The 2026 State of Maintenance Report

Based on insights from 214 maintenance and reliability professionals across manufacturing, facilities, food and beverage, fleet management, and industrial operations, the 2026 State of Maintenance Community Report reveals a critical truth: the industry knows what to do, but can't consistently execute it. While 90% recognize the value of preventive maintenance, 75% remain reactive-dominated. While 75% expect AI to drive operating margins, 71% lack the data readiness to make it work. While 64% struggle with talent attraction, 21% make zero effort to build their workforce pipeline.

This isn't a knowledge problem—it's a systems problem. Discover why "balanced" maintenance is really just reactive in disguise, why the contractor escape hatch didn't work, how the talent crisis is partly self-inflicted, and what the 25% of truly proactive organizations do differently. Learn the practical playbook top performers use to build measurement systems leadership trusts, protect planned work from production pressure, fix workflow friction that kills data quality, and operationalize AI for execution rather than insights.

In this report, you'll uncover:

• The weekly plan collapse cycle keeping 75% of teams stuck in reactive mode despite knowing better

• Why 28% don't know their own maintenance budget—and how this uncertainty undermines every ROI conversation

• The four governance shifts that separate reactive organizations from reliability leaders

• How to build AI readiness by fixing one workflow at a time instead of launching failed enterprise pilots

• Workforce development strategies that create sustainable talent pipelines while competitors scramble for the same shrinking pool

The execution gap has become the primary source of competitive advantage in physical operations. Download the full report to learn how winners are breaking out.