ABSTRACT
Maintenance may be centralized, decentralized, or a combination within an organization. Breakdown and preventive maintenance are the two major types of maintenance. Breakdown maintenance takes no action until the asset has failed. Preventive maintenance involves actions designed to delay or prevent breakdowns. Th e best maintenance policy is the one that incurs the lowest total cost. Typical breakdown costs include the repair costs, equipment downtime, idle workers, output loss, schedule delays, and customer dissatisfaction. Information needed to conduct a cost analysis includes cost of breakdowns, frequency of breakdowns, and cost of preventive maintenance.
