Blog - Accendo Reliability

Entropy Fundamentals for more Uptime – Part 1

Entropy fundamentals for more Uptime can help us understand maintenance and reliability a little bit better. Reliability requires good execution of the right maintenance (energy), otherwise we will see reactive maintenance (entropy and chaos) increase. Engineers are familiar with the concept of “entropy” and the laws of thermodynamics. The second law of thermodynamics states that the total entropy of an isolated system always increases over time. It can remain constant in ideal cases where the system is at a steady-state or undergoing a reversible process. So what does that mean for us in the world of asset management and maintenance? [Read more…]

by Fred Schenkelberg 2 Comments

Stratification: A Basic Quality Tool

Stratification implies layers or differences. A quick test for soil composition is to place a sample of soil with water in a clear jar and give it a shake. The sand, silt and loam will settle at different rates and create a layered appearance within the jar over time. The height of each layer provides information about the proportion of each type of soil within the sample.

Stratification as one of the seven basic quality tools (some lists use a run chart or flowchart instead) the idea of layers or differences still applies. The idea is to identify potentially meaning differences within a sample set. [Read more…]

by Steven Wachs Leave a Comment

Basic DOE Terminology

In this article post, we formally define or describe the basic terminology that is commonly used in Design of Experiments. Some of the terms we have already been using in prior posts, but they will also be presented here for completeness. This is Part I of a two part article covering DOE Terminology. [Read more…]

by James Kovacevic Leave a Comment

Storeroom and Spare Parts Management

Unlocking the Hidden Cash Flow in Your Organization

Imagine not have the right spare parts to make a repair, or maybe you don’t have to imagine it. It has already happened. Now imagine having to go through the storeroom and throw out $300,000 worth of parts because they were obsolete. Once again, you may not have to imagine it. [Read more…]

by Larry George Leave a Comment

Ergodicity, Toilet Paper, and Field Reliability

Ergodicity means that cross-section probabilities equal longitudinal lifetime probabilities. (“Ergos” is Greek for “work.” Think of “ergonomics”.) Ergodicity means that we can estimate age-specific field reliability functions from cross-section data: ships (installed base) and returns (complaints, failures, service parts’ sales, etc.). Ships and returns provide information about lifetimes. Returns are the superpositions of failures of products or their parts started at different times. What does ergodicity have to do with toilet paper? [Read more…]

by Carl S. Carlson 1 Comment

Relationship between FMEA and Risk Management

“If no one ever took risks, Michelangelo would have painted the Sistine floor.” – Neil Simon

FMEA and Risk Management are two distinct bodies of knowledge. This article explores some of the interactions between these two important methods. It is not intended to be a complete analysis of the similarities, differences, and linkages between FMEA and risk management. Rather, it is a high-level overview.

[Read more…]

by Greg Hutchins Leave a Comment

Decision Points: How to Prepare for Big Decisions

Guest Post by Andrew Sheves (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

A decision point is a moment when a significant choice presents itself and the decision made will result in a significant change of course that cannot be undone easily. Moreover, that same choice or option is unlikely to reemerge in the future. The essential elements are that the decision is significant, non-repeatable, and non-reversible.

The problem is that decision points don’t always announce themselves as clearly as the examples above suggest. Sometimes, the decision point looks a lot like other, similar moments except the context or consequences are very different. At other times, the decision point might get overlooked, mixed in with other less critical choices amongst a flood of activity. So it can be easy to overlook or miss the decision point. [Read more…]

by James Reyes-Picknell Leave a Comment

Asset Management in Public and Private Sectors

Asset Management in Public and Private Sectors have some similarities and some contrasts. Most of our clients are in the private sector but occasionally we do some public sector work so we see both sides. Often, we notice distinct differences in practices and in what motivates those practices. Both have strengths and weaknesses. Both can learn a lot from each other. [Read more…]

by Ray Harkins Leave a Comment

The Tragedy of the Commons

Imagine you were a rancher with a herd of cattle and a small field in which to graze them. One of your primary concerns include determining how many cattle the field could support. With too few cattle, you give up potential earnings that the field could readily sustain. But too many cattle consume the grass faster than the field could replenish it, resulting in malnourished cattle and degraded land quality.

