Published: October 09, 2023  Updated: June 19, 2025

Preventing Equipment Misuse Through Better Human Practices

The last discussion addressed how equipment failure often begins with poor design, training, and goal-setting. This article continues that theme by examining helping to prevent equipment misuse through better human practices. From poor maintenance habits to the absence of preparation, the human factor remains a leading cause of equipment malfunction across every industry.

Skill Deficits and Poor Operator Mindset

Technicians and machine operators play a vital role in a system's reliability. Unfortunately, many organizations overlook the importance of mindset and soft skills. Operators may lack essential traits such as communication, determination, and discipline—each of which contributes to equipment misuse and breakdowns.

In industrial environments, poor communication between shifts or departments often means early warning signs go unreported. A vibration, minor leak, or unusual noise ignored today turns into tomorrow's production stoppage. In facilities like packaging plants, one overlooked jam can result in downtime that costs thousands per hour.

Determination—an operator's drive to understand the equipment inside and out—also matters. Workers who lack initiative tend to rely on "workarounds" rather than learning the proper procedure or troubleshooting cause and effect. These short-term fixes compound stress on the system, increasing wear and tear.

Discipline means taking responsibility when faults occur. Whether someone misused a machine or failed to report a flaw, ownership leads to corrective action. In contrast, passing blame often delays root cause identification and allows the problem to recur.

A CMMS supports skill development and accountability. Digital logs document operator incidents and track recurring user errors. Training modules and certifications stored within the CMMS ensure staff remain qualified and aware of their responsibilities.

Misuse: Pushing Equipment Beyond Its Limits

Misuse represents one of the most common contributors to asset failure. The causes vary—overuse, underuse, improvisation, and physical abuse all appear regularly.

Overuse and Underuse

Running a machine continuously without rest creates unnecessary heat buildup and shortens part lifespans. On the flip side, some equipment requires routine activity to function properly. Lubricated components can dry out. Motors seize when idle for long periods. Printers, for example, suffer from dried cartridges if underused, leading to clogged nozzles and costly repairs.

Improvisation and Incorrect Materials

Operators sometimes repurpose machines for tasks they were never meant to handle. Attempting to cut materials that exceed machine tolerance or introducing foreign substances into a system causes rapid degradation. A worker using a hydraulic press to flatten metal not rated for that machine risks damaging internal seals and alignment systems.

In packaging industries, for instance, inserting oversized or irregularly shaped materials into conveyors leads to jams, sensor misreads, and, in extreme cases, motor burnout. These actions may seem trivial in the moment, but produce cumulative stress that shortens asset life.

Physical Abuse

Machines absorb frustration. Banging, slapping, or kicking equipment in response to a jam or error signal not only exacerbates the issue but can misalign precision parts. These behaviors signal a deeper problem: lack of procedural training or workplace discipline.

CMMS systems play a preventative role by linking equipment with usage guidelines. Operators log usage history, flag unusual activity, and report condition updates. Managers monitor whether equipment matches its designated task load. Scheduled inspections triggered by the system can help identify misuse trends before permanent damage occurs.

Lack of Proper Maintenance Culture

Preventive maintenance extends asset life and reduces unplanned downtime—but only when consistently practiced. In many cases, maintenance falls through the cracks. Crews may defer inspections due to time constraints or ignore minor alerts in favor of keeping production moving. Eventually, the system fails.

Consider the example of a municipal water plant where valve lubrication schedules were delayed multiple times during peak service periods. That minor oversight led to corrosion buildup, requiring full valve replacement and temporary shutdown of key lines. Avoidable, yet common.

CMMS software eliminates guesswork by automating scheduling and assigning recurring tasks. The system alerts supervisors if PM is overdue and tracks completion rates per team member. Tracking equipment readings helps shape PMs. Shifting some maintenance from calendar-based to condition-based can boost efficiency while preventing neglect.

Discover how streamlined maintenance processes can elevate production. Learn more.

Follow-Up and Follow-Through Failures

Communication doesn't end after reporting a problem. Follow-up and follow-through determine whether issues receive resolution or get lost in the shuffle. A machine operator might identify a design flaw or procedural inefficiency but never relay it to leadership. Even if they do, a supervisor might fail to act on the feedback.

Example: One aerospace component plant experienced recurring issues with a CNC machine's cooling system. An operator noticed coolant levels fell too quickly and suspected a slow leak. The observation made its way to maintenance, but no official work order was created. Weeks later, the system failed mid-production, halting output and delaying orders.

When teams document insights in a CMMS, their suggestions don't vanish. The system turns observations into actionable items, tracked through completion. Managers gain visibility into unresolved concerns and can assign follow-up tasks as needed. This ensures valuable ideas and necessary improvements don't get overlooked.

Preparation: The Universal Preventative Measure

Preparation touches every stage of asset use. It determines whether development, training, maintenance, and support achieve their goals—or fall short. Poor preparation often results not from malice or laziness but from assumptions. People assume equipment will work, assume teams know what to do, assume nothing will go wrong.

Industries that depend on seasonal cycles, such as agriculture or construction, face this risk constantly. Equipment sits idle for months, only to be rushed into service without inspection or reconditioning. Engines fail. Bearings seize. Entire systems need rebuilding because no one took 30 minutes to check fluid levels and calibration.

A CMMS mitigates this risk by scheduling pre-season readiness checklists, storing historical performance data, and guiding users through reactivation protocols. Preparation becomes structured and traceable—not left to memory or chance.

When Human Error Isn't the Cause

Not all failures trace back to human behavior. Some involve unexpected external factors—lightning strikes, natural disasters, or power surges. Other breakdowns reflect normal asset aging. Knowing when to retire equipment rather than repair it becomes crucial. Holding onto outdated or unreliable assets due to budget constraints can backfire when the cost of constant repairs exceeds replacement costs.

Using CMMS-generated lifecycle reports, companies evaluate asset performance over time. With metrics on downtime, repair frequency, and cost-per-use, decision-makers understand when an asset becomes a liability. Rather than reacting to catastrophic failure, they plan for replacement and budget accordingly.

Resilience Starts with Awareness

While many breakdowns appear mechanical in nature, the majority root themselves in human behavior—errors in planning, usage, maintenance, and communication. Preventing them doesn't require perfection. It requires structure. A CMMS delivers that structure in ways that paperwork and memory can't. With clearer responsibilities, tracked performance, and accessible history, even the most error-prone teams can build resilient processes that extend the life and reliability of their equipment.

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