Your Reliability Engineering Professional Development Site
A listing in reverse chronological order of these article series:
Cloud computing is increasingly becoming critical to business, especially as digital technologies like IIoT become widespread. Gartner predicts that in the next year, the cloud-based Software as a Service (SaaS) market will grow 85%, five times faster than traditional software. For industrial companies who want to use the IIoT for predictive maintenance, cloud-based SaaS solutions offer tremendous opportunities that have the potential to disrupt the equipment maintenance world. [Read more…]
Maintain equipment, minimize downtime, meet production demands, manage inventory levels, monitor staff productivity, comply with regulatory standards, etc. etc. The list of maintenance demands in a manufacturing plant is nearly impossible to meet without the help of computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS). Manufacturing CMMS software automates the process of maintaining assets to help simplify operations, maximize uptime and control costs.
Many manufacturing plants are relying on outdated systems or maintenance spreadsheets to keep tabs on their equipment and other important aspects of production. In doing so, they run the risk of premature equipment failure, production lags, increased downtime and, ultimately, the loss of business. Consequently, competitors utilizing modern manufacturing CMMS software are more successful.
As the owner or maintenance manager at a busy organization, one of your priorities will be to monitor the efficiency of your maintenance team to sustain that level of efficiency (if it’s satisfactory), or improving it (if it’s below an acceptable level). Doing this will require that, among other things, you understand what’s really going on while staff are on the job and then identify any areas for improvement.
On this week’s webinar, an audience member, who works at a university, asked how they could teach their students the skills that make us good reliability engineers. My answer was pretty typical, the technical skills are easy to teach & learn, but what makes the great reliability engineers is their ability to build a culture. I continued to say that it takes relationship building and lots of donuts.
But why do we always talk about culture when it’s connecting with the individual?
We are often asked about the impact of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) on equipment maintenance for industrial companies. When it comes to repairs, we don’t anticipate that much will change because of the IIoT, except in identifying when repairs are needed. Making systems safe after they’ve suffered failures and taking things apart and replacing components will always require human intervention. In the area of proactive maintenance however, we see a big impact and huge potential benefits. [Read more…]
I spoke to my doctor yesterday and she mentioned that we’ll be in this lock-down period for at least a few more months. She sees the front lines more than I do but she doesn’t even know how long it’s going to be. However, it’s safe to say:
We’re going to be here a while. [Read more…]
One can read thousands of books on leadership and maybe even train and practice enough to gain skills that help them influence others or manage people but does that make them a leader? Classes I’ve taken, books I’ve read, and approaches I failed at have all served me well in gaining understanding but to say doing these things can “make” a leader is something else entirely. Many of the folks who lead others are neither in leadership roles or qualified, whatever that means. They are people who think and act genuinely without hesitation because it’s simply who they are at the core. [Read more…]
Despite its well-documented successes, Reliability Centered Maintenance has always drawn a lot of discussion and controversy. Much of it is because of a lack of understanding and ‘myths’ generated to discredit RCM as a viable business solution. Here I will fill in some of those gaps in understanding and debunk some of the myths. [Read more…]
Over the last few decades, advancements in technology have dramatically changed the maintenance and reliability industry. Organizations have invested heavily in automation and technology to reduce staff overhead, improve product quality and increase safety. One thing that hasn’t changed much in the last few decades is preventive maintenance, or PM. PM is all about performing routine maintenance to improve equipment reliability, performance and cost-effectiveness. If applied correctly, PM has the capacity to transform an organization’s maintenance approach and lead to significant improvements in equipment reliability. However, there are many mistakes that can ruin an organization’s PM program.
The following are seven preventive maintenance mistakes to avoid: [Read more…]
This week’s podcast (released April 7) and this week’s newsletter feature my leadership & mindset coach, Susan Hobson. Since, we’ve all been thrust into uncertainty and our lives have been changed, Susan is offering her new online program, Launchpad, to the Rob’s Reliability Project community at 75% off to help you level up during this time. The offer expires April 12th at midnight Eastern so check it out now. I’ve had some big breakthroughs working with Susan and I will be putting together something special for my community who sign up for the program. Check it out here! Reliability Never Sleeps,
Rob
From Susan Hobson:
One of the most common issues observed in the field of Reliability encountered by numerous practitioners is how to convince people around them commit to and support their initiatives. This barrier is not only a hindrance to seek the executive support within their organizations but also at other levels across the hierarchy. Similarly, many consultants and service providers also fail to essentially convey their message in a persuasive and effective manner. [Read more…]
When we were younger most of our parents probably told us that we needed to have a good education to get ahead and do well in life. After all, it is the key that unlocks career paths, it opens doors and closes them if it is missing. Even prisoners on long sentences get an education so they can get a better start on life after their incarceration. [Read more…]
In last week’s newsletter, I discussed some of the steps I’m taking to reduce the stress caused by the media & others on myself. It helped a bit but this week it all came to a head. I wasn’t sleeping, I was anxious/stressed the entire time, my thoughts were racing and I had extreme thoughts of dropping everything and hurting myself. When I spoke to my coach, she asked me why I hadn’t considered taking time off work, pushing back the things I do for you and limiting the requests I help out with.
I didn’t think it was an option. [Read more…]
6 Principles for Continuous Improvement
Today, I believe that we seem to overcomplicate certain elements of growth and improvement. Continuous improvement is one of those things. We repackage and rebrand things to create the perception that without us, it can’t be done. This is the consulting world in general. Is this really the case? I believe with these few principles and actual execution, your organization can see improvement. Below are a few of those principles: [Read more…]
Instead of allocating time and resources trying to force the same maintenance method on every asset in your facility, reliability centered maintenance (RCM) offers you a more structured and proven approach where each piece of equipment is allocated a befitting maintenance strategy based on the results of a well-executed RCM analysis.
