The preventive maintenance gathers all the scheduled actions to avoid fails and keep the good performance of the agricultural machines. It’s based on the usage time, operating hours, or manufacturer recommendations, always focusing in safety and availability.
Unlike the corrective maintenance, which is carried out after the equipment failure or predictive maintenance that uses sensors and data to foreseen adjustments, the preventive maintenance anticipates issues with inspections, lubrication, and usual repairs.
In practice, it results in less equipment stops, lower repair costs, more safety, and a longer lifespan for the pieces of equipment. See below how to apply this routine in the crop field — and why counting on technical support makes all the difference.
Advantages to have the preventive maintenance carried out on agricultural pieces of equipment
A planned maintenance plan on the agricultural pieces of equipment provides solid results to those who depend on agricultural machines in all production steps.
If the machine maintenance is updated, it’s possible to keep the pieces of equipment available more often, avoid stops in critical times, and gain in resource usage efficiency.
Among the main gains, there are:
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Less operating costs in the crop field
When preventing major mechanical failures, you reduce the need to replace spare parts urgently, unexpected travelling for technical assistance, and you don’t take the risk to miss important planting and harvester windows. The farmer can control the costs and avoid undesired operation surprises.
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Input and fuel usage efficiency
Adjusted agricultural machines and in good conditions for operations in the field use less and deliver more. The proper calibration of spreaders, sprayers, and planters, for instance, avoids waste and improves the agronomic performance.
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Safety for agricultural machines operators
Frequent inspections help to identify wear and issues in critical systems such as brakes, tyres, and mobile devices. It reduces the risk of accidents and avoids major damages to the machine components.
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Harvest planning reliability
A piece of equipment that operates predictably allows the farmer to follow the agricultural calendar more calmly, respecting deadlines and making better use of weather conditions.
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Value and durability of the agricultural machinery
The good conditions keep the asset value in the market, eases an eventual further change and reduces the need to renew the fleet so soon.
See more: Five reasons for preventive maintenance
Points to be alerted when adopting a maintenance routine and inspections
Although there are advantages, this practice also demands care and adjustment in the farm routine. For this reason, be alert to certain aspects:
- Control of the organization and discipline: a successful preventive maintenance depends of records, schedules, and technical follow-up. Without any control, the actions are not effective. To make it easier, Stara provides the Stara Maintenance Program, in which the dealer lets the operator know the right time for maintenance. Up to 70 components are checked and replacements are done only when necessary.
- Initial investment: there are costs with parts, tools, and training for operators. But this investment tends to be compensated at a medium term by the reduction of failures and unexpected stops.
- Adjustment of machine usage: when the equipment is not frequently used or operated now and then, the fixed schedule may cause unnecessary maintenance needs. For this reason, the ideal is to meet the plans according to each machine usage reality.
The proper technical assistance is part of an efficient and preventive maintenance, which ensures more autonomy and profitability in the field.
Types of maintenance on agricultural machines
The preventive maintenance can be applied to different ways, depending on the agricultural machine type, the usage frequency, and the management strategy of the farmer.
Being familiar with these variations helps the farmer to plan and efficient and aligned plan to the farm reality.
See the main advantages:
- Time based
It’s carried out in fixed intervals such as days, weeks, or months. Quite common in equipment with continuous use, this approach follows schedules defined by the manufacturers or by technical assistance. - Based on usage (engine hours)
In this model, maintenance services are performed based on the number of hours the equipment has been in operation. It is ideal for machines that have varying usage throughout the year, such as planters or sprayers. - Based on the condition
It considers the actual condition of the machine, observing signs of wear, noise, overheating, or abnormal performance. It can be applied through regular visual inspections or with the support of sensors and embedded systems.
Each of these approaches has its own function and can be combined according to the operation.
The important thing is to adapt the type of maintenance to the field conditions, ensuring a good balance between cost, performance, and equipment availability.
Here's a step-by-step guide for performing preventive maintenance on agricultural equipment:
For preventive maintenance to truly be effective, it's essential to follow best practice throughout the entire harvest season.
