One of the most basic—and most important—safety tasks is to conduct a thorough walk around inspection of your machine before you start your work. Your Caterpillar® Operation & Maintenance Manual is your best resource on how to conduct a proper walk around inspection for your machine.
Daily Walk Around Inspections
Machine operators should always conduct a thorough walk around inspection before beginning work. Educate equipment operators to pay close attention to the following:
• Loose belts
• Trash buildup
• Oil or coolant leaks
• Broken or worn parts
Practice Regular Maintenance to Ensure Peak Performance, Less Downtime
Manufacturing tolerances are much tighter today than ever before. Performing simple maintenance regularly saves downtime and repair costs in the long run. In fact, taking just 15 minutes each day to handle basic inspections and maintenance may save up to three days of neglect-based downtime down the road.
Practice Regular Maintenance Checkups
From improved productivity to safer operating conditions, there are countless reasons regular maintenance makes good sense for owned and rented equipment. Follow these guidelines and get on the track towards machine health!
Make sure your machine operators are aware of all daily checkpoints. Check off these basic maintenance points for compact equipment before beginning your work.
After 10 service hours or at the end of the day, be sure to check:
• Grease points (proper greasing ensures linkages remain tight)
• Hydraulic oil level
• Engine oil
• Fuel system water separator (drain off water)
• Radiator coolant level (low coolant can cause overheating and reduce engine life)
• Reservoir coolant level
• Engine air filter service indicator (A plugged air filter can starve the engine for air, which reduces fuel efficiency and causes the engine to work harder)
After 250 service hours or after one month of use:
• Add cooling system coolant additive
• Inspect v-belts
After 500 service hours or after 3 months:
• Change engine oil
• Replace fuel system water separator element
• Change engine oil filter
• Change hydraulic oil filter (hydraulic oil contamination is one of the largest causes of hydraulic component wear and possible failure)
• Change diesel fuel filter
After 1,000 service hours or once per year:
• Change drive chain case oil (dirty oil causes increased wear on both the chain and sprocket)
• Change hydraulic oil
After 3,000 service hours or every two years:
• Add extender to the extended-life coolant
• After 6,000 service hours or four years: Change extended-life coolant
Every Point, Every Day
Overlooking just a couple of these points can lead to lost production and profitability. Always follow manufacturer’s guidelines provided in your equipment manual.