PREVENTIVE MAINTENANCE (PM) IS BASED ON SCHEDULED INSPECTIONS OF PLANT AND EQUIPMENT. AS MAJOR OBJECTIVE IS TO INCREASEPROFITABILITY AND MINIMIZE DOWNTIME, IT IS NECESSARY TO ESTABLISH A PM PROGRAMME BY PREPARING RECORD CARDS, BY INSPECTION AND FINALLY COMPILING THE CHECK SHEET. A PM PROGRAMME IS IMPLEMENTED BY SCHEDULING. MODERN ASPECTS OF PM HAVE DEVELOPED QUANTITATIVE TECHNIQUES, NETWORK ANALYSIS TECHNIQUES, CONDITION BASED MAINTENANCE METHODS AND MANAGEMENT TECHNIQUES. THUS, PM IS NO DOUBT ASSUMING AN UNASSAILABLE POSITION IN MAINTENANCE.