For Mining, Oil, Gas & Agricultural Industries in Western Canada
When a machine goes down in the middle of harvest or a production run, you don’t need a sales pitch. You need someone who can figure out what’s actually wrong, tell you what it’ll cost, and fix it right the first time.
That’s what we do at Custom Millwright Services. We provide industrial maintenance and repair for manufacturing plants, farms and grain handling operations, mining and oil field sites, construction outfits, and heavy equipment fleets across Saskatchewan, Alberta and Manitoba. Our work runs from scheduled preventive maintenance and plant shutdowns to breakdown repairs and custom-built parts.
This page explains what industrial maintenance covers, how plant maintenance differs from machinery repair, and how we work with you from the first phone call to the final test run.
What Industrial Maintenance Actually Covers
Industrial maintenance is the work of keeping machinery, equipment, and the systems around them running safely and reliably. That includes the mechanical side (drives, bearings, conveyors, pumps, gearboxes) and the electrical and control systems that run them.
Most industrial maintenance falls into three kinds of work.
1. Preventive Maintenance
Preventive maintenance is scheduled work done before something breaks. It includes inspections, lubrication, alignment checks, wear-part replacement, and catching small problems while they’re still small and cheap.
The payoff is simple: fewer emergency repairs, less unplanned downtime, and equipment that lasts longer. For operations that can’t afford to stop, like a processing line or a grain elevator in fall, a preventive maintenance program is usually the best money spent on equipment all year.
A lot of early warning signs never show up on a sensor. An experienced millwright hears, feels, and sees trouble coming. We wrote more about that in The Warning Signs a Trained Millwright Catches Before a Machine Ever Fails.
2. Breakdown and On-Demand Repair
Sometimes things break anyway. When they do, the job is to get you running again quickly without creating the next breakdown.
We repair a wide range of equipment, from skid steers and grain carts to production-line machinery. The key is fixing the cause, not just the symptom. A failed bearing replaced without asking why it failed is a repeat call waiting to happen.
3. Installations, Upgrades, and Custom Solutions
The third kind of maintenance work is improvement: installing new equipment, upgrading existing systems, or building something that doesn’t exist yet. That includes installing mechanical and electrical equipment, plus design, fabrication, welding, machining, and delivery of finished parts.
Industrial Plant and Facility Maintenance
Machinery maintenance focuses on individual pieces of equipment. Industrial plant maintenance looks at the whole operation: how conveyors, drives, pumps, structural supports, and electrical systems work together, and where a single weak point could stop everything downstream.
Good plant maintenance generally follows a repeatable process:
- Know what you have. Build an equipment list covering what’s critical, what’s aging, and what’s already caused problems.
- Inspect on a schedule. Regular walk-throughs catch wear, leaks, misalignment, and loose connections early.
- Plan the work. Group repairs and replacements so they can be done in planned downtime, not surprise downtime.
- Do the work right. Use the correct parts, proper tolerances, and a test run before handing equipment back.
- Follow up. Check that the fix is holding, and adjust the plan as the equipment ages.
Summer and Winter Shutdowns
Planned shutdowns are where plant maintenance pays off most. With the scope set ahead of time and parts on hand before the lines stop, a lot of work gets done in a short window. We help plan and carry out summer and winter shutdowns, so your operation restarts on schedule and without new problems.
Ongoing Maintenance Partnerships
Many of our clients work with us year-round through ongoing contracts or annual purchase orders. That arrangement works well for both sides. We learn your equipment, your people, and your priorities. You get a crew that already knows where things stand when you call.
Industrial Machinery Repair
Industrial machinery repair is often urgent, so it helps to know what a good repair looks like.
- Diagnosis before parts. We confirm the actual problem before ordering or replacing anything. That’s why we ask for part numbers, equipment details, and a photo if you have one.
- Repair on-site or in the shop. Some jobs are best done where the equipment sits. Others need machining or fabrication work in our shop.
