Let’s start with something that happens in almost every beverage plant: A machine goes down ... someone fixes it ... production starts up again. Everyone breathes a sigh of relief.

And then – maybe next week, maybe next month – the exact same thing happens again.

At that point, you’re going, “Didn’t we already fix this?” And you’d be right. Now, the real problem isn’t that the issue wasn’t fixed properly; it’s that what happened wasn’t tracked in a way that anyone could learn from later.

So let’s slow down and talk about how beverage plants actually track maintenance activities – not in theory, but in the real world where machines, people and time pressure collide.

What does “tracking maintenance” really mean?

Tracking maintenance doesn’t mean having a record somewhere. It means that, when needed, you can calmly and confidently answer questions like:

• What went wrong?
• Which machine or line was involved?
• When did it happen?
• Who worked on it?
• What parts were used?
• Was this a temporary patch or a long-term fix?
• Has this issue shown up before?

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If those answers require digging through emails, WhatsApp messages, spreadsheets … or someone’s memory, then maintenance isn’t really being tracked. It’s just being survived.

Why this matters more in beverage plants than most industries

Beverage plants are a special kind of pressure cooker. You’re dealing with:

• High-speed production lines
• Tight margins
• Food safety and sanitation requirements
• Downtime that becomes expensive very quickly

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On top of that, maintenance work doesn’t always happen neatly during planned windows. It happens:

• during shift changes
• between production runs
• while everyone’s trying to get the line moving again

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That’s why maintenance tracking tends to break down – not because people are careless, but because everything feels urgent. And urgency is not great for documentation.

The problem with spreadsheets, whiteboards, and “we’ll remember”

Most plants start with:

• a spreadsheet that “works for now”
• a whiteboard near the line
• a shared folder
• a group chat

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And for a while, that’s fine. But over time:

• people log things differently
• updates get skipped
• files get duplicated
• context gets lost when someone leaves

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Then one day, an auditor asks for maintenance history … or a recurring issue keeps coming back … or no one can explain why a machine behaves the way it does.

That’s usually when plants realize: “We’ve been fixing things. We just haven’t been learning from them.”

So how do beverage plants track maintenance when it’s done well?

The plants that do this well don’t rely on memory. They rely on systems that make tracking almost unavoidable. Let’s walk through those systems slowly.

1. CMMS: where maintenance lives (not just happens)

Most beverage plants use a CMMS (Computerized Maintenance Management System).

In simple terms, it’s software that keeps all maintenance activity in one place.

Not just breakdowns. Not just schedules. EVERYTHING.

What does a CMMS actually track?

• Work requests – Someone notices a problem and logs it. 
• Work orders – The formal task created to fix that problem. This includes:
  
  1. which machine
  2. what needs to be done
  3. how urgent it is
  4. who’s responsible
• Preventive maintenance (PM) – Scheduled tasks meant to catch issues early – before they turn into downtime.
• Asset history – Every machine gets a full record of what’s been done to it over time.
• Parts usage – Which spare parts were used, how often, and where shortages are starting to form.

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The big difference here is subtle but powerful: nothing disappears once the shift ends.

2. Downtime tracking: where patterns start to show

Many beverage plants also track downtime using OEE systems. OEE stands for Overall Equipment Effectiveness – it’s a way to understand how available, fast and reliable your equipment really is.

Downtime tracking helps answer questions like:

• How often does this machine stop?
• How long does it stay down?
• Why does it stop?

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The key is standard downtime reason codes.

Instead of freestyle explanations like “Machine issue”, you get consistent categories like:

• Conveyor jam
• Sensor fault
• Mechanical adjustment
• Air pressure drop

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Over time, this turns random stops into recognizable patterns – and those patterns point directly to maintenance priorities.

3. Preventive maintenance records: the quiet heroes

Preventive maintenance (PM) doesn’t get much attention when things are running smoothly. But it’s one of the most valuable things you can track.

Good PM records show:

• what was inspected
• what was adjusted
• what was starting to wear
• what still looked fine

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This matters because machines almost never fail suddenly. They give small warnings first. Tracking PM work helps teams spot those warnings early – before production feels them.

4. Sanitation and CIP records: where maintenance and food safety meet

In beverage plants, maintenance doesn’t exist in isolation.

CIP, or Clean-In-Place, systems clean equipment internally using controlled cycles of water and chemicals.

CIP tracking usually includes:

• cycle completion
• temperatures reached
• chemical concentrations
• flow rates
• verification steps

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These records matter because:

• sanitation issues can look like mechanical problems
• mechanical wear can cause sanitation failures
• audits care deeply about both

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Plants that track sanitation and maintenance together avoid a lot of confusion later.

What actually gets written down (and why it matters)

This is where tracking either becomes powerful – or useless. A useful maintenance record includes:

• which asset was involved
• what the actual issue was
• what action was taken
• what parts were used
• how long the work took
• proof the job was completed properly

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Without this detail, maintenance history becomes vague storytelling.

With it, it becomes a tool teams can actually use.

What a realistic workflow looks like

Here’s what good tracking usually looks like in practice:

1. An issue is noticed
2. It’s logged right away
3. A work order is created
4. The job is done with notes and proof
5. The record is closed thoughtfully
6. Repeat issues lead to better prevention

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Nothing fancy. Just consistent.

Where things usually go wrong

For most plants, maintenance tracking failures don’t happen overnight. They slowly drift into habits like:

• tracking breakdowns but skipping PM records
• closing work orders without details
• letting everyone describe problems differently
• losing context when people move on

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None of this feels serious in the moment. It only becomes serious when the same problems keep coming back.

How CMMS helps with maintenance tracking

Maintenance tracking can be tricky, especially when a plant has multiple machines, different lines, and people working across shifts. It gets even harder when those machines are spread across different sites, each with its own quirks, habits, and “this is how we’ve always done it” moments.

That’s why many beverage plants eventually turn to CMMS platforms. Tools like FieldEx helps teams:

• keep all work orders and preventive maintenance tasks in one place
• preserve equipment history so nothing gets lost between shifts or sites
• connect downtime events to actual maintenance work
• track spare parts, checklists, photos, and proof that the job was done
  
  

Curious to see how FieldEx helps beverage plants track maintenance without the chaos – no spreadsheets, no guessing, no lost history? Book a free demo, or get in touch. We’d love to walk you through it and show you how it works in the real world.

Final thoughts

Maintenance tracking isn’t about creating more work. It’s about making sure:

• fixes stick
• machines last longer
• downtime makes sense
• and teams don’t have to guess anymore

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When tracking is done well, maintenance stops feeling reactive – and starts feeling calm. And honestly, calm is underrated.