Why is important to measure Equipment Performance?

Learn how to boost operations horsepower through high performance maintenance.

TBM Vice President David Pate, states the obvious, “I can’t imagine why you wouldn’t measure equipment performance.”

All too often, we see frequent equipment breakdowns, excessive scrap, reduced yield, long changeovers, unplanned maintenance costs, and upset customers who aren’t getting what they ordered. Oftentimes, it is the result of a disconnected maintenance strategy where the prevalent mindset is to “run it till it breaks”. Many leadership teams don’t always connect the value of proactively measuring equipment performance to long-term profitability, customer satisfaction and growth.

Maintenance isn’t just a tactical activity. It is also a strategic imperative that helps to control costs and mitigate business risks. With increasing pressure on business margins, companies should take a more engaged approach to equipment maintenance–moving from a reactive model to a more disciplined model centered on predictability and maximum reliability. It’s really about aligning equipment and maintenance performance with operations and, ultimately, company performance.

Watch the video to learn how to boost operations horsepower through high performance maintenance.

Frequently Asked Questions

Why is measuring equipment performance critical in manufacturing operations?

Measuring equipment performance is critical because it provides visibility into how assets are actually performing, not just how they are expected to perform. The video explains that without clear performance measurement, losses such as downtime, speed reductions, and quality issues remain hidden. This lack of visibility prevents leaders from managing execution effectively and limits their ability to improve capacity, reliability, and cost performance.

What happens when manufacturers do not consistently measure equipment performance?

When equipment performance is not measured consistently, organizations rely on assumptions, anecdotes, or lagging financial results to understand operations. The video highlights that this leads to reactive firefighting, misaligned priorities, and underinvestment in the areas that truly constrain performance. Without data, teams struggle to distinguish between symptoms and root causes, allowing chronic losses to persist.

How does measuring equipment performance support better decision‑making and improvement?

Measuring equipment performance supports better decision‑making by making losses visible and actionable. The video emphasizes that metrics such as availability, performance, and quality help teams focus improvement efforts where they matter most. When equipment performance is integrated into daily management routines, leaders can prioritize resources, address problems earlier, and unlock capacity without additional capital investment.

Meet the Expert

David Pate

Vice PresidentEmail David

Dave Pate is an experienced business leader with previous roles in plant management, planning and lean operations. He currently serves as Vice President, introducing new clients to TBM, cultivating long-term growth with current clients and on-boarding new clients.