According to a report published by Sensete titled “The True Cost of Downtime,” Fortune Global 500 manufacturing and industrial firms incur nearly $1 trillion in losses each year due to unplanned downtime. The estimated annual loss of production time resulting from machine failures is around 3.3 million hours. The economic impact of unplanned downtime amounts to $864 billion or 8% of annual revenues.

Based on the significant data provided above, unplanned downtime has a critical impact on a company’s efficiency and bottom line. To mitigate this issue, there are several ways companies can reduce unplanned downtime.

One approach is through predictive maintenance, which includes routine inspections and walkthroughs. Traditionally, predictive maintenance involved bringing a subject matter expert on-site. However, this approach limited the number of inspections and walkthroughs that could be conducted. With the introduction of Remote Assist, experts can now remotely navigate the site without physically being present. This increased capacity allows experts to conduct more inspections and still visit locations on-site when necessary.

Ensuring that all employees are properly trained is another effective way to minimize unplanned downtime. Though it may sound simple, inadequate training can lead to a cascade of unfortunate events if something goes wrong. A powerful feature of Remote Assist is its ability to facilitate virtual instructor-led training. Instructors can share their field of view and demonstrate tasks hands-free. This capability reduces the need for instructors to travel extensively for training purposes. Virtual training enables companies to efficiently train large groups of employees simultaneously. Instead of traveling to different facilities one by one, experts can now train multiple facilities at once.

Additionally, having a quick-response procedure in place for when unplanned downtime occurs is crucial. This could involve a checklist with common issues and a subject matter expert on standby to provide real-time solutions. However, several factors can complicate this solution. Many companies lack the resources to allocate an expert to each facility, and waiting for an expert to travel on-site can prolong downtime. Physical constraints such as the Covid-19 pandemic or adverse weather conditions can also prevent experts from traveling. In such cases, Remote Assist becomes an ideal solution, enabling companies to collaborate and resolve issues in real time.