Taking care of your tools is very important. You need to make sure that they are in the best condition possible at all times. This is not always very easy, especially when you use a wide variety of tools all of the time. Don’t worry, with some planning and pre-emptive maintenance you too could have tools that are in a much better condition.

Before you make the most of all that pre-emptive maintenance has to offer, you need to track your tools. You can do this by attaching a barcode or RFID tag to your tools. Once a tag or barcode is attached it’s time for you to scan the tag or code with your tracking software. When you do, a digital profile will be created, enabling you to start tracking the tool in question. Make sure that you add one tag or barcode at a time so you know what tools you’ve scanned and which ones you haven’t.

When you use the right tracking software, you can quickly report any issues that you have with your assets. All that you will need to do is to message the maintenance department via the tracking software. This is all part of pre-emptive maintenance as you can report issues as soon as they arise. It’s better to do this rather than waiting until the tool is very damaged. The sooner you report the problem, the sooner it can be managed.

Now it’s time for you to set some maintenance reminders. Doing so will help you to stay on top of maintenance and ensure that everything is in the best condition possible. While you’re setting up a tools’ digital profile, make sure that you create a reminder. This reminder will need to be specific to the tool. For example, a pre-emptive maintenance reminder for one tool may be every year, and another one may need to be checked out every six months. 

When you have reminders such as these, it ensures that all of your tools and equipment is more likely to be in a better state of repair.

One feature that some tracking software provides is the ability to check your assets in and out. This is more useful than you may think. In addition to knowing when everything is being used. While using them you can also mention they’re undergoing maintenance. This allows you and others to know where they are. Your team can then see what’s available to use and even what isn’t. As a result, this feature can potentially help you to see whether you have enough assets to go around. If you don’t, you could purchase more so that you all have what you need all of the time.

So how can you work to prevent downtime? It’s actually easier than you think. By setting reminders and checking your tools/assets in and out, you’re already working to prevent downtime. When you do this, you’re less likely to have major issues occurring. This means that you can continue to fulfill those orders and complete a lot of different tasks. 

You can also help to prevent downtime by understanding what to look out for. This is all part of pre-emptive maintenance. When you know when problems are about to occur, you can report them. In addition to this, you can take a look at the data that your tracking software has created. You can use the data to help you to further predict downtime. After a while, it may be possible for you to see a pattern in the way tools are used and when they’re likely to become damaged. This can help you to look after your tools in such a way that they are in the best condition possible.

Did you know that when you use pre-emptive maintenance to its full advantage you can check your tool’s status? Simply do this via the notes that are left by the maintenance team. They could, for example, let you know that an asset is about to undergo repairs. It may also be possible to see that repairs have been carried out and the asset will be with you again soon. This can help you to prepare for any project that you have coming up. You could see whether you have the right number of assets/tools to use now and in the near future. Knowing where you stand with regards to your tools means you can plan ahead.

Tool maintenance can be very easy when you have the right software at your fingertips. 

Would you like to speak with an expert about using pre-emptive maintenance? Contact us today at team@itemit.com. 

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