¿Qué es el mantenimiento industrial? Definición, estrategias, software

¿Qué es el mantenimiento industrial?

Industrial maintenance is the practice of maintaining industrial machines and preventing breakdowns. Industrial maintenance involves regular upkeep, emergency repairs, and long-term preventive and predictive maintenance strategies.

El objetivo del mantenimiento industrial es reducir el tiempo de inactividad, aumentar la longevidad de los activos y reforzar su fiabilidad general. Una maquinaria que funciona mal consume demasiada energía, desperdicia materiales y provoca costosos tiempos de inactividad. La práctica crucial del mantenimiento industrial garantiza que las plantas de fabricación, las fábricas y otras instalaciones industriales funcionen de forma eficiente, segura y con un tiempo de inactividad mínimo.

When industrial maintenance teams keep assets running as designed, it helps maximize safety, output, and uptime, boosting the bottom line. Activities like the servicing, repairing, and replacing machine components — from small bearings to entire compressor units — in an industrial setting fall under the umbrella of industrial maintenance.

El mantenimiento industrial implica una serie de actividades, como inspecciones periódicas, mantenimiento preventivo, reparaciones correctivas y el uso de tecnologías avanzadas de supervisión para predecir y prevenir fallos.

Benefits of Industrial Maintenance

El mantenimiento industrial es vital por varias razones:

• Improves operational efficiency: Regular maintenance helps ensure that equipment operates at peak performance, reducing the likelihood of unexpected breakdowns that can disrupt production schedules.

• Increase safety: Properly maintained equipment is less likely to fail in ways that could harm workers, making industrial equipment maintenance a key component of workplace safety.

• Realizes cost savings: By preventing major breakdowns and extending equipment lifespans, industrial maintenance can save companies significant amounts of money in the long run.

• Boosts regulatory compliance: Many industries are subject to strict regulations regarding equipment maintenance. Meeting these standards is essential to avoid fines and legal issues.

Empleos comunes de mantenimiento industrial y tipos de trabajadores

Industrial maintenance requires a diverse workforce with various skills and expertise. Generally speaking, industrial maintenance technicians need to be skilled in performing hands-on work, following directions, and be familiar with a work order management system.

Estos son algunos de los trabajos y tipos de trabajadores más habituales en el mantenimiento industrial:

Maintenance technicians

Industrial maintenance technicians perform routine inspections, repairs, and industrial equipment servicing. Also called industrial maintenance mechanics, they diagnose issues, replace faulty components, and ensure machinery operates smoothly.

• Skills: Technical knowledge of machinery, problem-solving abilities, and proficiency in using various tools and equipment.

Maintenance engineers

Maintenance engineers develop and oversee maintenance strategies to ensure equipment reliability. Employees in these roles analyze equipment performance data, recommend improvements, and implement preventive maintenance plans.

• Competencias: Conocimientos de ingeniería, capacidad analítica y experiencia con programas informáticos de planificación del mantenimiento.

Reliability engineers

This role focuses on improving the long-term reliability of equipment. Reliability engineers study failure data, identify root causes, and develop strategies to enhance equipment reliability and minimize downtime.

• Skills: Strong analytical abilities, knowledge of reliability engineering principles, and experience with predictive maintenance technologies.

Maintenance managers

Industrial maintenance managers oversee the entire maintenance department, ensuring that all activities are carried out efficiently and effectively. They manage resources, coordinate schedules, and ensure compliance with safety and regulatory standards.

• Skills: Leadership and management skills, strategic planning, and knowledge of maintenance best practices.

Condition monitoring technicians

Condition monitoring technicians use advanced monitoring tools and industrial maintenance technology to assess the condition of equipment in real-time. They collect and analyze data to predict potential failures and recommend timely interventions so failure can be avoided.

• Competencias: Dominio de las tecnologías de supervisión, capacidad de análisis de datos y atención al detalle.

Planners and schedulers

Planners and schedulers are responsible for planning and scheduling maintenance activities. They ensure that maintenance tasks are carried out at the right time and with minimal disruption to operations.

• Competencias: Capacidad de organización y planificación, experiencia con programas informáticos de programación y capacidad para equilibrar las necesidades de mantenimiento con las demandas de producción.

