How to Avoid Equipment Malfunctions at the Construction Site
Oded Ran, CEO and Co-Founder of Clue since 2019, expertly integrates AI and data tools to revolutionize construction equipment management and maintenance, positioning Clue as a premier software choice in the construction industry.
Construction sites are always prone to malfunctions and breakdowns that can cause unaccounted downtime and multiple losses.
Ensuring regular lubrication, oil changes, maintaining fluid levels, and investing in staff training while factoring in the impact of weather conditions on equipment wear and
tear are all critical steps in a preventative maintenance strategy.
However, when these measures are overlooked, equipment failures become inevitable, leading to costly delays and inefficiencies.
To address these challenges, Clue offers contractors a smarter way to manage equipment management, maintenance and tracking to reduce the risk of breakdowns.
By using real-time monitoring and diagnostics, Clue helps to identify potential issues early, ensuring that equipment remains operational and downtime is minimized.
These tools enable smoother operations and contribute to better project outcomes.
Failing to address these risks can result in heavy losses, customer dissatisfaction, damage to reputation, and wasted time and effort.
Let’s explore some common equipment malfunctions at construction sites and how they can be prevented effectively.
What are Equipment Malfunctions at a Construction Site?
There can be various malfunctions in a working machinery system at a construction site and these are mainly due to problems with the hydraulic lines, brakes,
compressors, cables, bolts, and other defective tools like broken saws, nail guns, pumps, etc.
Such defects can not only cause a particular system to break down but also pose a threat or risk to the workers using them.
What Causes These Malfunctions?
1. Defects in Equipment
A range of mechanical, electrical, and thermal defects can be found in heavy equipment. Imbalances, misalignments with moving parts, circuit overload, power
breakdowns, and open wiring can become more of a reason for a piece of equipment to stop working.
Moreover, changes in temperature can either freeze the fluids to move from one part to another or cause overheating in the opposite circumstances.
2. Lack of Trained Professionals
Even though there are about 733,000 employers in the U.S. construction industry which makes up about 2.9% of the total workforce, 88% of the contractors admit to
having difficulty in finding skilled workers.
However, it is still important for business owners to execute proper training programs for their employees before allowing them to handle heavy equipment and machinery.
3. Lack of Repairs /Maintenance
Oftentimes repairs and maintenance are put off until an erratic failure occurs which causes more downtime losses and larger costs than routine preventive maintenance.
As mentioned earlier, not checking for oil changes, proper fluid checks, lubrication, wheel alignments, and changing specific parts when needed can decrease the longevity of your machinery and lead to unexpected breakdowns.
4. Overworking the Machinery
A machine needs cooldown periods and optimum temperatures to operate efficiently.
Sometimes machines are run for longer periods to meet tight deadlines causing the machine to overheat and take more weight load or speed limit than advised in the user manual.
5. Overlooking Signs of Malfunction
Sometimes workers and contractors overlook signs like noises of grinding, knocking, whining, excessive or irregular vibrations, and other signs like fluid leaks, excessive heating, and certain burning smells that can lead to serious damages or injuries.
What are the Types of Equipment Malfunctions at Construction Sites?
1. Heavy Machinery Failure
One of the leading causes of equipment failure is related to malfunctions in heavy machinery.
When signs of wear and tear are overlooked or routine maintenance is ignored, problems start to arise in hydraulic systems, engines, undercarriage components, and electric components. Some common heavy machinery that can be a reason for multiple losses include.
2. Excavators
Debris and dirt accumulation in the engine can cause the machine to stop working. Certain leaks, blockages, or damage from the construction site can also cause malfunctions.
3. Forklifts
If this machine is overworked or over-utilized for lifting items beyond its capacity and not given adequate repairs, it can cause a lot of problems.
Since it is used for heavy lift and transport material from one place to another it can easily get worn out and might need professional maintenance.
4. Backhoes
Difficulty starting in cold weather leaks leading to hydraulic problems, and problems with movements of the bucket and arm can lead to many difficulties.
5. Dump Tucks
Debris build-up in the radiator, leaks in the cooling system, engine overheating, brake failures, worn-out tires, and worn out brake-pads can all be quite dangerous leading to serious damages like fire and accidents.
6. Power Tool Malfunctions
Some common power tools like drill machines, saws, grinders, wrenches, etc. also need to be repaired and checked for maintenance.
These tools can have problems like worn-out motors, brushes, battery issues, and moisture problems leading to a decreased performance rate and increase in downtime.
7. Electrical Malfunctions
Electric malfunctions can prove to be very dangerous as they can electrically shock the workers or lead to major fires.
Such equipment malfunctions at the construction site are due to corrosion, weather problems, moisture in the tools, open wires or loose connections, and an overall overload.
8. Transportation Equipment or Fleet Vehicle Breakdowns
Lack of proper lubrication, not keeping checking of the hydraulic components, and underkeeping the undercarriage equipment in fleet vehicles can lead to water or oil leaks, misalignments, and decreased longevity of the equipment.
