Maintenance Matters: Real Disaster Stories
While symptoms often give you advance notice of issues within the equipment, many choose to push off maintenance until a later date. As time passes and the components experience wear and tear, it can severely impact your operations. If you’re still not convinced, here are a few real-life repair horror stories that show the consequences of a lack of predictive and proactive maintenance.
One of the most well-known disasters in history was the 2010 Deepwater Horizon Oil Spill, which distilled millions of oil liters into the Gulf of Mexico. After investigations, it was concluded that a lack of proactive maintenance and safety procedures was the cause of this failure, as BP hadn’t performed regular inspections and tested emergency systems. It unfortunately took the lives of eleven workers and injured seventeen, and our ocean’s ecosystems are still recovering from this disaster.
In 2007, the Valero McKee Refinery experienced a massive fire, costing them more than fifty million dollars in damage, and three workers were severely injured. The source of this disaster? An old piece of equipment that was unknowingly still attached to their processes: Water accumulated within a pipe and froze. Over time, the pipe started to split due to pressure, and a vapor cloud formed. No proper maintenance or inspections were carried out since the piece was abandoned fifteen years prior, and thus, it cost the company immensely after the vapor cloud ignited.
If we want to get even more specific on equipment, when metal detectors aren’t well cared for, contaminants pose a serious risk to the safety of consumers. In 2012, Kellogg recalled millions of cereal boxes “due to the possible presence of fragments of flexible metal mesh from a faulty manufacturing part.” In January 2015, Unibright Foods recalled tens of thousands of pounds of prepared meat products because of “extraneous metal materials.” In August of 2023, Trader Joe’s recalled their multigrain sunflower and flax seeds crackers because they may have contained metal.
Having a repair partner on hand is crucial to ensure that if something goes wrong, you have a backup. At Industrial Repair Service, we strive to eliminate all the tediousness of preventative and proactive maintenance repairs, making shipment and pick-up more straightforward. Our techs possess a deep understanding of complex machinery and electrical systems, enabling them to diagnose problems quickly and accurately. Their role is to keep your equipment healthy and prevent horrors like these from happening.
Once you notice symptoms, don’t take the risk. Avoid the nightmares and call us today!