Chapter Two: maintenance Philosophies
2.8 Maintenance Management Strategy
According to Strickland and Thompson (2001) strategies represent management's answers to how to achieve objectives and how to pursue the organisation's business mission and vision. There is a strategy for the company and all of its businesses as a whole (corporate strategy). There is a strategy for each separate business the company has diversified into (business strategy). There is a strategy for each specific functional unit within a business (functional strategy). Then there is a strategy for basic operating units - plants and departments within functional areas (operating strategy). In order to pursue any strategy the strategic management process, as shown in figure 2.6, can be adopted.
Since the maintenance function is the management's game plan for running the maintenance activity of the business, we are concerned here with the formulation of a functional strategy. The maintenance management strategy
....__--_ _.
__
_. - -47
Arvin Bipath SINo.: 201510385
.c'
~"", ,I Master of Business Administration
must be able to support the company's overall business strategy and competitive approach.
Developing a Strategic Vision -
"where we are going" and Mission -
"who we are and what we do"
\.7
Setting Objectives - an organisation's performance targets - the results and outcomes it wants to achieve.
Crafting a Strategy to achieve Objectives. This involves strategic analysis and formulation:
•
Evaluating strategy-shaping factors external and internal to the company; and•
Formulating either a corporate, business, functional or operating strategy.~ '7
Implementing and executing the strategy - assessing what it will take to develop the needed organisational capabilities and to reach the targeted objectives.
'i 7
Evaluating performance, monitoring new developments, and initiating corrective adjustments.
Figure 2.6: The Strategic Management Process (Adapted from Strickland and Thompson. Crafting and Executing Strategy. 2001)
According to Wilson (1999) in the past, maintenance has rated a relatively low priority among those strategic policy matters considered at company Board level. Therefore, maintenance has tended to fulfil its role by having to respond to unforeseen problems, rather than developing in a proactive way.
Over the last decade maintenance managers have been making strenuous
Arvin Bipath S/No.: 201510385
,1/''''
\;,0; !
Master of Business Administration
efforts to recover from this approach in order that their maintenance strategy should become policy led rather than problem led.
The key performance area or fundamental philosophy and principle underpinning the correct approach to maintenance management is the continuous satisfaction of customer needs. Customer satisfaction will be determined by the organisation's ability to satisfy its customers' quality, service levels, equipment availability, equipment output performance, responsiveness, communications, reliability, availability and price requirements. Wilson (1999) states that the preparation of the maintenance strategy seeks to consider the objectives and priorities of the company, and then to evaluate and define how the maintenance function should respond and be organised in supporting those needs. Before proceeding on a project for developing strategy, an appreciation of where maintenance is placed in relation to the following is required:
1. The business plans. The question to be asked here is "how will the maintenance strategy operate within the framework of the overall business plan?". A company's objectives, organisation and policy, change frequently and need to be reviewed regularly in relation to the external environment, and in light of the pressures of the organisation. The process review, is usually arranged at three levels:
a. Corporate planning.
b. 3 - 5 year plan.
c. Annual plan - budgets.
2. Corporate philosophy. This philosophy shapes the application of the business forces to the business plans and include:
a. To remain competitive in the market.
b. To increase efficiency and optimise costs.
c. To increase the profitability of a quality product.
d. To maximise plant utilisation and capability and retain high asset value.
e. To develop people.
49
S/No.: 201510385
'f~
~~-;
\; :!
Master of Business Administration
The prime objective of the maintenance strategy must be compatible with these and the production philosophy, and be directed towards company viability and profitability.
3. Production philosophy. The emphasis shown by production is on the benefits of productivity and immediate delivery. This is also what is expected from maintenance, but the benefits of good maintenance strategies are usually obtained over a longer timescale. Whilst the maintenance strategy is determined largely by production needs, the approach of production "today" at the risk of a loss of two days production "next month" is a philosophy which is sometimes at odds with both correct maintenance thinking and corporate philosophy.
4. Quality and safety. Adopting a Total Quality approach to managing maintenance will improve teamwork, performance and safety, as well as reducing the risk of environmental damage. This includes conforming to ISO 9000 standards, reducing costs, and improved customer relationships.
5. Customers. A maintenance strategy will be considered effective in the long run only if it both focuses on the customer's requirements, and meets them.
Customer focus includes improving relationships between customer and maintenance function on issues mentioned earlier such as quality, service levels, equipment availability, equipment output performance, responsiveness, communications, reliability, availability and price requirements.
The range of maintenance elements to be considered in strategy are therefore many and varied. According to Wilson (1999) they include all the maintenance policies, practices and methods used in assessing what should be done, why it should be done, and who should do it. They also include legislation, procedures, organisation and control. Figure 2.7 shows a cross section of the range of maintenance policy sectors and their practices.
Arvin Bipath S/No.: 201510385 Master of Business Administration
SYSTEMS ORGANISATION
TPM
People Development
Skills
Flexibility RCf'rlr----
Documentation
Asset Strategy Targets
Policies Practices
Lifecycle Criticality
Activities Design out
CBM
Aims and Objectives Change
Maintenance Strategy Audits of
performance and strategy
L
Safety
Maintenance Management Expert
Condition Monitoring
Computer systems
Health and safety Planning
Budgeting Planning
Provisioning
Work
Control
Health and Safety
Contracting
Spares Selection
Shutdowns
Figure 2.7: The range of maintenance policy sectors and their practices (Asset Maintenance Management. Alan Wilson.1999)
2.9 Chapter Summary
In order to develop or change and implement a good maintenance strategy, the various maintenance activities relating to the maintenance function must be known. An efficient and effective maintenance mix incorporating the different approaches to maintenance - RTB, PM and CBM - into a maintenance framework, utilising maintenance practices from RCM, TPM and World-class Maintenance philosophies can be implemented. This maintenance mix, which covers the range of maintenance policy sectors and their practices as depicted in figure 2.7, can be focused on the delivery and implementation of maintenance practices that maximise the contribution of assets to an organisation's profitability. Asset availability can be increased
51
Arvin Bipath SINo.: 201510385 Master of Business Administration
with improvements in reliability, efficiency, effectiveness, safety, costs and GEE. "Arrangement and organising all necessary required materials, manpower, tools and equipment, methods and money before hand and on time, enables proper execution of maintenance plans that reduces delays and improves availability and reliability of machinery and contribute to the low cost of producing products (cost/unit of production)." (Maintenance and Asset Managementjouma/, vo117, n05, 2002) Figure2.8 has been adopted to show this.
INPUTS TRANSFORMATION RESULTS/OUTPUTS
•
Materials Maintenance•
Availability•
Manpower Management•
Reliability•
Money Process•
MTIR(costs)
---. f-+ •
MTBF•
Methods•
Cost/unit of•
Equipment production•
GEEFigure 2.8: The input-transformation-output Maintenance Mix (adapted from the Maintenance and Asset management journal. vol 17. no. 5.
2002)
Arvin Bipath SlNo.: 201510385
~.,;,. ~,(
Master of Business Administration