Meat processors share strategies for maintenance success

One day prior to the 2026 Wisconsin Association of Meat Processors’ Convention, The University of Wisconsin-Madison hosted a pre-convention workshop, “Developing an Effective Maintenance Program Leading to Better Business” at its Meat Science & Animal Biologics Discovery Building.

Providing an opening overview of the vital role of maintenance in meat plants was Greg Marconnet, vice president of food and beverage with Mead & Hunt, a Middleton, Wis.-based architectural and engineering firm. Marconnet previously worked at Oscar Mayer in Wisconsin and spent 35 years with Kraft Foods (now known as Kraft Heinz Co.) focusing on maintenance, equipment design, procurement and sanitary design.

Based on spending decades of his career working on plant floors, he said the best definition for maintenance is “a disciplined system for preserving a facility and equipment.”

Marconnet said maintenance programs designed for meat and poultry processing plants require a unique approach.

“It’s not like taking care of maintenance in an office building,” he said. “It’s much different than that, and we really need to think through some of those challenges.”

He said effective maintenance programs produce multiple benefits, including maximizing uptime and productivity as well as ensuring the equipment in the plant operates safely for the operators and the technicians responsible for working on it. Perhaps the two most important benefits are food safety and food quality.

“We know if we have equipment that operates properly, it’s going to make the best product for our customers and our consumers,” Marconnet said.