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Whiteboards, cards and spreadsheets may have had their place, but manufacturers who are serious about improving their competitive position should look to one tool, a computerized maintenance management system (CMMS). This blog takes a close look at CMMS software. This is only part of what the modern CMMS does.
This blog provides a guide to using the fishbone diagram in manufacturing. These bones are labeled as: Man, Method, Machine, Material, Measurement and Medium (or Mother Nature the environment). Share The fishbone diagram is a simple yet powerful tool for determining the root cause of problems like breakdowns and scrap parts.
Often, machine troubleshooting is regarded as an art rather than an essential maintenance technician skill. This blog outlines a structured approach to maintenance troubleshooting. The technician attends to the machine, investigates the problem and, if possible, carries out repairs.
My last post detailed vulnerability problems resulting from connected assets (the basis of my renaming the blog Manufacturing Connection in 2013). Too often expert machine builders sell or install a machine, only to lose insight into its performance until a customer calls with a problem.
For readers seeking ways to improve performance in areas from machine maintenance to landscaping and security, this blog provides an overview of integrated facilities management. High levels of machine availability are key to achieving output goals, but financial controls require careful allocation of finite resources.
From an industrial maintenance perspective, those that matter most are the machines and other equipment used to make what the business sells. This blog was written to help maintenance and other managers understand how to implement and maximize the value they get from this tool. What is an asset register?
Stocking too little or the wrong items can increase machine downtime, but carrying too many ties up capital unnecessarily, requires more storage space and risks waste due to obsolescence. This blog looks at what AI has to offer industrial MRO. AI systems learn by being trained on a set of data.
Most industrial machines are built to precise tolerances and include sophisticated technology, meaning there’s a lot that can go wrong if neglected for too long. Predictive/condition-based: This approach involves scheduling maintenance tasks based on real-time machine health monitoring data obtained by sensors.
One consequence is to leave maintenance data in silos, making it harder than it should be to implement effective maintenance strategies and optimize spare part inventories. This blog describes how a holistic approach to maintenance, repair and operations (MRO) data management builds a solid foundation for improving operational efficiency.
Equipment monitoring and preventive maintenance: Supervisors coordinate regular preventive maintenance activities as well as pay close attention to machine health indicators to guide these efforts. They also have to pay close attention to inventory levels to make sure critical parts are available when needed.
Employing zoning strategies : Grouping parts based on their function or machine usage streamlines picking processes. Usage data & demand forecasting : Analyzing historical consumption data and consulting OEM recommendations helps establish accurate reorder points.
This blog post covers key roles in industrial field maintenance, discusses field service management, looks at the role of technology in improving effectiveness and considers the challenges and benefits of running an efficient field service operation. Share Field maintenance refers to performing maintenance work on remote assets.
Share Industrial maintenance is about more than fixing machines. For example, maintenance leadership teams might schedule a packaging machine for quarterly inspections and bi-annual parts replacement even if parts appear to be in working order.Predictive maintenance aims to identify and address problems proactively. The caveat?
Most industrial machines are built to precise tolerances and include sophisticated technology, meaning there’s a lot that can go wrong if neglected for too long. Predictive/condition-based: This approach involves scheduling maintenance tasks based on real-time machine health monitoring data obtained by sensors.
This helps manage the temperature of machines, ensuring proper performance and extending their lifespan. Share Industrial processes are extremely productive, but not everything they produce is beneficial. For example, equipment can generate a lot of waste heat as they operate. Any signs of leaks or mineral scaling should be noted, as well.
Share Predictive maintenance is a strategy where machine health monitoring is used to look for signs of impending failure. This avoids doing preventive maintenance work that is either unnecessary or done too often, so increasing machine availability. This blog discusses the benefits of moving to mobile enterprise asset management.
This blog explores the role of digital maintenance services and maintenance management within increasingly complex manufacturing operations. This requires a higher level of knowledge about asset condition, plus advanced analytics capabilities to make sense of the data available. A CMMS handles work order creation and more.
Share A big part of effective machine maintenance is having the right spare parts available when needed. This blog describes what a digital inventory management system is and why it’s needed. If a vital component isn’t on the shelf when there’s a breakdown to fix or planned maintenance work to perform, production is going to suffer.
Share Machine maintenance is an expense that eats into margins. Predictive maintenance is about anticipating when machinery needs attention based on history and data from condition monitoring sensors. Predictive maintenance is about anticipating when machinery needs attention based on history and data from condition monitoring sensors.
Read on to learn more about how these two ideas differ and how a computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) can make implementing them in your facility easier. These procedures provide clear instructions for operators, ensuring consistency in machining operations and adherence to quality standards. What is a process?
This blog explains the role of MOM in manufacturing. This depends on the work and materials needed, machine capacity and the size of the order. Once orders are released, progress is monitored and adjustments made if problems such as a machine breakdown arise. Manufacturing engineering may be involved when assets need replacing.
Share Predictive maintenance minimizes machine downtime while extending life and reducing costs but requires data about their health and activity. This blog is about the machinedata collection process. It discusses the types of machinedata acquired, how a system operates and how it can be used.