- When the part doesn’t exist. Older equipment and modified systems often need parts that are discontinued or never came off a shelf. Our in-house metal machining and metal cutting and design mean we can make what you need. We explain why that’s often the right first call, not a last resort, in When Off-the-Shelf Parts Won’t Cut It.
- Tested before handover. Every repair gets a test run so you know it runs right before we leave.
For moves or installs involving heavy components, rigging is its own discipline. Our rigging safety basics article covers what plant managers should know.
Industries We Serve
| Industry | Typical Work |
|---|---|
| Manufacturing | Production line maintenance, repairs, custom parts, equipment installation |
| Agriculture | Larger farms, grain elevators, and ag businesses: equipment repair, seasonal readiness, custom solutions |
| Industrial sites | Preventive maintenance, repairs, fabrication, mechanical and electrical installation |
| Mining | Equipment and facility maintenance, repair, and installation, with a focus on safety and minimal disruption |
| Oil and gas | Oilfield equipment support, from emergency repairs to preventive maintenance and fabrication |
| Automotive & heavy equipment | Repairs, maintenance, and custom fabrication for vehicles and heavy machinery |
| Construction | Equipment maintenance, repairs, and custom-built solutions that keep projects on schedule |
How We Work
We keep the process simple.
- Just ask us. Give us a call, pick our brain, or tell us what you need, whether it’s a new part, a repair, or maintenance.
- We’ll take a look together. Have part numbers, equipment details, and a picture ready if you can. We’ll double-check everything to make sure we’re fixing the right problem and getting you the right part.
- We’ll tell you the cost. Before we start, especially on custom or prototype jobs, you’ll know what it’ll cost based on what the job needs.
- We’ll get to work. Once you give us the green light, we’ll build the part, fix what’s broken, or handle your maintenance.
- We’ll make sure it’s good to go. After we install, repair, or maintain, we test everything so you know it runs right.
We also check in after the job to make sure the fix is still holding up.
Safety and Site Access
Many industrial and resource-sector sites require contractors to be prequalified before they set foot on site. Custom Millwright Services is a member contractor with both ISNetworld and Avetta, so the paperwork side of getting us onto your site is already handled.
Why Operations Choose Custom Millwright Services
We started as Custom Industrial Services with a single client. In 2015 we became Custom Millwright Services, expanded our services, and have grown steadily since. Most of that growth has come from referrals, from clients telling others how we showed up when no one else could.
What that looks like day to day:
- Straight answers. We tell you what’s wrong, what it’ll take, and what it’ll cost.
- Practical fixes. We work toward the solution that fixes the problem and keeps it fixed.
- A tight-knit crew. Our team works together well, and that shows in the quality of the work.
- Long-term thinking. We’d rather be your maintenance partner for years than your emergency call once.
FAQ's
Industrial maintenance is the inspection, servicing, repair, and upgrading of industrial machinery and the systems that support it. The goal is keeping equipment safe, reliable, and productive while keeping unplanned downtime to a minimum. It includes preventive maintenance, breakdown repair, and installations or improvements.
Machinery maintenance focuses on individual pieces of equipment. Plant maintenance takes in the whole facility: how equipment, conveyors, structures, and electrical systems work together. It plans maintenance around keeping the entire operation running.
If downtime is expensive for your operation, preventive maintenance almost always costs less than the breakdowns it prevents. Most clients end up with a mix: a preventive program for critical equipment and on-demand repair for everything else. We can help you decide which equipment belongs in which group.
Part numbers, equipment make and model, a description of what's happening, and a photo if you can take one. That helps us confirm the problem and get the right part the first time.
Yes. We work with larger farms, grain elevators, and agricultural businesses on everything from grain carts and skid steers to handling systems. We know how important it is to be ready before seeding and harvest.
That's where our machining and fabrication shop comes in. We can design and build replacement parts for older or modified equipment when nothing off the shelf fits.
Yes. We plan and carry out summer and winter shutdowns, working with you ahead of time on scope and parts so the work fits the window.
Problem Solved.
If you’ve got a problem, we’ve got a solution. Call us at (306) 253-3390 or send us a message. Let’s talk it through.
