Automation Maintenance: Keeping Production Lines Humming While Preserving Assets Manufacturers are focusing on optimizing and streamlining processes in order to reduce the overall cost of production. At the same time, preservation of existing production equipment is essential. In an economic climate where capital equipment expenditures have been substantially curtailed, good maintenance practices are more important than ever. Companies across different industrial verticals have unique processes and subsequently unique issues with maintenance of factory systems. However, a set of common issues has emerged that are familiar to maintenance operations whether the product is automobiles, planes, consumer products, or food & beverage.