What is outsourced maintenance? To sum it up, it’s the practice of using external, contracted personnel to fulfill some or all of a facility’s industrial maintenance needs — both planned and unplanned. The advantages of outsourced maintenance illustrate why a facility or organization would take this route, including:
- Improved reliability — Many clients of outsourced maintenance companies opt for a reliability guarantee. Outsourced maintenance companies provide not only the skilled personnel the operation needs, but the maintenance strategic expertise the organization was previously without. Outsourced maintenance is an excellent way to implement and/or standardize your reliability expectations, ensuring your equipment is both properly maintained and running efficiently.
- Cost benefits — One of the major benefits of outsourced maintenance is lower costs and increased efficiency from MRO investments because you only pay for the services that you receive. In facilities or industries where demand and production can fluctuate, outsourced maintenance can provide a flexible way to control costs.
- Integrated and streamlined processes — Some outsourced maintenance service providers can cover tasks as far-ranging as storeroom management, sourcing and vendor communications, in addition to standard maintenance and repair operations. By integrating these processes, you can free up time to focus on core competencies like production output.
Recruiting and onboarding with outsourced maintenance
Outsourced maintenance can streamline an operation’s already strained recruiting and onboarding process. In today’s labor market, it is difficult to recruit quality, technically skilled workers due to the skills gap. Taking the time to onboard and train new employees quickly may also be difficult for some organizations.
If you’re concerned about the amount of training required for new employees or don’t have the internal HR resources, outsourced maintenance is an option that can ease your concerns. Personnel from an outsourced maintenance provider are recruited, hired and trained to maintain expertise in a specific area, relieving you from that burden. In addition, outsourced maintenance can decrease the amount of time and cost associated with paid onboarding, since this is not required for external personnel.
What types of companies outsource maintenance?
Outsourced maintenance is utilized across nearly all industries and companies, from small manufacturing businesses to large, multinational corporations. The advantages of outsourced maintenance provide a cost-effective way for businesses to access best-in-class, expert maintenance services without the major investment in full-time staff whose expertise may not be at the level the facility needs. The realities of thin profit margins and lean initiatives in industries like aerospace, paper and pulp, heavy equipment, automotive, consumer products and others make outsourced maintenance an attractive option for cost savings and production output.
Benefits of outsourced maintenance
Outsourced maintenance can provide extensive benefits to any manufacturing organization, both short-term and long-term. The cost benefits mentioned above apply in both areas, as outsourced maintenance can provide immediate cost benefits compared to hiring internal full-time staff. Long-term benefits can be seen through reductions in overhead and a leaner, more efficient operation.
The reliability benefits mentioned earlier pay dividends as well. These include longer time between asset breakdowns, shorter downtime periods, increase in production, and quality improvements. The expertise of outsourced maintenance personnel can also extend the end-of-life value of your equipment through routine maintenance and the facilitation of efficient repairs instead of machine replacement.
Whether you are looking to outsource your full industrial maintenance and MRO operations or are in need of a partner to supplement your existing maintenance plan, ATS’ full suite of outsourced maintenance services can provide you with the level of support your organization needs. Contact us for more information.
