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Downtime impact in planning

Downtime for unplanned maintenance is always a difficult time for the company. Just to name 3 issues that need immediate attention:

1. Extra mileage for replacement vehicle


2. Customer penalty


3. Driver accommodation

1. When a truck has a breakdown, the planning department has to quickly find a replacement. This means disturbing normal planning for that vehicle and extra mileage to reach the breakdown vehicle. Then, the driver driving time is not enough and so on. For dispatchers, it's a nightmare.


2. The customer can invoice penalty for late arrival. Time slots for unloading/loading may be lost and again more disturbance is created in the planning system.


3. When the truck is is workshop, the driver needs hotel accommodation. This again is putting extra pressure on dispatchers.

Just this 3 elements are generating important costs. A basic principle in management states that what can’t be measured can’t be controlled. The management needs a tool to have a clear image about unexpected costs.

A maintenance management software can provide on one hand the time lost and the reason for the downtime and on the other hand all the indirect costs attached to the breakdown. Once this information is available, incident analysis can be done over a period of time. The company management can take documented decisions which, in the end, will lead to cost cutting and efficiency increasing.