaning and monitoring asset conditions. Whereas for others, it can consist of more complex tasks such as replacing parts or repairs.
While planned maintenance has been practised for many years, it has advanced considerably with the evolution of technology. Today, businesses have a wealth of tools and services available to them to increase maintenance efficiency and productivity while reducing the costs involved.
Pros of planned preventative maintenance?
1 – Increase safety
Safety is a primary objective for all healthcare facilities, and maintenance is a vital aspect of establishing, maintaining and improving workplace safety. Planned maintenance schedules provide various benefits regarding safety, such as reducing malfunctions and deterioration of assets, protecting staff and patients from health hazards, and avoiding liability lawsuits.
These risks – and more – can be avoided with planned maintenance, as you’ll be able to implement a compliant, regular, reliable and effective maintenance regime. This means you will be aware of safety or efficiency concerns more quickly and have the ability to act right away and prevent hazards.
2 – Reduce costs & energy consumption 
Planned maintenance and its benefits can save businesses money. As you will always be aware of when maintenance will occur and needs to happen, you will never use systems and equipment to the point of failure. This will also help you avoid the significant expense it leads to, and organisations who invest in planned maintenance experience less breakdowns and fewer disruptions to their business. Of course, this saves money on large-scale repairs and maximises profits through minimal downtime.
Another critical factor to consider is energy consumption. Poorly maintained electrical assets or malfunctioning equipment consume more energy than those that operate as they should. Planned maintenance and proactive scheduling ensure facility managers identify issues early on and address them as soon as possible. By doing so, they avoid crippling energy bills and adopt more environmentally-friendly practices.
3 – Minimise downtime
Preventing downtime, delays and ensuring daily operations are running at all times is essential for any healthcare facility. Doing so maximises profits, increases business growth, and maintains a good brand reputation. And it just so happens that reducing and preventing downtime is one of the critical benefits of planned maintenance.
Planned maintenance helps maximise the uptime of assets and prevents significant, unforeseen repairs and breakdowns. These types of incidents cost more and are a headache for facility managers, as they can take longer to remedy whilst spare parts are being ordered and unforeseen works are scheduled into contractors’ already-full diaries. During this time, your facility will either have to close or operate at sub-optimal capacity.
