Things to Think About and Do in 2011: People

Here is this week's installment of ReliabilityWeb.com's e-book, Things to Think About and Do in 2011. Can't wait for next week's topic? Thumb through the entire e-book for free at ReliabilityWeb.com, Happy Reading!

People

People, people who need people…are likely to call on maintenance! In the year ahead, I think we all need to take a step back and realize that behind those pesky work orders, complaints and all the other demands on out time, there are people. Just like you and I, they walk, they talk, they breathe, they think and, as we often find out, they have needs. I think if we resolve to try and understand what they mean, which is not necessarily the same as what they day, we can help them better. The desire to help them better doesn’t come from some altruistic motivation— it’s simply self-preservation! When I’m asked by tradespeople what exactly my job is, I quickly answer, “to make your life easier.” My reasoning is that if I can make their lives easier, then they’ll be more successful. If they’re more successful, then I'm less troubled. 

One of the things that I’ve noticed about maintenance people is that they don’t always say what’s really troubling them. They may complain about a dirty job site, for example, when what they’re really ticked off about is a change in the work schedule. The only way to find out what is actually bothering them is to listen, then ask questions, the listen to the answers and ask more questions.

The other thing to remember is that we’re all different. What works as motivation for one may be a complete turn-off for another. Get to know the people you work with. Find out what they are interested in and what makes them tick, then let them know that you know with an appropriate question of comment.

Until they invent machines that PM and repair themselves, the most important part of maintenance will be people. In the words of Stephen Stills, “love the one you’re with”.

—Cliff Williams

Things to Think About and Do in 2011: Train

Here is this week's installment of ReliabilityWeb.com's e-book, Things to Think About and Do in 2011. Can't wait for next week's topic? Thumb through the entire e-book for free at ReliabilityWeb.com, Happy Reading!

Train

Train yourselves up! There are wonderful resources available for proactive learning, knowledge, inspiration and direction for the reliability and maintenance-minded. Let us discipline ourselves and our groups by focusing on continuous improvement for 2011.

Speaking of discipline, our great nation’s military training is a hallmark and would class activity. In preparation to defend our country from any attack, by any means, from anywhere, they train, educate and train some more. The same is true in our businesses; we have to stay educated, aggressive, vigilant and ready to adjust. Continuous improvement provides this protection and shareholder value. 

Train, Baby, Train!

—Joe Swan

On a side note, enrollment for fall MaintiMizer™ training courses is going on now! MaintiMizer™ Client Server Training runs September 12-15. MaintiMizer™ Web Edition Training runs September 19-22. Register Today at www.ashcomtech.com/services/education. We hope to see you in class!

Things to Think About and Do in 2011: Data

Here is this week's installment of ReliabilityWeb.com's e-book, Things to Think About and Do in 2011. Can't wait for next week's topic? Thumb through the entire e-book for free at ReliabilityWeb.com, Happy Reading!

 

Data

How much valuable information are you losing because of inconsistencies in the information that was entered into your data management system? We have all heard the saying, “garbage in, garbage out,” but what does it actually mean?

                FALK 1040-EZ

                FALK 1040EZ

                FALK  1040EZ

To the human eye, the above examples shows three gearboxes that are the same make and model, but to a computer that is processing data for the generation of failure models, maintenance expenses tracking, and spare parts stock lists, there are three different make and models of gearboxes. 

The differences in the descriptions are subtle—an extra space or a dash—but these extra characters create different gearbox units. The same applies to a mere typographical error.

Now, imagine that you have 500 gearboxes in your plant. All of them are a Falk 1040EZ. And ALL of them have slightly different entry for their make, model or description. How much time is wasted scrubbing the data before a failure model can be created? Running a simple failure model might take an hour or two, but the data preparation can add weeks to that time line. Are you tracking maintenance costs collectively by make and model? You could be seeing costs spread over multiple categories that should be grouped into one, and this gives an artificially low result for problem component types. This can increase the space required for parts storage through unnecessary duplication of parts, based on the components categories. 

Data entry is often overlooked as a menial task. However, good data entry is the backbone of a reliable maintenance program. To increase the consistency of data entry, knowledge and understanding of the information being entered is needed, as well as the know-how to research and make corrections when discrepancies are found.

—Stacy Heston