What the Emperor’s New Clothes Says to Plant Reliability and Maintenance Professionals
Torbjörn Idhammar, IDCON INC
Let us start this column with a short version of an old story.
Once upon a time, an emperor was offered some fantastic clothes by traveling tailors. They told the emperor that their clothes were the most exclusive in the world — so exclusive that only wise people saw the clothes. The emperor accepted the tailors’ offer; they took measurements and cut the expensive fabrics. When the emperor tried the clothes on, neither he nor any of his advisors and servants could see the clothes, but no one said anything for obvious reasons.
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The ‘Maintenance Crisis’ and Innovations that are Changing it
A couple months ago, I wrote an article about the top five careers in facility management. I interviewed a broad range of professionals for that story. But it was during an interview with Joel Leonard, President of SkillTV, that I started to ponder what he referred to as “the maintenance crisis”–a depletion of skilled workers in the maintenance management workforce caused by baby boomers retiring and too few young professionals entering the field.
Air Canada takes a 'pit crew' approach to 787 maintenance
Air Canada has opted for a “pit crew” concept for its Dreamliners, with five to eight employees descending on each arriving aircraft. Having more employees on hand results in a speedier turnaround, which is good for passengers and boosts aircraft utilization, according to Alan Butterfield, the carrier’s vice president of maintenance and engineering. “Utilization of your fleet is hugely important,” Butterfield said in an interview at YVR.
Where Do Maintenance Professionals Come From?
Many managers are unaware that best-in-class companies routinely design-out maintenance at the inception of a project. That, clearly, is the first key to highest equipment reliability and plant profitability. Whenever maintenance events occur as time goes on, the real industry leaders see every one of these events as an opportunity to upgrade. Indeed, upgrading is the second key, and upgrading is the job of highly trained, well-organized, knowledgeable reliability professionals.
Indoor Air Quality Increases Workforce Productivity
When you think about the productivity of your workforce, a number of questions come into play. Are you meeting your daily goals? Have you correctly set benchmarks? Have the proper safety procedures been established and well-communicated with your team?
Using Effective EAM to Improve Asset Utilization & Reduce Costs
By focusing on people and operational improvement, such an EAM program can significantly improve asset utilization rates while reducing long-term capital costs. That attention to people and operations is an essential element of EAM success, however, strategies centered alone on capital investments in facilities and fleet logistics typically fall short of the significant benefits an effective EAM effort can produce.
The Challenge: Developing a Reliability Culture
In some organizations, reliability is not just a word, but a culture that has been built over a period of time. Developing a reliability culture is not solely a top-down approach or dependent on the company’s vision. Sometimes, it is taken as a normal, routine job, while other times, it may get a fast-track status.
