Planning for the unknown
Accidents will happen. It is a fact of life. When they do, it is best to be prepared. Knowing how to respond can make a big difference in mitigating the impact on a business and its most precious asset – the people who work for it. Mark Venables explains
Plant & Asset Management 2012
Does the industrial maintenance sector need another exhibition? The organisers of MACH, Drives & Controls, Air-Tech and IFPEX clearly think so. Brian Tinham looks at the line-up
Operator-driven reliability programme does it for Stora Enso
Global paper, packaging and wood products firm Stora Enso is reporting significant benefits since introducing SKF's operator-driven reliability (ODR) programme.
Maintec 2012
With this year's Maintec show just a few short weeks away, Brian Tinham takes a lok at what engineers, technicians and mangers can expect to find
Maintenance - What do you know?
Most maintenance improvement philosophies work on the basis that if more time is spent on predictive and preventive maintenance work, equipment will become more reliable: breakdowns will become less frequent, making more time available for other maintenance tasks, and so on in a virtuous circle. That approach certainly works, but there is a hurdle to get over: you have to put in extra time and effort moving to a predictive regime, some time before this pays off in the form of reduced breakdowns. What might be preferable is an approach that freed up time by helping to fix breakdowns more quickly: this would leading to increased levels of uptime for the equipment, and give the maintenance department more time for other activities - such as that predictive maintenance programme they'd have in their sights for a while.
Making MRO matter
Surprising as it may seem, some plants and factories may be expending too much of their maintenance effort in the wrong direction. Brian Wall reports
Managing maintenance
Anything that can help maintenance managers to realise cost and time-savings, while simultaneously improving plant uptime and product quality outcomes, has to be worth considering. Brian Wall looks at modern CMMs in action
Managing maintenance
Computerised maintenance management systems – CMMS – are helping to breathe new life into enlightened plant operations, as Brian Wall reports
Necessary evil
Poorly managed MRO stores are costing plants serious money. Brian Tinham examines systems, methods, equipment and services that claim to help plant engineers work smarter and faster
Secrets of success
Although computerised maintenance management systems can deliver a significant boost to maintenance efficiency and beyond, that's not always the case. Brian Tinham looks at what goes wrong and how to avoid the pitfalls.