Click here to read Part 1: The Identification of Work.

Click here to read Part 2: Prioritization

Click here to read Part 3: Long Range Scheduling

Click here to read Part 4: Look Ahead Scheduling

Click here to read Part 5: Materials Management

Just so we’re clear, when I discuss Preventive Maintenance, I want to make sure that you don’t think that I’m talking about some high tech approach to solving all of your reliability problems.  I want to discuss PM within the context of Stage 1, or “Core Maintenance” competencies.

All too often, Companies and alas, managers want to go right to the pinnacle of reliability technology.  They go out and beg borrow or steal predictive technologies, condition monitoring, RCFA (Root Cause Failure Analysis) RCM (Reliability Centered Maintenance) and any other myriad or Stage 3 and 4 techniques.  In fact, you probably already know about these tools and, if you don’t already own them, have been casting an eye at them sort of the same way I look at the Sharper Image Catalog around Christmas.

These initiatives are all well and good, but remember, they will generate new tasks for your maintenance staff.  If you’re well under control and planning and executing work in accordance with long-range and weekly schedules, then you may be ready for the “big time.”

I once remember visiting a client at a large generating facility.  They had a crew of people (4 of them) who’s only mission in life was to conduct vibration, oil and thermal analysis of rotating equipment and switchgear.  One day I sat down and talked with the lead.  He told me all the great things they were doing and finding out.  When I asked him what they were doing with the results, he sadly stated that “very little” was being done.  No one had the time or resources to act on his findings.  After all, the equipment wasn’t broken yet!  I concluded my visit by asking the manager why he didn’t reassign those 4 valuable resources, since no one did anything with their input, why waste everyone’s time?  A perfectly logical question, from my point of view.

At another plant, I was told that they (the maintenance organization) were fully involved in an oil analysis program with one of their suppliers.  Samples were dutifully taken for analysis, sent to the supplier and then analyzed.  The results were then sent back to the site and filed by the Maintenance Clerk, never to see the light of day again.  With nothing better to do, I asked to look at these files.  After a few hours of review, I noticed the iron content was getting higher and higher in one of the ball mills.  Hmmmmm, what could this be indicating.  Over lunch, I mentioned my observation to the Maintenance superintendent.  Lo and behold the offending mill was scheduled for a major inspection the next week.  Results, a damaged gearbox that was getting ready to fail catastrophically.

What does all of this prove?  Well, to me, it points out that in order to make the finer points of PM work, you’ve got to be in touch with the Stage 1 basics.  When you are comfortable with planning, scheduling and executing that schedule, it makes it possible to add new activities to your list, without interrupting schedule.  Most condition monitoring and predictive activities identify degradations in equipment of systems, prior to failure.  Therefore, there is ample time to plan, schedule and execute, prior to failure.  That’s why we do it.

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Click here for more Maintenance Management Resources and Links