Logo for: Summit ToyotaLift

Benefits of Forklift Planned Maintenance

Your forklift works hard, and you want to keep it in its best working condition. Planned Maintenance (PM) is like visiting the doctor — it is a necessary measure to make sure your forklift keeps running at peak performance. Planned Maintenance helps catch any potential issues early. This not only saves money on potential repairs, but it also enhances your uptime, keeping your equipment — and your employees — working.  

Here are some benefits of Planned Maintenance and its impact on your forklift and your business: 

Benefits of Forklift Planned Maintenance

Lower Maintenance Costs

Repairs can be costly especially when a problem arises unexpectedly. Properly maintaining your equipment at specific intervals should reduce the cost of parts and labor required to make any repairs. By replacing parts that are aging or require replacement BEFORE they break down, you may avoid large repair costs, especially emergency repairs or expedited shipping on parts. 

Increased Equipment Life 

Taking care of your forklift regularly may extend its operational life. Most forklifts average around 10,000 hours of operational life, while many Toyota forklifts average about 20,000 hours. With regular Planned Maintenance, your forklift could last as long as 30,000 hours or more. This means replacing equipment less often, allowing you to get more years of production from each truck.

Benefits of Forklift Planned Maintenance

Increased Productivity 

In addition to lower maintenance costs, another benefit of planned maintenance is lower operating costs. When a forklift is out of commission, it eats into your operating expenses. Remember, emergency repair costs and rentals are often more expensive than a PM. 

Planned Maintenance provides for inspections and repairs at regular intervals, usually around every 250 hours depending upon how you use your forklift. As a result, your business keeps running at top speed. By knowing what maintenance is required based on the number of hours run, we can hopefully eliminate most emergency work. While emergencies may still arise, planned maintenance and operator safety training are the best ways to prevent the need for emergency repair. 

Enhance Safety 

Cost is not the only area where Planned Maintenance can impact your business. Unexpected equipment failure not only brings increased expenses for repairs and replacement, but it may also cause accidents and workplace injuries. Operating a forklift with worn or failed components could cause damage to your facility or product–or even injury to your employees. With regular inspection maintenance, you can hope to avoid major safety issues with your equipment ahead of time and increase the operational safety of your forklift.

Benefits of Forklift Planned Maintenance

Increase Forklift Trade-In Value 

Planned Maintenance can do more than help lower your cost. Having a Planned Maintenance program in place for the life of your forklift may result in a higher trade-in value on your forklift. As you use your forklift, the market value diminishes. A well-maintained forklift may be more enticing to potential buyers, providing more value when you go to trade it in. This allows you to have less expense, ultimately improving your bottom line. 

Conclusion

Having a Planned Maintenance program in place for your forklifts is not only a good business practice, but it is also a smart way to save on unexpected repairs, lost productivity, wasted product, and injuries to employees. Please contact our Customer Service Specialist or call us at (203) 239-5351 if you are interested in adding an effective Planned Maintenance program for your equipment. 

‹ Back to Blog