What is the Difference between preventive maintenance vs predictive maintenance?

Maintenance is essential for uninterrupted industrial operations in today's highly connected manufacturing and construction environments. It ensures the reliability and safety of production processes while avoiding expensive equipment breakdowns and downtime. Therefore, the industrial sector employs various maintenance strategies, such as preventive maintenance, predictive maintenance, and corrective maintenance.

In recent years, the industrial sector has seen the adoption of advanced technologies, such as the Internet of Things (IoT), enabling more sophisticated and efficient approaches to maintenance. IoT-based maintenance uses analytics, intelligent devices, and sensors to automate and improve maintenance processes and collect and analyze data from machinery and systems. As a result, it can reduce maintenance costs, boost equipment performance, and improve operational effectiveness.

Predictive and preventive maintenance are two approaches to maintaining equipment and machinery in the industrial sector. Both strategies aim to ensure the equipment's proper operation and reliability and increase its lifespan, but their methodologies and focus differ.

Preventive maintenance involves regularly scheduled inspections, cleaning, and repairs to prevent equipment failure. It is based on the belief that routine maintenance can assist in identifying and addressing any issues before they worsen. Depending on the equipment and its working circumstances, preventive maintenance can be performed daily, weekly, monthly, or annually and usually follow a proper schedule.

On the other hand, predictive maintenance is an approach that uses sensors, smart devices, and analytics to monitor equipment conditions in real time and identifies potential issues before they occur. As a result, it enables maintenance to be carried out proactively rather than reactively, which can aid in lowering maintenance costs and equipment downtime. In addition, predictive maintenance can be beneficial when complex or crucial equipment failure could have serious repercussions.

There are several advantages to preventive maintenance in the industrial sector:

1. Reduced downtime: By identifying and addressing potential issues before they occur, preventive maintenance can help reduce equipment downtime, disrupting production and negatively impacting profitability.

2. Increased equipment lifespan: Regular maintenance can help extend the equipment's lifespan by identifying and fixing potential issues before they cause significant damage.

3. Improved safety: Preventive maintenance can help ensure equipment and machinery safety by identifying and addressing potential hazards.

4. Cost-effectiveness: Preventive maintenance can be more cost-effective than reactive maintenance, as it can identify and address potential issues before they become significant problems, which can be more costly to fix.

5. Improved efficiency: Well-maintained equipment tends to operate more efficiently, which can lead to improved productivity and profitability.

6. Enhanced reliability: Preventive maintenance can help ensure equipment's reliability, which is critical in the industrial sector, where equipment failure can have serious consequences.

While preventive maintenance has several advantages, it also has some disadvantages:

1. Potential for unnecessary maintenance: Preventive maintenance is based on a fixed schedule, and it may only sometimes be possible to accurately predict when maintenance is required. It can result in unnecessary maintenance, which can be a waste of time and resources.

2. Difficulty in identifying the optimal maintenance interval: Determining the optimal maintenance interval for different types of equipment and operating conditions can take time and effort. If the interval is longer, it can result in unnecessary maintenance, while if it is too long, it may not be effective in preventing equipment failure.

3. Limited ability to address issues: Preventive maintenance is focused on preventing equipment failure rather than addressing problems that have already occurred. It means that it may need to be more effective at identifying and fixing issues that are not part of the regular maintenance schedule.

4. Higher labour costs: Preventive maintenance typically requires more than reactive maintenance, which involves regular inspections and repairs. It can increase maintenance costs.

5. Limited flexibility: Preventive maintenance follows a fixed schedule, which can be inflexible and may only sometimes be suitable for changing operating conditions or equipment needs.

6. Potential for equipment to be taken offline: Preventive maintenance often requires equipment to be taken offline for inspections and repairs, which can disrupt production and result in lost income.

IoT (Internet of Things) predictive maintenance allows maintenance to be performed proactively rather than reactively, which can help to reduce equipment downtime and maintenance costs.

• Sensors and smart devices are installed on equipment and machinery to collect data on their operation and condition. These sensors may measure various parameters, such as temperature, vibration, pressure, and more.

• The collected data is transmitted to a central database or cloud platform, where some analytics software analyzes it.

• The analytics software uses machine learning algorithms to analyze the data and identify patterns and trends that may indicate potential issues with the equipment.

• If the analytics software detects a potential issue, it generates an alert sent to maintenance personnel or a maintenance management system.

• Maintenance personnel can then review the alert and take appropriate action, such as performing inspections, repairs, or maintenance on the equipment.

IoT predictive maintenance allows maintenance to be performed more efficiently, enabling maintenance personnel to focus on specific equipment and issues rather than performing maintenance on all equipment on a fixed schedule. It also helps reduce maintenance costs, as it is performed before equipment failure occurs rather than reactively after failure.

While IoT predictive maintenance provides many benefits in the industrial sector, there are also certain drawbacks:

1. Initial setup costs: Implementing an IoT predictive maintenance system requires the installation of sensors, intelligent devices, and analytics software, which can be costly.

2. Need for professional assistance: Setting up and maintaining an IoT predictive maintenance system requires specialized personnel with expertise in IoT technologies and analytics. It can be challenging for some organizations.

3. Dependence on technology: IoT predictive maintenance relies on sensors, intelligent devices, and analytics software to collect and analyze data. If these technologies fail or are not functioning correctly, the predictive maintenance system may not be effective.

4. Data security and privacy concerns: The collection and analysis of data from equipment and machinery raise concerns about data security and privacy, which must be managed carefully.

5. Limited ability to address complex issues: While IoT predictive maintenance can be effective at identifying and addressing simple issues, it may be less effective at identifying and addressing complex issues that require more detailed analysis and expertise.

6. Limited flexibility: IoT predictive maintenance follows a fixed data collection and analysis schedule, which may need to be more flexible to adapt to changing operating conditions or equipment needs.

The industrial sector now has access to more advanced and effective maintenance methods because of the Internet of Things (IoT) deployment. IoT-based predictive maintenance aims to automate and optimize maintenance tasks by collecting and analyzing data from equipment and systems using sensors, smart devices, and analytics.

As a result, it could save equipment maintenance costs, boost equipment performance, and improve operational effectiveness.

Preventive maintenance and predictive maintenance primarily differ in their methods and aims. While predictive maintenance focuses on spotting possible problems before they arise, preventive maintenance is concerned with preventing equipment failure.

While both strategies have benefits and drawbacks, IoT-based predictive maintenance can lower equipment downtime and maintenance costs more efficiently. Still, it may cost more to execute since it needs more sophisticated technologies and skilled labour.

Get in touch with an IoT development company to discuss your requirements in detail.