Cada función dentro de un equipo de mantenimiento industrial es crucial para garantizar un funcionamiento eficaz y fiable de los equipos. Trabajando juntos, estos profesionales ayudan a prevenir fallos inesperados, optimizar los programas de mantenimiento y mejorar el rendimiento general de los equipos.

Su equipo también puede tener que recurrir a contratistas para el mantenimiento que requiera conocimientos o herramientas especializados. Por ejemplo, algunos tipos de calibración de equipos, análisis de vibraciones, reparaciones eléctricas, reparaciones de robótica o automatización y mantenimiento de ascensores son tareas que pueden requerir la subcontratación de un especialista.

Sometimes, it can be difficult to find individuals who can perform the tasks your organization needs. Cross-training your existing staff to teach new skills can help combat these limitations. Using specialized software, like a computerized maintenance management system (CMMS), can also help provide your team with checklists, guidelines, and necessary steps to complete their tasks, making it easier for team members to perform the maintenance your organization needs.

¿Qué industrias utilizan el mantenimiento industrial?

El mantenimiento industrial es un componente vital en numerosas industrias, cada una con necesidades y retos específicos. Estas son algunas de las principales industrias que dependen en gran medida del mantenimiento industrial:

Manufactura

• Panorama general: Implica la producción de bienes utilizando maquinaria y mano de obra. El mantenimiento es crucial para garantizar una producción continua y evitar costosos tiempos de inactividad.
• Key maintenance activities: Regular inspections, preventive maintenance, condition monitoring, and predictive maintenance to keep production lines running smoothly.

Energy and Utilities

• Overview: Includes power generation, water treatment, and utility services. Industrial plant maintenance ensures reliable service delivery and compliance with safety regulations.
• Key maintenance activities: Scheduled inspections, real-time monitoring, and advanced diagnostics to maintain infrastructure and prevent service interruptions.

Petróleo y Gas

• Overview: Involves exploration, extraction, refining, and distribution of oil and gas. Factory maintenance is essential to ensure safe and efficient operations.
• Key maintenance activities: Corrosion control, regular inspections, condition-based maintenance, and the use of predictive analytics to prevent failures.

Transportation and Logistics

• Panorama general: Cubre el movimiento de mercancías y personas. El mantenimiento garantiza la fiabilidad y seguridad de vehículos, aviones, barcos e infraestructuras.
• Key maintenance activities: Routine servicing, component replacements, safety inspections, and adherence to regulatory standards.

Alimentos y bebidas

• Overview: Involves the processing and packaging of food and beverages. Maintenance is critical to ensure product quality, safety, and compliance with hygiene standards.
• Key maintenance activities: Cleaning, calibration, lubrication, and regular inspections to maintain equipment and prevent contamination.

Productos farmacéuticos

• Panorama general: Implica la producción de medicamentos y productos sanitarios. El mantenimiento garantiza la precisión y fiabilidad de los equipos de producción.
• Key maintenance activities: Preventive maintenance, regular inspections, calibration, and strict adherence to regulatory requirements to ensure product quality and safety.

Minería

• Panorama general: Implica la extracción de minerales y materias primas. El mantenimiento es esencial para garantizar la fiabilidad y eficacia de la maquinaria y los equipos pesados.
• Key maintenance activities: Regular servicing, component replacements, system checks, and the use of advanced diagnostics to prevent breakdowns.

Centros sanitarios

• Overview: Involves maintaining facilities for patient care, such as hospitals, assisted living facilities, and hospice centers. Maintenance is needed to ensure medical equipment is functioning well and the entire facility is safe and hygienic for both employees and patients.
• Key maintenance activities: Cleaning, preventive maintenance for medical equipment and facility equipment like HVAC systems and plumbing, regular inspections, adherence to compliance requirements, and safety checks for critical equipment like fire extinguishers and exit signs.

Servicios de hostelería

• Overview: Involves maintenance for hotels, resorts, apartment complexes, and similar facilities. Maintenance is critical for ensuring guest safety and satisfaction, as well as compliance with government regulations.
• Key maintenance activities: Inspections and cleaning of HVAC and plumbing systems, addressing immediate needs like electrical outages or broken appliances, cleaning, regular inspection of safety equipment such as fire extinguishers, inspecting and repairing security systems. Also ensuring that common areas like pools, entryways, and fitness centers are clean and equipment is operational.

