Almost everyone realizes that electrical systems require maintenance, but they may not realize that electrical maintenance goes far beyond simply making sure the lights turn on. Maintaining a complicated electrical system to high standards requires extensive preventive maintenance. This is especially true in the commercial sector, where it is far easier to deal with electrical issues before they become major problems.
In this article, we’ll look at several reasons why preventive maintenance is so important to the smooth operation of your electrical system.
What is preventive maintenance?
Fixing electrical faults, even simple residential ones, can be costly at the best of times. For large commercial enterprises, there’s the added loss of business. Loss of power can result in manufacturing downtime, which in turn hurts production and profit margins.
The key to avoiding that unnecessary downtime is preventive maintenance. The goal of preventive maintenance is simple – keep electrical systems and equipment in good working condition to prevent sudden and unexpected breakdowns. Creating a preventative maintenance plan with the assistance of professional electricians helps maintain efficiency and ensures that your commercial business runs smoothly.
What does preventive maintenance involve?
Regular equipment inspections are one major part of preventive maintenance. By regularly and systematically checking and testing equipment, potential problems can be identified and solved early. Inspecting the electronics is just one part of those regular inspections, which also seek to identify mechanical wear-and-tear and damaged parts. Consider dirty electrical panels, which might not seem important until a build-up of dirt and dust deposits results in electrical failure which can shut down your business until resolved. Dirt and dust deposits would be identified and cleaned in a regular inspection, thus preventing disruptions.
A more in-depth method of electrical system preventive maintenance is to schedule a thermographic survey of a specific system or piece of equipment. By isolating areas of higher temperature, the thermographic survey can detect worn or failing components that may cause equipment failure or electrical fires if left unrepaired. In most cases, these potential failures might only be detectable through a thermographic analysis.
Qualified personnel should be completing your business’s preventative maintenance. They are trained to spot issues and fix them in an efficient time frame, making them a valuable resource to your preventative maintenance plan. Utilizing qualified personnel, such as Apex Electric, LLC, who work specifically for commercial clients ensures your preventative maintenance is conducted efficiently and effectively.
Often ignored, record keeping helps your commercial business better identify potential failures by carefully tracking maintenance completed. It ensures that certain work is completed when necessary and can point out potential concerns to be aware of, before they become a serious issue.
6 benefits of preventative maintenance
In the commercial and industrial settings, preventive maintenance applies to control systems, specifically wiring, and equipment. Proper preventive maintenance on these systems by a skilled and experienced electrician can achieve a number of important benefits:
Minimized Risk of Failure
Most industrial settings rely on heavy-duty powered equipment, and commercial and residential settings feature appliances and other electrical devices vital to the running of their business or daily life. Those devices are part of modern life, but owning them does bring some risks. Electrical failures can be annoying in the residential setting and devastating for industries, costing time and money to repair or replace.
When your equipment fails due to preventable deposits such as moisture or dirt, the overall cost of replacing the equipment can be extensive, compared with consistent preventative maintenance. A planned power outage to replace or repair equipment can be completed outside of office hours, while fixing equipment due to lack of maintenance may have to occur during office hours. Electrical emergencies often happen at the very worst of times and can have serious financial consequences for your business.
For that reason, a good preventative maintenance plan is crucial. A good PM plan, drawn out by an industrial electrician, ensures regular monitoring of electrical components and identifies potential issues that can lead to failure. These issues are then resolved or eliminated before they can cause damage.
Energy Savings
When electrical appliances are faulty or are not maintained properly, they use more energy to function. This increases environmental damage and the impact to your bottom line through higher power bills. Conducting regular preventive maintenance to your equipment saves energy and money in the long run.
Those savings come largely from improved energy efficiency. Routine inspections that find and replace damaged parts keep your equipment running smoothly. Additionally, you’ll find you’re getting the most out of the power you are paying for. Preventive maintenance improves equipment efficiency, reduces operating costs, and increases equipment lifespan.
Improved Safety
Faulty wiring inside an appliance may not seem like much of a problem, but sudden electrical failures can post a safety risk through electrical shock or fire. A good preventive maintenance plan reduces the risk of minor to serious injury through regular service and troubleshooting.
Better Budgeting
Poorly maintained electrical appliances have a higher chance of having unexpected breakdowns. By having a preventative maintenance plan in place, you can prevent these unexpected breakdowns from taking place. Additionally, you can predict and budget for any future repairs and replacements with a PM plan.
Extended Equipment Lifespan
Everyone wants electrical equipment to last a long time, but even the best equipment requires regular maintenance to stay functional. When one component in a machine fails, it can increase the wear and tear on other parts; regular maintenance prevents equipment failure, reduces that wear and tear, and thereby extends the lifespan of your electrical equipment.
Conclusion
Preventive maintenance shouldn’t be an option for your commercial or industrial business; it should be a basic part of your operations. A good preventive maintenance plan for your company includes a professional electrical company with industrial electricians trained in commercial electrical work. These skilled professionals can help you draw up a solid preventative maintenance plan that they can implement to make your system more reliable and efficient, and always working at peak performance.
