Your Reliability Engineering Professional Development Site
All articles listed in reverse chronological order.
I am a firm believer in the notion of doing everything with the end-goal in mind. That is the only way we can gauge the effectiveness of our efforts. The same is true for all our efforts related to Maintenance & Reliability.
If & when you want to measure a certain maintenance task for its effectiveness (you should be doing it quite often); the best way is to identify whether the desired outcomes associated with that specific task are being realized or not. [Read more…]
I just got off the golf course hitting 9-holes with my Pop, who is 84 years old. God bless him, I hope he has many more rounds to play and I look forward to getting out as often as I can with him. We played the En-Joie Golf Club; a stop on the PGA Tour from 1972 to 2005 when the BC Open was played there – and now, as the Dick’s Sporting Goods Open, which is a stop on the Champions Tour.
It is unique in that the course is owned and operated by Broome County. This means that anyone off the street can play a PGA course for municipal rates, which top-out at $49 for 18-holes with a cart on summer weekends (it can be less, depending on date, day of the week, and time). [Read more…]
Who knew that a herd of cattle in Hartley Wintney, England could teach us something about equipment maintenance? Watch as I “graze” over the topic of manufacturer recommended maintenance tasks. (I hope you are “mooved” to take action!) [Read more…]
The golden rule for lubricant storage is keeping the lubricant “clean, cool and dry”. Let’s discuss 3 ways to improve your lubricant storage.
What are some best practices for lubricant storage at your plant?
[Read more…]
We review the purpose of and how to use the Notification or Service Request applications of your CMMS [Read more…]
In Experimental Design, users will at times suggest use of a 2×2 matrix. This is not a practical approach for all but the rarest of occasions. Worse yet, some will teach the 2×2 matrix because it is simple. This misleads users that it is a reasonable option. This video explains the reasons why this design should never be used during phase 1 testing. [Read more…]
“However beautiful the strategy, you should occasionally look at the results.”
Winston Churchill
The Oxford English dictionary defines “strategy” as “a plan of action or policy designed to achieve a major or overall aim.”
Reference the article Understanding FMEA Severity Risk – Part 1 which discusses how Severity is defined and applied in FMEA.
In project management we can’t always be in control of the environment around us. We can only forecast rather than predict risk and despite our ‘reasonable’ or even ‘best’ efforts to mitigate risk; shit happens and emergencies ensue! It’s not just physical emergencies but also those related to time and cost; overbudget or late projects can create an emergency for stakeholders. Perhaps it’s because we tend to look at the ‘big risks’ or the ‘top ten’ after some semiquantitative assessment but then fail to consider that risks can change with time as more information becomes available. Or, maybe it is because only those risks that can be clearly defined and are ‘likely’ are communicated to the eyes and ears on the ground. Those low probability, high impact risks can tend to slip under any risk radar.
Then there is the matter of ‘optimism bias’ and a belief that ‘nothing can go wrong’ or that ‘risk only happens to other people’. Or perhaps, it’s just a matter of management not appreciating what is going on and ‘taking their eye off the ball’. [Read more…]
A few weeks ago, I wrote about my thought processes for choosing an oil sampling location. To continue on the lubrication theme, I wanted to give you a few ideas for contamination control. Next week, I’ll take on lubricant storage. [Read more…]
CMMS Work Order Priorities explained. [Read more…]
Watch how I made the same mistake with my shoes…and how I could have used RCM to help me! [Read more…]
When using tools such as DOE and Monte Carlo analysis, it is important to understand the capabilities of the input variables. This can lead to robust design. However, many do not ask the right questions and are surprised with less than desired performance. [Read more…]
In another article, I discussed the results of the risk survey conducted annually by the World Economic Forum. The survey respondents are considered the economic elite. The responses provide an indication of the concerns of the movers and shakers of business. Consequently, the questions asked, and the risk concerns expressed are more policy oriented. [Read more…]
Let’s agree that the EAM Data is our organizations’ “Augean Stables”. And, we the Maintenance & Reliability professionals are “the Hercules”. It’s dirty, smelly & massive. But it is only we who can dare to cleanse it. We are the Hercules of today’s organizations. [Read more…]
I created and posted this meme a few weeks ago and it went viral through the LinkedIn reliability community. It was a tongue-in-cheek look at the vicious circle that keeps most plants in a fire-fighting mode. One of the people who shared the post asked ‘what comes first the chicken or the egg?’ In our case, reliability work comes first. [Read more…]