by Ken Bannister, MEch (UK), CMRP, MLE, Editor | Sep 19, 2021 | Planning & Scheduling, RAM Tools & Methods
A key element of successful planning and scheduling in plants and facilities is to understand and ensure that critical assets are identified and maintained with higher priority than non-critical ones. Recognizing a critical asset, though, will depend on how a...
by Drew Troyer, CRE, CMRP, Principal, T.A. Cook, Editor | Sep 13, 2021 | Asset Management, RAM Tools & Methods
In last week’s article (Sept. 5, 2021, see link below), we introduced Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE). It’s the product of multiplying three input elements (Availability, Yield/Speed, and Quality) to arrive at a number representing the performance of...
by Ken Bannister, MEch (UK), CMRP, MLE, Editor | Sep 13, 2021 | Newsletter Column, RAM Tools & Methods
Up until a few years ago, I used to make an annual “back to my roots” pilgramage to visit my parents who lived just outside the old mill/market town of Wigan, in Northern England. Halfway between Liverpool and Manchester on the Leeds-Liverpool canal waterway system,...
by Drew Troyer, CRE, CMRP, Principal, T.A. Cook, Editor | Sep 5, 2021 | Asset Management, RAM Tools & Methods
As we continue our discussion of important asset-management metrics and Key Performance Indicators (KPIs), let us turn our attention to Overall Equipment Effectiveness (OEE) in the first of what will be several articles on this particular indicator. OEE is calculated...
by Jim Seffrin, CMRP | Sep 5, 2021 | Electrical Reliability, IR Thermography, RAM Tools & Methods
Statistically, overloaded circuits are the second most common cause of exceptions found during infrared inspections of electrical systems. Although overloads are quite common, they can be tricky to accurately diagnose. As electrical current flows through a...
by Drew Troyer, CRE, CMRP, Principal, T.A. Cook, Editor | Aug 30, 2021 | Asset Management, RAM Tools & Methods
In two recent editions of The RAM Review (see article links below), I discussed Mean Time Between/To Failure (MTBF/MTTF), which quantifies the average time between failure events. This week, my focus is on the Mean Time To Repair (MTTR) metric, which quantifies the...
by Drew Troyer, CRE, CMRP, Principal, T.A. Cook, Editor | Aug 23, 2021 | Asset Management, RAM Tools & Methods
The first part of this two-part article (see link below) addressed the basics of Mean Time Between/To Failure (MTBF/MTTF), which is one of the most fundamental performance metrics for reliability engineering. To recap: in Part 1, I discussed the fact that MTBF/MTTF...
by Drew Troyer, CRE, CMRP, Principal, T.A. Cook, Editor | Aug 15, 2021 | Asset Management, RAM Tools & Methods
Having recently concluded my seven-part series (see links at the end of this article) on leading asset-management indicators that drive proactive behaviors in maintenance and reliability, I’m now turning my attention to lagging metrics. Think of leading...
by Ken Bannister, MEch (UK), CMRP, MLE, Editor | Aug 15, 2021 | RAM Tools & Methods
It’s often the case: Long before official maintenance-work requests get to Planners and show up in maintenance-management systems, the issues they cite have already been recognized. And, in turn, the equipment assets in question have been allowed to deteriorate....
by Ken Bannister, MEch (UK), CMRP, MLE, Editor | Aug 2, 2021 | Newsletter Column, RAM Tools & Methods
As an old proverb warns, “There are none so blind as those who do not see.” When it comes to maintenance inspections, that adage has both literal and metaphoric meanings. It’s no secret that visual acuity deteriorates as we get older. According to the illuminating...
