Which maintenance philosophy could reduce plant reliability compared to not maintaining?

Preventive maintenance is designed to prevent equipment failures by performing routine maintenance tasks at scheduled intervals. However, if not executed correctly, this approach can lead to unnecessary interventions. For instance, if maintenance is performed too early or too frequently, it can result in undue wear on components or systems that may not have required attention yet. This can reduce the overall effectiveness of the equipment and lead to increased operational issues, ultimately reducing plant reliability.

In contrast, approaches like predictive maintenance, which rely on condition monitoring to predict failures, or breakdown maintenance, which involves addressing failures only when they occur, may not disrupt functioning equipment unnecessarily. Similarly, condition-based maintenance aims to perform maintenance only when necessary based on the actual condition of the equipment. Therefore, while preventive maintenance can be beneficial, if not carefully managed, it may inadvertently lead to a decline in reliability compared to the alternatives that focus on actual equipment needs and performance data.