Planned Downtime: What it is, the Benefits

In today’s blog, we’ll be discussing what planned downtime is and the benefits of proactively scheduling planned downtime activities.

One of the most fearful words in manufacturing is downtime. Even though it is inevitable for downtime to occur, managers, operators, and technicians rigorously aims to reduce it and mitigate its effects.

Planned downtime vs unplanned downtime

What is planned downtime?

Planned downtime, or also known as scheduled downtime, refers to scheduled time when a machine or production equipment is limited or shut down so that planned maintenance activities can be performed. For example, planned downtime can be scheduled for testing, repairs, or upgrades to machines and equipment.

In short, planning downtime for maintenance is essential for extending the lifespan of machines and equipment. However, it is also useful for reducing extra maintenance on less important machines and equipment. By scheduling proactive maintenance activities, this allows you to install upgrades and perform routine maintenance. For example, planned maintenance activities include replacing old or faulty machine parts and performing consistent system updates. As a result, this ensures optimal functionality of your assets.

What is unplanned downtime?

On the other hand, unplanned downtime, or also known as unscheduled downtime, refers to the unexpected failure or breakdown of a machine, equipment, or process. In essence, unplanned downtime is out of your control and isn’t a part of your production schedule. For example, unplanned downtime may occur due to oil leaking from a machine or a computer crashing.

Unplanned downtime requires urgent and immediate attention and action. Furthermore, it is a huge inconvenience for a company. That is to say, it can take a while before a machine or equipment is back up and running again, it affects the promised delivery date of products, and it could be costly. Reasons for unplanned downtime include equipment failure, tool failure, poor maintenance, and operator error.

What are the benefits of planned downtime?

By effectively planning downtime for your assets, this can positively impact your company in many ways:

Frequently Asked Questions

Planned downtime, also called scheduled downtime, is time set aside when a machine or production equipment is limited or shut down so planned maintenance can be done. Testing, repairs and upgrades all fall under it, for example replacing old or faulty parts and performing system updates. Because it is on the schedule, parts and people are ready when the machine stops.

Planned downtime is chosen and scheduled, so it happens when it hurts production least. Unplanned downtime is the unexpected failure of a machine, piece of equipment or process, such as an oil leak or a computer crash, and sits outside the production schedule. It demands immediate attention, can keep equipment down for a long time, puts delivery dates at risk, and is usually expensive.

Equipment failure, tool failure, poor maintenance and operator error are the main causes. Each is partly preventable: regular planned maintenance catches worn parts before they fail, and keeping assets in good condition reduces the chance of a sudden breakdown. When unplanned downtime does occur, it needs urgent action and often takes a while to resolve.

Four main ones. It reduces costs, because equipment is back up quickly and products still ship by the agreed date. It extends asset life, since a regular maintenance schedule improves machine performance and cuts unexpected breakdowns. It keeps efficiency and productivity high, because work happens when it least disrupts production and parts and labour are ready. And it captures asset data more regularly, which feeds a better maintenance schedule.

When it will have the least impact on production. Scheduling ahead gives time to confirm that parts and labour are available, so the stop is short and nothing waits on a missing component. A regular rhythm of planned stops also means fewer surprises, since worn parts and pending updates are handled before they cause a failure.

Following a regular maintenance schedule keeps machines performing as designed. Old or faulty parts are replaced before they fail, system updates are applied consistently, and small problems are fixed while they are still small. That lowers the chance of unexpected breakdowns, which are what shorten equipment life and drive repair bills. The data collected during each stop also sharpens the next maintenance plan.

How LeanSuite can help you to plan and track maintenance activities seamlessly

Maintenance can be hard to plan and schedule, especially if companies don’t have a maintenance team that works continuously throughout a production cycle. That’s where a document creation tool comes in handy.

LeanSuite is a cloud-based lean manufacturing software that offers various built-in apps designed to help elevate all aspects of a manufacturing plant or factory. One of the apps being the Lean Creator, a versatile document creation tool that helps you and your workforce create, enforce, and standardize equipment maintenance activities, all in one central place. By integrating the Lean Creator into your daily operations, this ensures you effectively and efficiently schedule planned downtime.