How to reduce the risk of maintenance downtime
12 May 2026
Maintenance stops are necessary for an industrial site, but they also pose significant risks to health, safety and the environment. Planning and completing a shutdown in a safe and sustainable way is therefore critical to avoid accidents, production losses and environmental damage. Here are some of the most important factors to consider before your maintenance shutdown.
Risk assessment before
Before you start the actual maintenance, the risk assessment is essential to identify potential hazards and prioritise actions.
- Identify hazards: Complete a systematic risk assessment to identify all potential risks.
- Prioritise actions: Classify the risks by probability and severity, and focus resources on the most critical ones.
- Update documentation: Ensure that instructions and routines are updated based on the risk assessment.
Clear planning and communication
A clear plan and open communication reduces misunderstandings and ensures that everyone knows what is expected.
- Project planning: Create a detailed schedule with milestones, responsibles and resources for each step of the stop.
- For information: Inform all affected personnel - operators, maintenance personnel, external contractors - in good time.
- Use different ways of communicating, such as visual signs, meeting minutes and digital platforms to ensure that everyone is aware of what applies.
Skills and training
The right knowledge and preparation reduces mistakes and increases safety.
- Permissions: Make sure that everyone working during the stop has the right competence and is certified for the specific tasks (e.g. working at height, electrical work).
- Exercise: Complete short, practical exercises in the vicinity of the workplace - e.g. emergency stops, fire drills and evacuation procedures.
Protective equipment and technical solutions
Proper protective equipment and smart technical aids reduce exposure to hazards.
- Personal protective equipment Provide proper protective clothing, respiratory protection, hearing protection and fall protection. Check that the equipment is in good condition and is used correctly.
- Automation and remote control: When possible, use remote systems to minimise personal presence in hazardous areas.
- Air and noise monitoring: Monitor air quality and noise levels, enabling immediate action in the event of deviations.
Follow-up and learning
Continuous follow-up and knowledge sharing are the creators of improvements for future stops.
- Review meetings: Conduct daily reviews during the outage to follow up on the status, identify new risks and adjust the plan if necessary.
- Incident reporting: Document all deviations, near-accidents and accidents; analyse them to improve future stoppages.
- Report back: After restart, summarise lessons learned, statistical data (e.g. number of hours stopped, number of incidents) and recommendations for next stop. This will be a good basis for the next stop.
Ready?
A well-planned maintenance outage is more than just a technical project, it’s a holistic approach to protecting coworkers and contractors, the environment, and keeping business continuity safe. By handling risk, ensuring the right competence, using modern technology and having clear communication channels, you can minimise risk and maximise efficiency.
Good luck!