Scheduled Downtime

What is Scheduled Downtime?

Scheduled Downtime is a term that’s frequently used interchangeably with “planned downtime” or “pre-planned downtime”. This refers to a period in which equipment or a system is deliberately taken offline for planned activities like preventive maintenance, which can’t be performed while the equipment is in operation..

Unlike unplanned downtime due to failures or emergency repairs, planned downtime is scheduled in advance and integral to proactive maintenance strategies. It aims to minimize operational disruptions by setting aside specific times for necessary routine maintenance and improvements.

Why is Planning Downtime Important?

Scheduling downtime events is a necessary part of any production or service environment. Data centers and cloud services schedule server and resource downtime to perform critical upgrades and security patches. Manufacturing plants write preventive maintenance and inspection time into their production schedule to ensure that equipment runs at optimal functionality and that productivity goals are met. Without taking the time to perform crucial tasks, services and productivity would suffer, often leading to lengthier downtime events.

How is Scheduled Downtime Calculated?

Managers typically account for expected downtime events during the planning stages of a maintenance management program. The metric can be calculated in terms of hours or shifts during which staff will not be able to access the affected production equipment or assets. To perform the calculation, identify the following:

1. Determine the frequency and duration of planned maintenance activities for each piece of equipment or system.
2. Sum up the total time allocated for these activities over a specific period, whether it’s weekly, monthly, annually, or a single production cycle.

An excellent example would be a machine in a manufacturing firm that requires an average of 2 hours of preventive maintenance every month and a firmware update that takes 4 hours each quarter (every 3 months). Calculated annually the planned downtime formula for the production line using this piece of equipment would read like this:

[SDT = (12 x 2) + (4 x 4)] 

[SDT = 24 + 16] 

[SDT = 40]

The annual expected downtime for this manufacturing line would be 40 hours. 

You could take this further and consider planned downtime as a percentage of runtime. To do this, you would calculate the total planned downtime, divide it by the total expected annual runtime, and multiply the result by 100. With PDT representing the percentage of expected downtime to planned runtime, D expressing the expected annual downtime, and R denoting the total annual runtime, this would be the calculation:

[PDT = D / R x 100]

Using the example above, the manufacturing plant expects to experience a total of 40 hours of planned stoppage. They expect to run that line for 8 hours per day, 3 days a week, for 50 weeks out of the year, for a total of 1,200 hours of desired runtime. The resulting percentage formula would be:

[PDR = 40 / 1,200 x 100]

PDR = 3.33%

The goal of most production and service facilities is to reduce all planned and unplanned downtime events without sacrificing productivity or quality of service.

Practical Examples of How Planned Downtime is Used

Planning downtime gives facilities some wiggle room to conduct necessary tasks without the added concern of cutting into production time. Industry and commercial enterprises use this measurement for a variety of purposes, each designed to fit the facility’s specific needs.

• Maintenance Planning: Facilities use downtime planning as part of their maintenance strategy for performing upkeep without disrupting normal operations.
• Capacity Planning: Operations managers account for pre-planned downtime in their production capacity calculations to ensure they meet target objectives.
• Efficiency Improvements: By writing downtime into the operation plans, facilities can organize the maintenance schedule to perform multiple tasks concurrently, improving overall maintenance team efficiency.
• Employee Training: While operations are down, managers can use the time as an opportunity to train staff without impacting worker productivity.

For instance, a packaging company might schedule downtime during low-demand seasons to service machines, avoiding interruptions during the busiest times. Staff are then able to use this time to attend trainings that improve their understanding and capabilities without running into productivity issues.

Ways to reduce Scheduled Downtime

While scheduling downtime is often a necessary activity, reducing its frequency or duration can lead to increased production time and greater overall efficiency. These strategies might help your organization reduce downtime events and keep your lines running more continuously.

• Predictive Maintenance: Condition-monitoring tools and data analytics enable you to anticipate upkeep needs and streamline your maintenance schedule.
• Efficient Planning: Schedule multiple maintenance activities to run concurrently, minimizing downtime frequency.
• Upgrade Equipment: IInvest in reliable up-to-date equipment to reduce excessive maintenance.
• Staff Training: Schedule educational sessions for training staff to perform maintenance tasks more quickly and effectively.
• Streamline Processes: Analyze maintenance processes to identify and eliminate inefficiencies.
• Leverage Technology: Implement a computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) or facility maintenance software platform like ServiceChannel to more efficienclty perform analytics and monitoring tasks.

For example, a food processing plant may implement a predictive maintenance system that monitors the condition of equipment and only schedules downtime when sensor data indicates potential issues on the horizon. This responsive monitoring and alert system reduces the need to perform routine maintenance and the planned downtime it would require.

In Conclusion

Scheduled Downtime is a crucial aspect of facilities management, ensuring that equipment remains reliable and efficient. By optimizing the planning and execution of scheduled downtime, facilities can improve productivity and reduce the impact on production.

The ServiceChannel facilities management platform can simplify downtime preparation with powerful analytics, scheduled maintenance planning tools, and much more. Get on board with ServiceChannel today and discover a new world of maintenance possibilities.

What are the benefits of planning downtime?

Downtime scheduling offers several benefits to just about any industrial or commercial environment. One of the biggest advantages it provides is the ability to execute other plans, such as employee training, which would disrupt regular operations if scheduled any other time. Scheduled sessions of downtime also reduces costs by keeping equipment in top shape and avoiding the need for costly repairs and reactive maintenance.

Does planned downtime affect other performance indicators?

Downtime scheduling has a far-reaching impact across numerous performance measurements. The scheduled maintenance activities involved typically help to improve other key indicators such as mean time between failures (MTTF), which measures the average time equipment runs before it breaks down and requires servicing or replacement.