Ejemplos de mantenimiento industrial

Industrial maintenance covers almost any task that needs to be performed in a plant. Here are a few examples of the types of maintenance included in industrial plant maintenance:

Mantenimiento de cintas transportadoras

Las cintas transportadoras son componentes críticos en muchos procesos industriales, especialmente en la fabricación y la manipulación de materiales. El mantenimiento rutinario de las cintas transportadoras implica varias tareas clave:

• Inspección: Comprobación periódica del desgaste, desalineación y daños de la correa y sus componentes.
• Lubricación: Garantizar que los cojinetes, rodillos y otras piezas móviles estén correctamente lubricados para reducir la fricción y el desgaste.
• Belt tensioning: Adjusting the tension to prevent slippage and ensure smooth operation. Too much or too little tension can cause operational issues and accelerate wear.

Mantenimiento de sistemas HVAC

Los sistemas de calefacción, ventilación y aire acondicionado (HVAC) son vitales para mantener un entorno controlado en las instalaciones industriales. Entre las tareas de mantenimiento habituales de los sistemas HVAC se incluyen:

• Filter replacement: Regularly replacing air filters to maintain air quality and system efficiency.
• Coil cleaning: Cleaning the evaporator and condenser coils to improve heat exchange efficiency and prevent system overload.
• Inspection and calibration: Checking thermostats and control systems to ensure they are functioning correctly and calibrating them as needed to maintain desired temperature and humidity levels.

Mantenimiento de bombas y motores

Las bombas y los motores abundan en diversas aplicaciones industriales, desde el suministro de agua hasta el control de procesos. Las tareas de mantenimiento de estos componentes suelen incluir:

• Alignment checks: Verifying that motors and pumps are properly aligned to avoid excessive vibration and wear.
• Lubricación: Lubricar regularmente los rodamientos y otras piezas móviles para minimizar la fricción y evitar el sobrecalentamiento.
• Performance testing: Monitoring and testing the performance of pumps and motors to detect issues such as reduced flow rates or abnormal noises, indicating potential problems.

Mantenimiento del sistema compresor

Los sistemas compresores están presentes en muchos procesos industriales, como el accionamiento de herramientas neumáticas y el movimiento de gases comprimidos. Las tareas de mantenimiento de los sistemas de compresores pueden incluir:

• Filter checks and replacement: Consistently checking and replacing air filters to ensure the gas can move through the system and that any pollutants or contaminants have been removed.
• Lubrication: Regularly lubricating bearings, gears, and other components to help the compressor run smoothly and avoid unnecessary wear on components.
• Regular inspections: There are many types of compressors, but they all need to be inspected for leaks, proper lubricant levels, contamination, and other factors based on the compressor’s needs and maintenance timeline.

Mantenimiento de fresadoras

Las fresadoras utilizan fresas rotativas para extraer material de las piezas de trabajo. Se utilizan en diversas industrias, como la automoción, la producción de equipos médicos, la agricultura y muchas más. El mantenimiento de las fresadoras incluye:

• Cleaning: Removing dust, debris, and residue buildup to ensure the milling machine can perform as expected.
• Lubrication: Regularly lubricating moving parts like slides, gears, and bearings according to the manufacturer’s specifications to ensure smooth operation and reduced wear and tear on components.
• Calibration and alignment: Performing regular calibration and alignment to help the machine maintain its accuracy and avoid wasted materials from improper machining.

This is just a small example of the tasks included in industrial maintenance. Troubleshooting equipment problems, scheduling future maintenance tasks, performing regular inspections, and spare parts inventory management are all included in industrial maintenance.

What is Industrial Equipment Maintenance?

Industrial equipment maintenance is the practice of maintaining, repairing, and managing machinery and systems used in manufacturing and other industrial applications. It’s focused on equipment only, while industrial maintenance can be used to describe maintenance across a factory or organization.

Industrial Maintenance Strategies

La maquinaria industrial, desde activos comunes como los motores hasta sistemas sofisticados como los aerogeneradores, sigue un ciclo de vida que va desde la instalación hasta el funcionamiento y, finalmente, el fin de su vida útil o la avería. El mantenimiento es clave para optimizar la vida útil de los equipos y garantizar que funcionen eficazmente el mayor tiempo posible.

We often think of maintenance as an emergency response to faults, failures, or total breakdowns, and it’s true that industrial maintenance work is often reactive firefighting. Maintenance is vital to employee safety, like when an ammonia compressor fails and toxic gas leaks. It’s also essential for compliance with key regulations from OSHA to the FDA and IATF. And of course, maintenance keeps production going and revenue flowing.

Pero confiar en el mantenimiento reactivo o por avería como única estrategia puede ser desastroso. Un enfoque estrictamente reactivo hace perder tiempo, mano de obra y dinero, y ralentiza la producción.

Las estrategias de mantenimiento con visión de futuro pueden complementar a las reactivas y conducir a una mejor gestión de los activos, que se mantienen en funcionamiento durante más tiempo. Los equipos de mantenimiento y fiabilidad pueden aprovechar el poder del mantenimiento preventivo, basado en el estado y predictivo para maximizar el tiempo de actividad. Así se comparan las distintas estrategias de mantenimiento:

Mantenimiento reactivo

Reactive maintenance is performed in response to machine issues, ranging from minor faults to major failures. Also known as “run-to-failure” maintenance, reactive maintenance is only performed when problems arise. A reactive approach is ideal for easily-replaceable parts like lightbulbs, but can be problematic for complex and critical industrial machines.

Breakdown Maintenance

Breakdown maintenance is a strategy in which workers wait until a machine fully breaks down or is out of operation before performing maintenance work. A breakdown maintenance strategy can make sense for non-critical assets, but is dangerous and costly when applied to production-critical machines.

Mantenimiento preventivo

Preventive maintenance (PM) involves planning regular maintenance to prevent faults and failures. Preventive maintenance is scheduled at regular time intervals or equipment usage intervals. A PM approach to industrial maintenance reduces the risk of asset downtime and is important for essential assets.

Condition-Based Maintenance

Condition-based maintenance (CBM) is work done in response to asset condition data, like vibration or temperature levels, that gives insight into machine health. CBM is vital for sophisticated machines that need to be monitored to know when maintenance is needed.

Mantenimiento predictivo

Predictive maintenance (PdM) is maintenance work performed in advance of a breakdown that is informed by predictive data, like detailed vibration data captured by wireless sensors. Predictive maintenance is a powerful tool for maxing the uptime and strengthening the reliability of your most critical assets.

Reliability-Centered Maintenance

Reliability-centered maintenance (RCM) is a framework that focuses on the big picture: what maintenance strategy is best for each asset or type of asset to achieve cost-effective uptime? A reliability-centered strategy calls on the best approach for the job, from run-to-failure maintenance to preventive maintenance. Reliability-centered maintenance often involves asset criticality assessment (ACA), failure modes and effects analysis (FMEA), and fault tree analysis (FTA) as methods to analyze assets and determine the ideal game plan.

How to Improve Your Industrial Maintenance Strategy

With so many different types of maintenance, it can be challenging to figure out a maintenance strategy that will work for the whole factory. You can’t just let everything run until it completely stops working. But at the same time, it doesn’t make sense to perform preventive maintenance on every piece of equipment.

Instead, take these steps to improve your industrial maintenance strategy, whether you’re building a strategy from the ground up or just working to improve an existing strategy.

1. Assess your Current Strategy

Review asset performance, failure history, response times, and maintenance costs. What’s working? What isn’t?

2. Define Clear Maintenance Goals

Align your factory maintenance goals with your business objectives. These could include reducing downtime, extending asset lifespan, improving safety, or cutting costs.

3. Classify and Prioritize Assets

Use a criticality analysis to prioritize assets based on factors like production impact, safety concerns, and costs. This can help you direct maintenance resources where they will have the biggest impact on your facility.

4. Choose the Right Maintenance Approach for Each Asset

Now you’re ready to assign maintenance strategies to your assets, using the strategy that makes the most sense for each one.

5. Standardize Procedures

Even the best industrial maintenance strategy can fail if the people implementing it aren’t consistent. Standard procedures make sure your team performs tasks the same way, every time.

6. Collect Data

Track data such as mean time between failures (MTBF), unplanned downtime hours, and overall equipment effectiveness so you can see where your new strategy is working and where it needs refining.

