How Caterpillar Approaches Heavy Equipment Repair

Repairing heavy equipment? Here’s what you can expect when your local Cat® dealer does the work — plus a look at the options available to perform common repair and maintenance tasks yourself.

Estimated read time: 4 minutes

THE PRIORITY: HEAVY EQUIPMENT REPAIR BEFORE FAILURE

Your Cat dealer’s top priority is performing component repairs before failure. Why? Because repairs after failure are expensive. They don’t just cost more to complete, they can also result in costly downtime — eating into your productivity and profits.

Taking care of lower-level repairs on time and repairing before failure can save you a lot of money. Look at the examples in the video below. It provides a cost analysis of various before-failure and after-failure repair services.

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three levels of repair parts

The experts at your Cat dealer understand the varying levels of wear within your Cat equipment’s engine, drive train and hydraulic systems. And they know how to take advantage of the reusability built into Cat parts — which helps lower repair costs and downtime.

Level 1 parts: Bearings, seals, gaskets and thrust washers are designed to wear and protect other components. Your dealer replaces them before failure — typically during every major component rebuild or rebearing/reseal — to help maximize the life of Level 2 parts. Level 1 parts are readily available and low cost.
Level 2 parts: Plates, discs, gears and shafts are slower wearing and designed for reusability. You don’t need to swap them out as frequently. Your dealer generally replaces them during before-failure rebuilds. Level 2 parts are readily available, but cost more than Level 1 parts.
Level 3 parts: Cases, housings, carriers, hubs and main shafts are designed to last as long as your equipment. If you schedule Level 1 and Level 2 repairs, you shouldn’t need to replace them. Level 3 parts aren’t as readily available as Level 1 and Level 2 parts and cost significantly more.

MULTIPLE OPTIONS FOR REPAIRING HEAVY EQUIPMENT

Here’s something else you can expect when you work with your Cat dealer: multiple repair options. There’s rarely a single solution to a machine problem, and the best choice depends on your priorities. How long do you plan to own the machine? How much do you use it? What’s your budget and turnaround time? Would you benefit more from repairing, rebuilding or replacing equipment?

Based on your answers to these questions, your dealer will recommend repair services tailored to your situation. Want to get a head start on identifying your options? Use our online repair selector.

FLEXIBLE DIY REPAIR OPTIONS

There’s another heavy equipment repair alternative available through your Cat dealer: Cat Self-Service Options. Available for many common types of repair and maintenance, these do-it-yourself kits include everything you need for the job in one convenient package:

Genuine Cat parts, backed by the standard Caterpillar warranty
Service instructions, including safety and cleanliness guidelines
List of recommended tooling with the option to purchase
Technical support from dealer technicians

This chart shows the Self-Service Options available for various machine models. Kits are easy to order on Parts.Cat.Com (you just need to know your equipment serial number). You can have them delivered to the jobsite or to your dealer for pickup.

READY TO TAKE THE NEXT STEP?

Do you have more questions about what to expect when repairing heavy equipment? Are you ready to schedule repair and maintenance? Now’s the time to start the conversation with your local Cat dealer.

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