Mike Sondalini — Thought Leader

The Accuracy Controlled Enterprise: Using Accuracy-Controlled 3T SOPs for Production and Maintenance Quality Assurance

 Reliable equipment is necessary to reduce production costs and maximise production throughput. High reliability from operating equipment requires high quality reassembly, coupled with the correct operating practices. You can guarantee correct maintenance and proper plant operation by specifying a target and tolerance in maintenance and operating procedures. 

Having a target and tolerance sets the recognised acceptance criterion. A simple proof-test will confirm if it has been met. Specifying a mark and tolerance range changes the focus from one of simply doing the job; to now doing the job accurately. This results in high quality trades’ workmanship and sound equipment operator practices that deliver reliable equipment performance. Those organisations that use ‘target, tolerance, proof-test’ methodology in their procedural tasks move from being a quality-conscious operation to being an Accuracy-Controlled Enterprise (ACE). 

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Plant Wellness Way Enterprise Asset Management is used by companies to successfully get world-class engineering asset management, maintenance, and reliability.

Welcome to the start of the training users get on how to build a Plant Wellness Way enterprise asset life cycle management system-of-reliability once their company begins using the PWWEAM methodology.

Throughout the course we interchange the name of the methodology commonly called ‘Enterprise Asset Management’ with engineering asset management, physical asset management, and asset life-cycle management. All these names mean the same thing. We also will switch between referring to Plant Wellness Way Enterprise Asset Management methodology to shorter versions, such as PWW EAM or PWW.

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THE Plant Wellness Way EAM SYSTEM-OF-RELIABILITY METHODOLOGY ENSURES YOU ALWAYS HAVE LOW MAINTENANCE COSTS AS PART OF THE WORLD CLASS MAINTENANCE, RELIABILITY AND LIFE CYCLE ASSET MANAGEMENT SUCCESS YOU GET

BELOW ARE 14 STRATEGIES A PLANT WELLNESS WAY EAM SYSTEM-OF-RELIABILITY BRINGS YOU THAT ENSURE THE LEAST MAINTENANCE COSTS FOREVERMORE.

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I read your article that compares maintenance costs to RAV and am inquiring to see what is your definition of ‘maintenance cost’ when measuring replacement asset value? Are you strictly referring to labor costs, or is this the cost of labor, services and capital equipment purchases to repair, replace or upgrade an existing machine?

Dear Tom,

In the example, ‘maintenance costs’ meant the direct and overhead maintenance costs – labor, parts, subcontract services and allocated overheads (i.e. supervision, management, associated infrastructure, etc. proportioned to direct labor hours) – incurred during the ‘normal’ operation of the car (i.e. the car is driven by a well-trained, responsible driver at the wheel). If you have a store/warehouse for maintenance parts then you add the proportionate cost of keeping and running the store to support the maintenance effort as part of the total cost of maintenance.

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Plant and Equipment Wellness (PEW) is a Physics of Failure based methodology for equipment failure prevention and defect elimination that results in the fewest activities, least resources and lowest expenditure to produce outstanding operational equipment reliability. PEW identifies the necessary business-wide processes and departmental actions an organisation needs to apply to get high plant and equipment availability. With high uptime comes more productivity, higher operating profits, and less capital expenditure. 

As much as possible PEW uses simple techniques that can be done by shopfloor people. Most companies do not have large staffs of university trained maintenance and reliability professionals. They have knowledgeable and experienced maintenance practitioners that know their plant and equipment. PEW does not require specialist RAMS software that none but mathematicians can understand, that very few companies can afford to buy or contract, and requires assumptions about the future that are hopeful at best. 

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Any standard EAM system can be adapted to achieve Operational Excellence with the PWW EAM methodology.

Rather than going from policy to practice, Plant Wellness Way starts with how to create a healthy environment for parts microstructure when equipment is in-service. By focusing on creating healthy operating environments for components, machines, equipment, and plants, your operation will perform at world-class levels of reliability.

The standard range of Enterprise Asset Management models available will typically use an EAM Policy to decree the purposes of the EAM system. From this statement processes and practices necessary to achieve the EAM Policy aims are chosen. People will then aim to meet the policy requirements for their team or department without taking the flow on consequences into account. As a result, businesses will unintentionally create an EAM system that instils randomness and variability into the company. In this situation is it nearly impossible to create a system that achieves operational excellence success.

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An example of an Accuracy Controlled Enterprise ACE 3T (Target – Tolerance – Test) Procedure with reliability standards to install taper spherical roller bearings on adaptor sleeves in Plummer blocks with taconite seals for 30mm-250mm diameter conveyor shafts 

 Machine performance is totally dependent on human beings. To address the problem of human error causing equipment failure, an Accuracy Controlled Enterprise sets best practice quality standards and uses 3T Target-Tolerance-Test work task quality control that assures high quality workmanship for high reliability results. Their work procedures are standardised so everyone follows the same methods to produce the same results, their training teaches people how to do craftsmanship work that creates outstandingly reliable plant and machinery. They create the reliability they want and as a result achieve operational excellence.

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