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GlossaryMaintenance

What is MTBF?

MTBF stands for Mean Time Between Failures. Also known as: mean time between failures, reliability metric.

Definition

MTBF (mean time between failures) is the average operating time between failures of a repairable asset: total operating time ÷ number of failures.

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MTBF measures reliability. For a repairable asset (or a group of identical ones) over a period:

Formula
MTBF = total operating time ÷ number of failures
Worked example
A packaging machine ran 900 hours last quarter and failed 3 times.
MTBF = 900 ÷ 3 = 300 hours.

Why it matters

A rising MTBF means maintenance is working; a falling one is an early warning. It helps set PM intervals and compare models or suppliers. Combined with MTTR, it gives inherent availability: MTBF ÷ (MTBF + MTTR). With MTBF 300 h and MTTR 3 h, availability = 300 ÷ 303 ≈ 99.0%.

Cautions

  • Use operating time, not calendar time, and define "failure" consistently.
  • Small numbers of failures make MTBF volatile — look at trends over time.
  • For non-repairable items, the related measure is MTTF (mean time to failure).
In practice

Want to understand this in practice?

GuideHow to build a preventive maintenance programChoosing assets, setting intervals, writing task lists and measuring whether PM is working.Read the guide →
Related features
MaintenanceReports & exports
Related terms
MTTRMTTR (mean time to repair) is the average time to restore an asset after a failure: total repair time ÷ number of repairs.DowntimeDowntime is time an asset is unavailable for use — planned (maintenance) or unplanned (breakdowns) — and is a key measure of maintenance performance.Preventive maintenancePreventive maintenance (PM) is planned service done at set time or usage intervals to reduce the chance of failure, rather than waiting for a breakdown.Work orderA work order is a record authorizing and tracking a maintenance job on an asset — what to do, who does it, when, and what it cost.
From definition to done

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