Organization, planning, and engagement in a team are crucial to ensure that every agricultural machine is always ready for operations. See below, an easy step-by-step to apply this routine on the farm daily basis:
1. Map the farm pieces of equipment
Start listing all the machines and implements being used. Include information such as machine model, manufacturer, manufacturing year, operation hours, and a record of the maintenance done.
2. Refer to the manufacturer’s operator’s manual
The operator’s manuals provide important technical information such as the recommended intervals of maintenance, lubrication, torque of bolts, and replacement of components. It avoids unexpected step-backs and ensures that the standard preventive cautions are correct.
3. Set the frequency of the maintenance services
Based on the machine type and usage frequency, establish the ideal periodicity for each inspection: daily, weekly, monthly, or according to operating hours. A simple worksheet or application can you control it.
4. Plan the tasks for each equipment
Create specific check-lists for each machine type, with the items that need to be checked or adjusted. It eases the routine execution task, avoid step-backs and ensures a uniform process.
5. Provide the agricultural machine operator with training
The operators should be prepared to identify symptoms of wear, unusual noises, and performance changes. Basic training makes the difference and avoid further issues.
6. Log all the maintenance performed
Keep a record with dates, replaced parts, adjustments carried out, and the people responsible for each inspection. This information helps to identify patterns, avoid replacement and make more precise decisions.
Once this process is set, the farmer gains more control over the fleet, reduce setbacks and organizes better the time and farm resources.
Agricultural technologies applied to preventive maintenance
The agricultural technology evolution has transformed how we take care of our machines. Today, the preventive maintenance goes beyond mechanical routines and counts with on-board technology smart sensors, connectivity, and real time data analysis.
Thanks to technologies such as telemetry, remote monitoring, and software management, you can:
- Follow the equipment performance in real time;
- Identify the correct usage and worn-out more precisely;
- Anticipate the need for adjustments and replacements;
- Reduce the stopped machine time with more agile decisions;
According to Flávio Guadagnin, manager of the Department of the Stara Dealerhisp Network Development, solutions such as Conecta “are technologies that allow you to understand remotely possible technical issues, needs, and adjustments,” says the manager.
In practice, these technologies make the maintenance much more assertive, reduce costs with unexpected repairs and increase the operating reliability during the agricultural calendar.
Additionally, the strategic usage of these tools depends on an essential factor: the technical assistance. This is where Stara plays differently.
Technical assistance with the factory DNA
Stara provides the farmers with a set of solutions that elevate the preventive maintenance field:
Stara Maintenance Program: a structured service for inspections and replacements that are planned, based on the specific needs for each machine.
Custom service packages according to the machine model: calibration, adjustments, and updates according to the technical recommendations of the factory.
The professionals are trained in the factory: the Stara Dealer teams are provided with constant training, following the evolution of the on-board systems and the brand technologies.
Genuine spare parts: using authorized components ensures durability, performance, and the factory warranty, as explains Flávio Guadagnin:
"Every machine during its daily usage needs specific demands according to the field operations. The Stara Dealers are prepared with spare parts and structure to meet the farmer’s need directly and efficiently. Additionally, our teams follow actively, letting the customer know about the periodic recommended maintenance services, ensuring that the pieces of equipment always keep the best performance."
This combination between on-board technology and an expert after-sales allows the farmer not to have any concerns daily and take advantage of the potential of their machines — safely, with yield and availability ensured.
Conclusion
The preventive maintenance is more than best practice — it’s a management strategy that protects the investment in agricultural machines and ensures the production process.
When planned and with technical support, it reduces costs, avoid failures, improves the performance of the pieces of equipment and ensures more safety to those who operate in the field.
Thanks to the on-board technologies, set check-lists and the follow-up by expert professionals, the maintenance becomes an easy, predictable, and efficient process.
Did you like the suggestions and want to learn more about agricultural preventive maintenance on machines?
Stop by a Stara Dealer and find the most suitable equipment to boost your crop production.