Therefore, as a rancher with long-term prospects, inspecting and maintaining the field, planting new grass, and limiting the number of new cattle in the field all become a cornerstone of your business model. [Read more…]

by Steven Wachs Leave a Comment

How is Formal Experimentation different from Simplistic Approaches? (Part II)

Statistically based DOE provides several advantages over more simplistic approaches such “one-factor-at-a-time” experimentation. These advantages include:

The use of statistical methodology to determine which factors are actually (statistically) significant
Balanced experimental designs to allow stronger conclusions with respect to cause and effect relationships (as opposed to just finding correlations)
The ability to understand and estimate interactions between factors
The development of predictive models that are used to find optimal solutions for one or more responses

[Read more…]

by Doug Lehr Leave a Comment

Technology Readiness Level (TRL)

Your staff has a concept for a deepwater completion product. They say it is the solution offshore operators need. The concept contains many new components and seems risky. How mature is the technology?

Conducting a Technology Readiness Assessment (TRA) answers these questions. A TRA assesses the maturity of the technology in a product and assigns it a Technology Readiness Level, or TRL. The higher the TRL, the more mature the technology, and the lower the risk. [Read more…]

by Christopher Jackson Leave a Comment

The Root Cause of a Failure is Always a Decision

We often get sucked into drawn-out conversations (or heated debates) about the ‘true’ meaning of words. Especially when it comes to sports. Was James Harden (a basketball player) in the ‘act of shooting’ when he was fouled? It matters – because if the answer is ‘yes’ he gets up to three free throws. So what does the ‘act of shooting’ mean and who decides it? There will be endless debate over beers about what this means. Perhaps largely dependent on which team you support.

At the end of the day, it usually doesn’t matter. You can debate it as much as you want, but the referees have already decided what happened on the court. It is done. It is over. You can disagree with them. But nothing changes the score. [Read more…]

by Robert (Bob) J. Latino Leave a Comment

Defining & Achieving the Reliability Culture

“There is nothing more difficult to take in hand, more perilous to conduct, or more uncertain in its success than to take the lead in the introduction of a new order of things, because the innovator has for enemies, all of those who have done well under the old conditions, and luke-warm defenders in those who will do well under the new.”
– Niccole Machiavelli

This quote is appropriate when we seek a paradigm shift towards a proactive culture, after spending our careers trained to become the best ‘react-ors’ or responders, we can be. I encourage you to read this lengthy article to the end for a surprise and to ask you a couple of questions about your experience with reliability. [Read more…]

by James Kovacevic Leave a Comment

The Storeroom Layout: Setting Up Yourself For Success

Proper Storeroom Layout Will Enable Long-Term Success

You begin your day by looking for a part in the storeroom. You are looking for a common bearing used on multiple pieces of equipment on the site. You look up the part in the CMMS and it does not have a bin number associated with it. You walk into the storeroom and beginning going through the “bearing section”. Only the bearing is not there. You wander over the equipment section and find it buried in the equipment specific drawer, but you know that it is used elsewhere. Is this the best way to organize materials, by equipment? [Read more…]

by Greg Hutchins Leave a Comment

A Solution for the Changing Nature of Work

Guest Post by Stephen Miller (first posted on CERM ® RISK INSIGHTS – reposted here with permission)

Much is being written these days about the future of work and the problems it presents. This piece presents one way we could manage this constantly evolving situation.

The world is changing rapidly in so many ways, primarily, but not limited to technology, geopolitics and climate change. There is no attempt to assign priorities here; these factors are all intimately connected and affect the outcome in concert. [Read more…]