The efficiency, performance and reliability of all types of plant and equipment inevitably deteriorate as components age and are affected by wear, corrosion and fatigue processes. Whilst the rate of deterioration depends on the duty, the operating cycle and the properties of the materials being handled, the end result is often increased operating and maintenance expenditure and reduced capacity. Repair or refurbishment is often the quickest and most cost effective way to return equipment to service. If necessary, components can be re-built or manufactured avoiding the need to accept protracted delivery times for new equipment and spare parts. Refurbishing existing equipment also avoids the need to incur any additional costs and delays that might arise from the need to modify associated plant to accept new equipment. As part of the refurbishment process it is often possible to improve the life and performance of the original equipment. These improvements may come from tightly controlling repair procedures or through improvements to the design and manufacture of specific components. However, to justify the investment and produce significant and sustainable reductions in operating costs there has to be a clear understanding of how maintenance and repair activities affect asset condition and business performance.
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