by Bob Williamson, CMRP, CPMM, MIAM, Editor | Jan 31, 2021 | Maintenance Management, Newsletter Column
“Why do we need to fill out these work orders anyway? They’re just trying to micro-manage us. I’m not going to do it. Let’s just do things like we’ve always done.” Sound familiar? Maintenance work orders are often seen as an extra burden to maintainers, as well as to...
by Ken Bannister, MEch (UK), CMRP, MLE, Editor | Jan 16, 2021 | Lubrication Corner, Maintenance Management
A manufacturing client recently asked me a seemingly difficult question: Does a simple, universal, inexpensive, easy-to-implement maintenance strategy that’s capable of substantially increasing machine reliability and availability actually exist? My answer...
by Bob Williamson, CMRP, CPMM, MIAM, Editor | Jan 9, 2021 | Maintenance Management, RAM Tools & Methods
“Procedure-based maintenance” will be invaluable in this era of growing skills shortages and the need for greater machine reliability. Machine complexity, coupled with the impact of the skills crisis and business needs for improved performance, has created a situation...
by Bob Williamson, CMRP, CPMM, MIAM, Editor | Jan 2, 2021 | Maintenance Management, RAM Tools & Methods
Many of the tens of thousands of preventive maintenance (PM) and repair work instructions I’ve reviewed over the decades have been sorely lacking in details. That means they’ve left a lot to the mechanics’ discretion. At the same time, many production...
by Bob Williamson, CMRP, CPMM, MIAM, Editor | Dec 20, 2020 | Maintenance Management, Newsletter Column
Reliable equipment depends on an alignment of the right things: The right application, operating conditions, duty cycle, operation, maintenance, replacement parts, input/output, performance data, and people following detailed work instructions. This column begins a...
by Ken Bannister, MEch (UK), CMRP, MLE, Editor | Dec 12, 2020 | Lubrication Corner, Maintenance Management
Despite their complexity, hydraulic systems are forgiving in nature. In most cases, they can perform well for a long time before any major or catastrophic failure occurs. Unfortunately, this “creep to failure” quality can promote apathy in production and maintenance...
by Bob Williamson, CMRP, CPMM, MIAM, Editor | Dec 11, 2020 | Maintenance Management, Workforce Issues
To restate the overall message from previous installments of this article series, deployed properly, operators can provide the most efficient and effective form of preventive maintenance in a plant. The key is to change our thinking from the idea of operator...
by Bob Williamson, CMRP, CPMM, MIAM, Editor | Dec 5, 2020 | Maintenance Management, Plant Operations
As pointed out in previous installments of this series, deployed properly, operators can provide the most efficient and effective form of preventive maintenance in a plant. The key, however, is to change our thinking on this issue from the idea of operator...
by Bob Williamson, CMRP, CPMM, MIAM, Editor | Nov 29, 2020 | Maintenance Management, Newsletter Column, Workforce Issues
Let’s recap: As noted in Part I and II of this series of discussions (see links below), the concept of engaging operators in the maintenance of their machines has met with mixed reviews since it rolled out as part of Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) in the...
by Ken Bannister, MEch (UK), CMRP, MLE, Editor | Jun 19, 2020 | Maintenance Management, RAM Tools & Methods
Every good tradesperson knows that use of incorrect and inferior quality tools can result in inferior work. That said, no definitive study has been performed on resulting costs (the direct costs incurred through broken tools and broken fasteners, and indirect costs...