These machines may take many forms, but their fundamental purpose remains consistent: to navigate industrial environments autonomously while fulfilling their designated functions. This blog explores the benefits manufacturers are seeing from putting AMRs to work as an additional preventive maintenance services tool in the factory.
High levels of machine uptime indicate high productivity and efficiency. Just because a machine or line is available, it doesn’t mean that it’s running or “up.” This blog was written to help manufacturers identify opportunities to improve machinery uptime. What is machine uptime?
Thanks to the integration of AI and IIoT technologies, machines can now predict impending failures with remarkable accuracy. AI allows machines to make decisions based on real-time data leading to improved production processes, or even bringing about entirely new production methodologies.
This type of audit will use data gathered from the Computerized Maintenance Management System (CMMS) and, if available, from reliability monitoring sensors and systems installed on production machinery. Are work orders updated in the CMMS in a timely manner when the job is complete? The focus of an audit depends on the goals.
This blog explains what a Maintenance Coordinator does and lists the qualities needed to be successful in the role. The Coordinator also works with the computerized maintenance management system (CMMS) to ensure record accuracy and to review and analyze data. In a small organization the supervisor may act as coordinator.
This blog explains how work order forms for maintenance drive the system that cares for plant assets. It delves into what goes into the forms, how they are used, their relationship to the CMMS and the benefits of such a system. And if one is in place, they may also be generated by the computerized maintenance management system (CMMS).
Share Lack of data on products and processes is no longer a problem for manufacturers. This blog explains the digital thread concept and what it does in manufacturing. A digital thread makes all this data available to everyone. Design data is available to manufacturing and quality. What is a digital thread ?
In this blog, we’ll examine the change that’s underway and the key technologies driving it. Variation leads to scrap, and machine breakdowns result in delivery delays and higher-than-expected costs. What’s long been sought, and is only now becoming available, is data on which to make decisions about manufacturing.
Examples include monitoring machine health using sensor technology that tracks indicators such as vibration and temperature to determine whether equipment performance is falling off or perhaps even on the verge of failure. Are you taking advantage of modern technology, such as machine health monitoring sensors?
This blog reviews how to calculate the Total Manufacturing Cost in a reporting period. All the other costs incurred in making the product, including providing the factory, the machines inside it and the power and other services needed to run them, are part of the Manufacturing Overhead Cost.
This blog explores why maintenance budget planning is important. If production runs more hours than in previous years to meet increased demand, machines will need more maintenance. This helps avoid unplanned downtime, and the amount of PM performed will rise as machines run longer. Variable costs are driven by business activity.
This blog is about the importance of safety in maintenance operations, because industrial maintenance safety is as important as the safety of everyone else in the factory. These often provide detailed requirements for equipment such as machine guards and safety glasses. Safety protocols and standards In the U.S.,
Share A CNC machine tool breakdown is expensive and disruptive, but it is at least visible. Arguably, a bigger problem is gradual deterioration that reduces accuracy, wears moving parts and, ultimately, shortens the life of the machine. This blog covers what that should look like and the benefits to be expected.
Share The ability of a machine, line or system to perform at the required level throughout its life is largely “baked-in” when it’s designed. This blog introduces the concept, discusses the role of RAM in maintenance and offers some guidance for implementation. What is reliability, availability and maintainability (RAM)?
This blog is about ways of measuring maintenance performance. Maintenance affects output because unreliable machines create unplanned downtime and lost production. Share How do you know if you’re getting value-for-money from maintenance? The key is to link them to business goals. In manufacturing, KPIs often relate to output.
For example, consider the maintenance technicians who see the potential for machine health monitoring systems. This ranges from people working on the plant floor and the maintenance technicians who keep the machines and lines running, to operations managers, the quality function and even sales teams. The four steps are: 1.
This blog reviews the maintenance challenges in aircraft part manufacturing. Maintaining aerospace parts manufacturing equipment With the critical role part quality plays in aerospace safety, machine maintenance has always been a high priority in plane part manufacturing. This is where measurement comes in.
These use the data captured in a computerized maintenance management system (CMMS), along with sensors and powerful analytical tools , and even AI to determine when work will be needed. This differs from training, which is specific to particular machines and types of equipment.
Embracing IoT in pharmaceutical manufacturing Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT) sensors gather data, process it as needed and transmit it. Data is collected in a central location, in the cloud or on-premises, where it’s stored and analyzed. Internet of Things (IoT) technology provides a way to raise the effectiveness of maintenance.
This blog provides an introduction to smart sensor technology, discusses how it forms part of the Industry 4.0 Having moved from steam to electrical power and then to computerization of production machinery, this latest transition centers around using data to optimize and improve manufacturing. What are smart sensors? transition.
This blog answers the questions, “What is emergency maintenance and what’s involved in planning for it?” Documentation and review: The event must be recorded within the CMMS and analyzed to determine how to prevent a repeat. Many machines and devices are able to send alerts when a breakdown has occurred.
This blog offers some guidance with an emphasis on what can be one of the biggest and most complex areas: maintenance. These overhead costs encompass all the expenditures necessary to run production but that cannot be tied directly to the items coming off the production lines or machines. What is manufacturing overhead?
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