Your Reliability Engineering Professional Development Site
More than once or twice, I have heard, if we just got the maintenance department sorted out, our OEE would increase. I have heard this coming from not only operations and management, but also maintenance staff. While it is true that how effective and efficient the maintenance department is will have a direct impact on the operation’s performance, it is not maintenance alone that will enable success.
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Welcome our guests to the podcast. We are going to discuss Asset Answers in today’s episode. However, briefly about our guests:
Yanpei has a background in telecom and smart grid. Currently is working as a product leader at Asset Answers.
Manjish is the service lead for Asset Answers and has been in the maintenance and reliability for 15 years building CMMS and analytic software on top of the CMMS)
In this episode we covered:
Lubrication is often overlooked in organizations. Why it is overlooked, I am unsure. Maybe it is because it is considered to be a basic job, given to the apprentice, or it is just too simple to not to do it correctly.
However, with a focus on lubrication, many failure mechanisms can be reduced and the equipment life prolonged. But implementing an effective and world-class lubrication program is not simple. It requires a dedicated focus to implement and sustain. Below is my list of what I look for when evaluating a lubrication program.
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Welcome Shane who is the author of Decoding Mechanical Failures. More about Shane and Steel Image:
Shane is a mechanical engineer who founded Steel Image, whose primary business is analyzing information on broken parts: how it failed, mechanisms of failure, and whether the part was built correctly or not.
They avail all this information to aid those conducting RCAs.
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I can remember the first time I was told to grease a bearing. I ask the millwright “How do I know when there is enough grease?”. He responded, ” When you see it come out of the sides of the bearing”… How many of you had this same experience?
During this brief instruction, there was no mention of selecting the right grease, preventing contamination, etc. So, with this experience in mind, I wanted to provide what I believe are best practices when using a grease gun. Why do I think there needs to be a review of how to grease with a grease gun? I still see manual lubrication performed with no regard for best practices, and lubrication is still a major contributor to equipment failures.
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Welcome James Reyes who is the author of Uptime and many other books, also a principal consultant at Conscious Asset. More about James:
Having a career that spans for 44 years, James has worked in different organizations and industries some of which include reliability on board both at sea and air. The guest began a reliability consulting career in 1995 focusing on the execution of reliability programs.
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Almost all maintenance, reliability or asset management professionals have heard of reliability engineering. But what is reliability engineering? A quick google search will return the following definition “Reliability Engineering is engineering that emphasizes dependability in the lifecycle management of a product. Dependability, or reliability, describes the ability of a system or component to function under stated conditions for a specified period of time.”
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Welcome Ron back to the podcast. Ron is an author and the founder of RM Group.
In this episode we covered:
What does the word statistics bring to mind when you hear it? Horrible high school classes that you sat through wondering why do I need this stuff? Complex math problems what were almost impossible to figure out? Or is it nonsense that is only used in political polls?
Statistics are used in every aspect of Reliability Engineering. So if you don’t have a good relationship with statistics, I highly recommend that you are starting investing time in building your knowledge in statistics. [Read more…]
Welcome Cliff Williams back to the Podcast. Cliff is a principal advisor with People and Process as well as TMS Asset Management. The guest has also worked as an asset manager for many years.
In this episode we covered:
Welcome Joe Anderson and George Williams back to the podcast. They are the founders of ReliabilityX and are consultants as well as trainers.
Briefly about them and Reliability X:
Reliability X covers all aspects of reliability; both operational and maintenance, coaching and currently creating online classes.
Joe Anderson has been in the pharma and food industries for 25 years before moving to consultancy.
George Williams has a background in pharma and medical devices rising from a technician over the years to a global reliability manager.
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How many times has an asset been installed or commissioned, only to have it fail in a few days or months when it should have lasted even longer? If you look at the study by Nowlan & Heap, they have found that only 11% of failures are age related, so when is happening with these assets? The answer… comes down to poor installation practices.
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Welcome Fred back to the podcast. Clients are starting to realize that they have to design their systems properly while paying attention to certain tradeoffs. However, tell us where they should start; whether to design for reliability or maintainability.
Before starting, the team has to look at their business goals and decide whether the acquisition of any system or a piece of equipment assists to that end. It has to be a business decision.
Pay attention to:
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A major asset is being installed, and the asset is vital to the success of a brand new, high-profit product being introduced to the site. This product is enough to keep the site operational for many years to come. The installation of the asset is critical, and there is extensive prep work to eliminate soft foot, ensuring the base is flat (using geometric measurement) and that the asset is aligned properly.
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Welcome Simon back to the podcast. Simon is the founder of Samotics and has been involved in technology throughout his Career. Today we will talk about capabilities trap. Although briefly, tell us more about you:
Involved with technology, our guest focuses on: machine learning, and the conversion of data into information.
In this episode we covered: