Key decisions
Build the maintenance plan from failure consequence and duty
- Identify components whose failure stops production, affects quantity or creates a product-containment risk.
- Set inspection and replacement tasks using supplier information, actual duty and recorded condition.
- Hold critical and consumable spares that match the installed machine revision.
- Back up software, recipes and parameters under controlled version management.
- Use fault and downtime records to improve the plan rather than repeating emergency repairs.
Separate operator care, planned maintenance and engineering repair
Daily operator checks can cover cleanliness, visible damage, leaks, loose parts, guard condition and abnormal noise where the operating procedure permits. Planned maintenance adds controlled inspection, lubrication, adjustment, calibration or replacement. Engineering repair deals with diagnosed faults and restoration. Define who is competent and authorised for each task.
The maintenance schedule should reference the actual machine configuration, product duty, hours, cycles, wash-down exposure and environment. A generic calendar copied from another line may miss accelerated wear or create unnecessary replacement work.
| Maintenance area | Evidence to retain | Typical planning question |
|---|---|---|
| Product path | Seal, hose, tube, valve, pump, cylinder and nozzle condition; leak or wear observations. | Could deterioration change quantity, contaminate product or cause loss of containment? |
| Container handling | Guide, belt, screw, sensor, stop and support condition. | Could wear create jams, mispositioned containers or impact damage? |
| Pneumatic and electrical | Leaks, filters, actuators, cables, terminals, cooling and enclosure condition. | Is the environment or duty accelerating failure? |
| Measurement and control | Calibration or verification records, recipe changes, backups and alarm history. | Can the machine be restored to the approved state after a failure? |
| Guards and safety-related functions | Inspection and test records within the site’s competent maintenance system. | Has work or modification affected the protective function? |
| Spares | Part number, revision, storage condition, shelf life and issue record. | Is the stock matched to consequence and realistic replenishment time? |
Create a critical-spares strategy
Classify parts by consequence, probability, supplier lead time, shelf life and whether an alternative repair is possible. A low-cost seal or sensor can justify local stock when its failure stops the line; an expensive assembly may need a different contingency. Include consumables, change parts and product-contact items separately.
Record the installed part number and machine revision. Protect stored seals, tubing, electronics and precision parts from heat, light, moisture, contamination and damage as appropriate. Rotate shelf-life-controlled stock and record where a spare has been fitted so replenishment is triggered.
Protect software, recipes and machine knowledge
Keep controlled backups of PLC, HMI, drive and recipe data where supplied and permitted. Record version, date, machine identity and authorised changes. A backup that cannot be identified or restored safely is not a recovery plan. Changes should be tested and documented rather than made directly during production without a record.
Maintain electrical drawings, pneumatic diagrams, parts lists, manuals and approved settings with the machine. Capture site-specific knowledge such as product-feed limits, nozzle setup and first-off checks so recovery does not depend on one individual.
Inspect after faults, changes and abnormal events
Maintenance is not only periodic. A collision, blocked nozzle, product spill, guard damage, moved sensor, software change or replacement part may require a focused inspection before return to service. The scope should consider quantity, containment, container tracking and protective functions.
HSE guidance on work equipment inspection explains the general need for inspection where deterioration or exceptional circumstances can create risk. The site should determine competent, application-specific checks for its installed equipment.
Use downtime data to improve reliability
Record symptom, machine state, product and pack, time, cause, action, parts used and verification after repair. Group recurring events by process area rather than accepting repeated resets as normal. A rising frequency of small stops can be an early sign of wear, contamination, poor setup or an upstream issue.
Use the troubleshooting guide to collect evidence before changing parameters. Review the maintenance plan after recurring failures, significant modifications and changes in product or production duty.
Maintenance and spares handover
- Machine-specific preventive maintenance schedule.
- Operator, maintenance and engineering task boundaries.
- Critical, consumable and product-contact spares list.
- Installed part numbers and configuration record.
- Software, recipe and parameter backup procedure.
- Inspection, calibration or verification records.
- Fault, downtime and corrective-action history.
- Competence, isolation and safe-return-to-service process.