All of these factors add to the aging of the equipment that can accommodate 44% of the downtime while adding 15% for the lack of maintenance.
9. Sudden Breakdowns
If you schedule routine maintenance every 6 months or every year, you might not end up with sudden breakdowns at your hands.
Keeping check of different parts of machinery and replacing/repairing them is also necessary.
However, you can still not be sure when a machine might break down but if you use Clue software you might be able to predict if a machine is underperforming.
With Clue, you get all the information checklist, inventory, and employee status in one app.
Software that shows you the number of hours worked by your machine, the number of hours it was idle, its performance percentage, the worker appointed on it, and any arising malfunction or upcoming replacement.
Injuries Due to Equipment Malfunctions at the Construction Site
Sadly, equipment malfunctions at the construction site make up for one in five or 20% of work-related deaths.
Out of these deaths, 60% are caused by falls, electrocutions, or being struck by the equipment.
You can imagine how much downtime a contractor would have faced when in 2023, the construction sector reported 4,050 non-fatal injuries and 51 fatal accidents, the
highest among all industries. However, surveys suggest the real number of injuries may be as high as 47,000 annually.
Of these, around 22,000 led to over three days of absence, while 16,000 caused workers to be out for more than a week.
These figures highlight the ongoing safety challenges in the construction industry, with many incidents potentially going unreported.
Other injuries like burns, cuts, lacerations, eye and ear injuries, nerve damage, brain damage, etc. are also faced by the workers which also costs an average of $5 billion each year for compensation.
How to Avoid Construction Equipment Failure?
1. Schedule Preventive Maintenance on Time
First and foremost, make sure your maintenance schedule is on time and not ignored at any cost. You can take help from our software to get reminders on repairs, maintain a checklist, provide real-time data on the performance of machines and hold workers accountable if anything goes wrong.
Unfortunately, an estimated 51.5% of construction companies do not feel the need for a preventive maintenance program.
2. Train Your Staff Properly
Scheduling maintenance won’t do much if your staff isn’t trained properly on performing adequate repairs or looking out for signs of wear and tear.
A survey conducted amongst 500 Fortune companies concluded that 37% of the risk associated with equipment failure is due to a lack of proper training.
As a business owner, you should make it necessary for your employees to follow the Occupational Safety and Health Administration (OSHA) training protocols.
It teaches all sorts of warning signs a machinery might show and the troubleshooting methods to fix or report such issues.
3. Pay Attention to the Environmental Conditions
Heavy machinery designed for harsh weather conditions can also become affected by increasing and decreasing temperatures.
While overheating and hot temperatures can cause problems with the flow of oil and hot pump problems, lower colder temperatures can quickly drain out your battery or need more power to defrost.
Properly store your equipment, keep regular checks of all fluids, and keep your equipment in an enclosed space like a shed or warehouse.
Also make sure the equipment is clear from any debris, dirt or mud.
4. Keep Fluid Levels in Check
Lubrication is a very important factor in eliminating downtime however, 60% of the contractors do not realize this. Gear oils, hydraulic and transmission fluids, coolants should be used in accordance with the manufacturer's advice and manual provided.
Be sure to avoid mixing any other cheap oil with such fluids and keep away from contamination.
Sometimes the use of any ordinary lubricant can cause severe damage to a machine specifically designed to be run on the oil provided.
Be sure to avoid friction and corrosion by keeping the machinery clean and replacing parts regularly.
5. Note Signs of Wear and Tear on Machinery
Every machine has a life cycle, but you can increase the longevity of such equipment by keeping a check on signs of wear and tear.
Whether it is a heavy machine designed to operate in rough conditions it can still accumulate dirt, mud, and debris causing strain and losing its power over time.
Worn-out tracks, loose bolts, degraded metal components, and corrosion can lead to serious problems costing you a lot of money and time.
Get Clue to Help You Out!
Preventing equipment malfunctions at the construction site is a tough task especially if there are erratic failures but you can still be one step ahead of these problems by getting Clue!
It won’t only give you reminders on upcoming repairs and maintenance schedules but also provide real-time alerts about malfunctions in a piece of machinery.
Relieving you from the stress of keeping a check on everything manually, Clue will do all the hard work for you and save you a ton of money.
FAQs
How often should safety equipment be inspected to ensure effectiveness?
Some parts need to be replaced or repaired in allocated time periods but an overall preventative maintenance program is conducted every 6 months or annually.
How can I troubleshoot common electrical system failures at the construction site?
Look for tripped circuit breakers, blown fuses or loose wires. Verify all connections are secure and there is no burning smell or leakages. Also, be sure to check for any overloads.
How to minimize downtime?
Keep spare parts in handy, train your staff accordingly, and regularly inspect for repairs to minimize downtime.
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