Introduction

The challenges of the global economic climate and intense competition in the market requires organisations to pursue a level of performance and cost efficiencies that's better than their competitors to remain viable. Maximising the realisation of value from physical assets through asset management requires an integrated approach to support the achievement of organisational objectives. Subsequently, the evolution of maintenance practices over the years has placed maintenance as a strategic function that can help deliver business outcomes. However, the development of appropriate asset failure prevention tactics remains a key challenge, as the complexity of equipment and asset systems involved constantly evolves.

Introduction

The value and benefits of pro-active maintenance and asset management for both industry and companies have been recognised and actively pursued for over 20 years. However, the burning question is: why are most companies stuck in the reactive and planned maintenance domains and not advancing toward pro-active domain to reap the benefits?

Introduction

Maintenance is defined as the combination of all technical and administrative activities i.e., planning, scheduling, execution, monitoring and control, by which equipment or a system is kept in, or restored to, a specified operating condition in which it can perform its designated functions. Maintenance strategies refer to plans or approaches that organizations use to ensure the optimal functioning and longevity of their assets, equipment, facilities, or systems. Effective maintenance strategies are crucial for reducing downtime, improving safety, minimizing repair costs, and maximizing the lifespan and performance of assets. There are several maintenance strategies to choose from, each with its own advantages and suitable applications.

Introduction

In this week’s article we are going to discuss asset criticality analysis (ACA). ACA is not a new concept as such the intention of this article is not to teach the reader how to perform ACA since much material has already been written on the subject. However, we do provide a high-level guide on the ACA process, and then enrich the reader’s understanding on other ACA methodologies which have not been widely and exhaustively presented. As a specialist physical asset management consultancy, we are committed to uncovering emerging research in the physical asset management.
To ensure alignment and common understanding on what is meant when we refer to terms asset, physical assets, or an asset system, we summon ISO55000:2014 Asset Management – overview, principles, and terminology, for their respective definitions.

Reliability and Failure - an overview

Reliability is defined as the probability that a product, component, equipment, or a system will perform as required for a stated period under stated and environmental conditions. It is determined by the decisions made during the pre-production phase and the production stage of the equipment life cycle. The achievement of reliability can be impacted by two things: functional and reliability failures. Failures can be classified in three different ways: as to cause, as to suddenness and as to degree. Functional failure is an inability of a design to meet or function at a level of performance that is deemed satisfactory to the user. A complete loss of function also qualifies as a functional failure. Reliability failure, on the other hand, occurs after some period of use and can be due to design errors, faulty material, manufacturing, assembly, and commission errors (infant mortality period), human errors during operation (constant failure period), or material fatigue (wear-out period)

WHY RELIABILITY AND MAINTENANCE BASICS MATTER?

Globalisation and mega advances in technology have epitomised an era in which we find a plethora of digital tools developed and produced almost daily. It's one of the most fascinating and talked about topics of the fourth industrial revolution with widely heralded benefits. These tools extend from industrial internet of things (IIoT) platforms, connected machine and process sensors, to intelligent analytics based on AI and ML that provide data-based actionable insights. These tools have also seen their application in boosting traditional lengthy reliability processes such as FMEA, to be digitalised to enable early detection of abnormal operating and/or operator-error related failure patterns.
The potential benefits of advanced digital tools are very attractive, various sources citing increase in asset availability by 5 to 15% and reductions in maintenance costs by 5 to 25%. However, careful thought and diligence needs to be exercised upfront as these tools are not “a silver bullet” for the several reliability and maintenance challenges prevalent at many organisations.