The Biggest Challenges in Forklift Maintenance (And How to Overcome Them)
1. Unplanned Downtime and Reactive Maintenance
The challenge:
Unexpected breakdowns cause costly downtime for customers, disrupt schedules for field engineers, and put pressure on maintenance teams to respond fast. Relying on paper records or manual reminders often means missed service intervals and limited visibility into asset history.
How to overcome it:
Move from reactive to planned preventative maintenance using a digital platform. Service Geeni automatically schedules maintenance based on time, usage, or condition, helping you reduce unplanned downtime. Engineers have instant access to asset histories, parts usage, and previous jobs via the mobile app, so they can spot patterns and prevent issues before they occur.
2. Managing Parts and Stock Levels
The challenge:
It’s common for engineers to turn up to a job only to find they don’t have the parts they need - or that parts are scattered across multiple vans or depots. This slows down repairs, frustrates customers, and increases costs.
How to overcome it:
Asset-centric Field Service Management software provides real-time parts tracking and inventory management, showing what’s in stock, what’s been used, and what’s on order. Engineers can book out parts directly from the mobile app, ensuring accurate records and quicker job completion.
3. Keeping on Top of Safety and Compliance
The challenge:
Forklifts are subject to strict health and safety regulations. Missed LOLER inspections or incomplete service records can leave customers exposed to compliance risks - and put your reputation on the line.
How to overcome it:
Digital maintenance management makes compliance effortless. With Service Geeni, inspection reports, certificates, and service records are stored securely and linked to each asset. Automated reminders ensure no inspection is missed, and customers can easily access records when needed.
4. Coordinating Field Engineers and Job Scheduling
The challenge:
When you’re managing a team of engineers and hundreds (or even thousands) of assets, across multiple customer sites, manual scheduling becomes a nightmare. Poor communication and lack of visibility can lead to wasted travel time and missed SLAs.
How to overcome it:
Service Geeni’s AI Scheduling Agent helps you plan and assign jobs efficiently based on location, skills, and availability. Engineers receive job details instantly via the mobile app, along with customer information, asset history, and digital checklists. This keeps everyone connected and ensures smooth communication between office and field teams.
5. Customer Expectations for Transparency
The challenge:
Customers increasingly expect live updates, real-time tracking, and access to maintenance data. Providing that manually takes time - and errors can easily slip through the cracks.
How to overcome it:
Service Geeni’s customer portal enables customers to view job progress, access service reports, and download compliance documents. This not only improves customer satisfaction but also builds long-term trust and transparency.
6. Lack of Insight into Performance and Costs
The challenge:
Without clear data, it’s hard to identify which assets are the most problematic, which customers cost the most to service, or where engineers’ time is going.
How to overcome it:
With Service Geeni’s real-time reporting and dashboards, you can analyse performance across assets, engineers, and contracts. This gives you the insights needed to optimise operations, control costs, and demonstrate value to your customers.
Final Thoughts
Forklift maintenance doesn’t have to be reactive, disjointed, or stressful. With the right digital tools, maintenance companies can take full control of their service operations - improving efficiency, compliance, and customer satisfaction.
Service Geeni helps maintenance businesses streamline operations, reduce downtime, and deliver outstanding service to their customers.
Learn more about how Service Geeni can help your maintenance business thrive.
Your next read: The Ultimate Guide to Forklift Maintenance & Servicing
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