How Often Should an Industrial Air Compressor Be Serviced?

The overall success of your business depends on the reliability of every single piece of machinery in your application. Whether you own a small, local business or a large, multi-location company, your ability to meet (or surpass) your production goals depends entirely on the performance of the machinery you use. So how do you ensure your equipment is running to the best of its ability?

Why is Servicing Your Industrial Air Compressor Important?

Proper air compressor maintenance doesn't just mean keeping your compressor operational. It means keeping your equipment running to the best of its abilities.

It may seem self-explanatory why maintaining your industrial air compressor is so important. You want to keep it running, of course. That, in and of itself, is a great reason. But there are more benefits to keeping your compressor in tip-top shape than just keeping it running. Here are a few of the most important reasons to ensure your industrial air compressor is regularly and appropriately maintained:

• Avoiding unexpected machine failure and application downtime: The last thing anyone wants is an unexpected equipment issue. Even system problems that are addressed quickly have the potential to throw your whole production timeline out of whack. When encountering more significant issues, your production flow could be shut down for days, putting you behind on deadlines and keeping you from meeting your customers' needs. This not only hurts your reputation, but it also hurts your bottom line.

• Saving on energy costs: If your industrial air compressor isn't working at peak efficiency, it will consume more energy than necessary. Because these changes in energy consumption can happen slowly over time, they're rarely detected until they become significant and noticeable on your energy bill. In fact, machines that have to work overtime to produce the amount of energy required by a given application can use up to 20-30% more electricity than those that are running properly. The cost of this extra energy quickly adds up over time, resulting in thousands of dollars lost by your company. Part of preventative maintenance and service best practices involves regularly reviewing the energy consumption of your industrial air compressor to detect any abnormalities.

• Adhering to safety and compliance requirements: As a business owner, the safety of your employees is your responsibility. To ensure the workplace is as safe as possible for your factory technicians, you must service your machinery regularly. Issues like broken or damaged parts and overheating machinery not only pose a danger to your bottom line, but they also risk the overall health of the people you have working in your facility. 

Prepping for Industrial Air Compressor Maintenance

• Plan maintenance tasks for off-time: The last thing you want to do when running a business is shut down your operation for the purpose of performing maintenance tasks. This not only throws off the rhythm of your entire application but can also be detrimental during high-demand or rush orders. That's why it's a good idea to schedule your service and maintenance tasks during off-times when your production system isn't as heavily loaded with orders.

• Properly train your technicians: Technicians who are properly trained can detect issues before they turn into disasters. Ensuring your employees are trained appropriately to care for your industrial system protects your machines and your technicians' safety.

• Keep a maintenance record: Keeping a regularly updated maintenance record will give technicians a clear history of what parts have been repaired or replaced recently and what parts they may need to pay special attention to when performing or scheduling service on your equipment.

• Stock up on commonly required spare parts: Keeping industrial air compressor parts, like filters, oil, belts, and other frequently replaced components on hand ensures your technicians have immediate access to these parts when they are needed. This saves time by eliminating the need to order parts that require immediate replacement, potentially avoiding system downtime.

• Partner with a service provider: Partnering with a local service provider for routine check-ups on your equipment is an ideal way to assess the health of your machinery and get answers straight from the professionals.

• Utilize preventative maintenance techniques: Establishing preventative maintenance practices is one of the best things you can do as a business owner to ensure your application continues to run smoothly. Preventive maintenance enables you to detect small issues with your system before they turn into bigger issues.

A Good Rule of Thumb for Air Compressor Maintenance

Regardless of the size of your industrial application, your machine operators should be assessing the state of your equipment on at least a weekly basis. For smaller applications, full machine servicing should take place at least two times a year, while larger applications may require machine servicing quarterly to ensure all equipment and parts are working as they should.

Arthur Pue is President of Engineering Sales Associates, a veteran- and family-owned company serving manufacturers since 1961. He brings the discipline of military service and years of leadership to guiding ESA’s role as a trusted provider of compressed air and liquid filtration systems. Clients rely on his expertise to keep their plants running smoothly.