7. Review, Refine, Repeat

Regularly review the data you’ve collected to see where maintenance strategies may need to be adjusted or changed. Certain assets may need preventive maintenance more frequently than you initially planned, for example. These changes keep your facility on the right track and enable continuous improvement.

The Rise of New Technology in Industrial Maintenance

Industrial maintenance practices are evolving quickly. New technology paves the way for improvements in industrial maintenance strategies and introduces new skills industrial maintenance technicians can use to improve maintenance practices across facilities.

1. IoT Sensors & Smart Devices: These sensors collect real-time data about assets, giving industrial technicians information about asset health so they can perform condition-based maintenance and predictive maintenance, resulting in more effective maintenance practices.

1. Remote Condition Monitoring: Instead of having to physically visit a machine, technicians can use sensors and connected platforms to check machine status in real time, saving valuable time and letting industrial maintenance technicians focus on repairs rather than machine monitoring.

1. AI and Machine Learning: Historical and real-time data from sensors can be analyzed with AI to detect patterns and predict failures, and industrial maintenance technology can even make recommendations about maintenance tasks. Technicians can use this data to perform repairs and prevent unplanned downtime.

Cloud-based industrial maintenance software harnesses the power of each of these technologies and provides a centralized location for asset data, work orders, inventory, and reporting in a single platform.

¿Por qué utilizar software de mantenimiento industrial?

Los equipos de mantenimiento industrial necesitan software de mantenimiento para gestionar, planificar y ejecutar una estrategia ganadora.

Maintenance software serves as a command center for work orders, asset management, spare parts inventory, maintenance KPI reporting, and much more. It can store standard operating procedures and maintenance history, providing key information for future maintenance decisions. Leading maintenance management software also offer mobile apps, condition monitoring, integrations with key business systems, and global, multi-site capabilities.

Common software types include computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS) and enterprise asset management (EAM) systems, which often overlap.

Una GMAO o EAM permite a los equipos de mantenimiento industrial ahorrar tiempo, simplificar su trabajo, reducir costes, evitar tiempos de inactividad y aumentar la fiabilidad general de los activos.

Los equipos de mantenimiento industrial suelen utilizar una combinación de estrategias de mantenimiento en sus instalaciones, y una GMAO puede mejorar cualquiera de ellas. He aquí algunas formas concretas en las que una GMAO puede ayudar a los distintos enfoques:

• Reactive maintenance: When an asset fails or isn’t performing as expected, team members can:
  • Create a maintenance work order
  • Assign a technician
  • Upload key details about the problem.
  • Work order and asset history in the CMMS give the technician vital tools to help troubleshoot and correct the problem as quickly as possible, minimizing downtime.

• Preventive maintenance: Managers can:
  • Create and assign work orders for regular preventive maintenance tasks like inspections, filter changes, lubrication, and cleaning.
  • These tasks can also be automated to occur regularly, ensuring teams stay on top of vital PMs over time.

• Predictive maintenance: When wireless sensors receive data that indicates the asset is operating outside of its ideal conditions, a CMMS can:
  • Notify users of potential faults
  • Create alarms and work orders automatically
  • Ensure developing issues are fixedas quickly as possible.

• Reliability-centered maintenance: Companies implementing an RCM strategy can use a CMMS to:
  • Document the maintenance methods, checklists, and other key data for each asset
  • Use KPIs and data from the CMMS to continually improve their RCM model and ensure every asset receives the correct maintenance at the right time.
• Graphic?

Cuando los equipos realizan un seguimiento, establecen tendencias y analizan los datos sobre el estado de los activos, pueden tomar mejores decisiones, establecer prioridades en la programación y el gasto y reducir costes.

Una mayor visibilidad de las actividades de mantenimiento industrial permite a los equipos identificar tendencias, adaptarse a los cambios de prioridades y mejorar su comunicación y sus procesos. La centralización de toda la documentación -desde los contratos hasta los manuales- simplifica el proceso de cumplimiento y garantiza que los miembros del equipo de mantenimiento puedan acceder de forma segura a la información que necesitan en cualquier momento y lugar.

To make the most of your industrial maintenance program, you need to define your maintenance management goals and targets. A CMMS like eMaint can track metrics, generate reports, and deliver insights you can use to reach your goals.

See how eMaint allows you to manage assets, create and assign work orders, view live asset status, manage inventory, reduce costs, and more with a CMMS demo walkthrough.