Work Performance Tools focus on the utilization of predictive technologies as well as reliability analysis tools and methodologies.  It is the next higher level within the evolutionary process to reliability improvement.  With improved worker productivity resulting from improved Work Control Tools, skilled people will be more available to perform value-added, technical activities that directly impact equipment reliability and health.  Each technology and/or process has its own merit and values including optimizing up-time, cost effectiveness, and detailed understanding of the particular asset.  Elements under Performance Tools include;

·          Preventive Maintenance (PM) / Predictive Maintenance (PdM)

·          Reliability Engineering Analysis

·          Precision Skills

·          Repair Standards

Let’s focus on Pm and PdM.  The purpose of this paper is not to debate the merits of in-house versus contract, because the business case surrounding it should be evaluated on a case-by-case basis.  Let’s focus on the cost of delivering the service.  In some instances, in-house may prove to be more cost effective, but one must consider the total cost of delivering the required quality of service.

Vibration – depending on the type of vibration program that you have in your facility – simple PdM route based vs. vibration control and elimination, the cost of your program should average between $3.50 – $7.00 per bearing to deliver.  Best practice plants across a wide variety of industries have 60-80% of their possible bearings on routes.

IR Thermography – average cost for the delivery of a qualified, multi-disciplined IR program will range from $800 - $1,200 per day.  IR should not be limited to an annual high voltage inspection.  Best practice plants tend to do a twice per year high voltage survey, an annual low voltage/local disconnect survey, quarterly supplemental mechanical inspections, quarterly refractory studies, and annual building roof/building envelope inspections.  These programs also emphasize the importance of “post maintenance acceptance testing and new project acceptance testing”.

Tribology and Lubricant Management – a best practice Tribology / Lubricant Management program goes well beyond oil analysis and the oil analysis needs to go well beyond what “standard-free oil analysis” supplies.  A best practice program will include:

·          Lube Specification

·          Receipt Verification

·          Storage and dispersement

·          Housekeeping..housekeeping..housekeeping

·          Proper Grease Technique

·          Sampling

·          Oil Analysis – Profiling ($29-$75 per sample)

·          Implementation & Follow-up

·          Lube Disposal

 PM Development – the cost to develop a PM depends greatly on what methodology is used to generate it.  A basic PM program that relies predominantly on the OEM’s recommendations and a cursory review of performance history is approximately $300 per Job Plan.  A fully engineered PM that gets its roots from a form of FMEA, will cost approximately $1,500 per Job Plan.  An important note is that many of the PMs developed using the Basic methodology may later be found to be inappropriate and/or non value-added.

After all is said and done, a best practice plant can expect to spend approximately 3-5% of their total maintenance dollars on PdM inspections (which generate an additional 40-50% workflow) and approximately 12-15% on PM inspections (which will generate 8-20% additional workflow). 

A recent study by EPRI shows the relative cost effectiveness  of the various maintenance strategies

·          PdM and PdM resulting corrective work ranged from 48-60% of the total workflow in Top Quartile Plants to approximately 30% at average plants.  

·          Those same facilities’ maintenance cost to insured replacement asset value ranged from 3.1% to 3.6% 

·          As compared to an average of 5.5% to 7.2% for those same industries at the time.

But yet the workflow percentages remain virtually unchanged since 1988 -- are our practices insane?