PO Box 216
261 Highway 19
Slaughter, LA 70777
Ph:(225)654-8222
Fax: (225)654-3125
261 Highway 19
Slaughter, LA 70777
Ph:(225)654-8222
Fax: (225)654-3125
Noticias
February 2010 Newsletter
Feb 24, 2010
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~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Anvil Attachments LLC Newsletter
February 2010 |
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Greetings! Hello, we hope that you have been staying safe and warm during these unusually low temperatures (even for the north and northeast!). As for us here in Slaughter, LA we have had snow twice this winter and it has to be some kind of record, we think it has something to do with the Saints winning the Superbowl this year. We are continuing with our new look, please take a moment to browse through and read our tip on maintenance for your bucket, or see if our feature part is something your bucket might need in the near future. As always, thank you for your business, but most of all thank you for the friendships we have established over the years. May the coming spring be fruitful for everyone! A Word About Maintenance - Lubrication PM Procedures ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Anvil tip of the month for February 2010 - Lubrication PM Procedures - the life of your equipment! Basics of Lubrication PM Procedures According to a recent poll of Reliable Plant magazine readers, as high as 60% of all equipment problems can be directly attributed to the "human factor," specifically a lack of proper procedure (23.87%), a lack of training (15.05%) or human error (22.54%). The human errors are typically, though not always, due to either a lack of adequate training or a lack of proper documentation (procedure). So what's clear from this is that equipment is failing because we either do not know how to maintain them or have not been properly trained to do so. So, how does lubrication stack up? Let's take a look at what to focus on in our lubrication PM procedures. Companies today are starting to realize that their current PM programs are simply not getting the job done. So with that in mind let's look at the possible lack of training and ineffective procedures and how to help capture knowledge and use it to update proper procedure.
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A Word About Maintenance - Lubrication PM Procedures ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Anvil tip of the month for February 2010 - Lubrication PM Procedures - the life of your equipment! Basics of Lubrication PM Procedures According to a recent poll of Reliable Plant magazine readers, as high as 60% of all equipment problems can be directly attributed to the "human factor" (figure 1), specifically a lack of proper procedure (23.87%), a lack of training (15.05%) or human error (22.54%). The human errors are typically, though not always, due to either a lack of adequate training or a lack of proper documentation (procedure). So what's clear from this is that equipment is failing because we either do not know how to maintain them or have not been properly trained to do so. So, how does lubrication stack up? Let's take a look at what to focus on in our lubrication PM procedures. Companies today are starting to realize that their current PM programs are simply not getting the job done. So with that in mind let's look at the possible lack of training and ineffective procedures and how to help capture knowledge and use it to update proper procedure.  Figure 1. How Reliable Plant readers attribute plant problems to various factors. While we're talking about lubrication PMs, electrical PMs or mechanical inspections, the key is to develop a standard approach to capturing, organizing and delivering information, a field often referred to as knowledge management. Knowledge management is simply information about any business process in a form that can be easily disseminated and used by those who need it. The key here is "easily disseminated and used". Take, for example, a library. Libraries contain tens of thousands of books. But unless each book is carefully catalogued in a system that is user friendly, and the book itself is carefully organized into relevant chapters and a subject index, the information is of little use. The same is true for lubrication knowledge. As an example, consider the following real-life extracts from lubrication PMs I've reviewed in the past year or so: Grease the motor bearing - Sure! How much? Which grease should I use? What should I watch for when applying grease? Check oil level and top off as necessary - But, how do I check the level? Should the machine be running or down when I do my check? What oil should I use? Sample gearbox - How? Should I crack the drain and insert a drop tube through the breather port, or is there a sample valve located somewhere? I could go on, but you get the point. When it comes to lubrication, the amount of explicit knowledge or information available to the technician at the point of use is often so limited that, by inference, the technician has no option but to make certain assumptions on the fly. But wait, you say, "Our lube technician has 30 years of experience; he knows what he's doing!" Let's examine this. So, Joe has been lubing for 30 years? Is it reasonable to expect that Joe has memorized every salient detail (how much, how often, which product or tool to use) for every task? And even if Joe is a true professional with a penchant for memorizing data, what will happen when Joe moves on to that long overdue retirement? Knowledge needs to be captured in a way that leverages Joe's experience but insures that he or his successor is able to execute to a high level of precision and consistency each and every time. Tribal Knowledge vs. Explicit Knowledge How do we capture knowledge? The first step is to recognize that knowledge comes in two distinct forms: tribal and explicit. Tribal knowledge is information that is stored in the minds of a few employees. My thoughts go back to a lubrication survey I did a few years ago where Joe (yes, that was really his name!) was unexpectedly sick on the day of the survey and nobody could tell me what lubricant was used in each machine because "Joe's our lube guy". I later learned that Joe had, in fact, suffered a mild heart attack, and while he fortunately recovered, things could have been much worse. Explicit knowledge, on the other hand, is knowledge that has been captured as a procedure, document, training video, etc. In this form, it can be used by others to determine how a specific task should be done. But wait, you say, "We have lubrication PMs. Our tasks are all documented in lube routes, so we've already captured our lubrication knowledge explicitly." Unless you've documented each pertinent detail (how much, how often, which tool or product), don't fool yourself - a PM cannot and should not be considered explicit unless all gray areas have been eliminated. Why have few companies taken the time and effort to capture explicit knowledge? Hopefully you all agree that the devil is in the details, not the simple task description. The answer, in my opinion, is that the time and effort to build truly specific lubrication PMs is so daunting, and there always seems to be a bigger fire that needs attention. The Difference is Accuracy This need not be the case. The incremental effort required to make a lube PM truly explicit is really not that much harder than writing a general guide, particularly if you take an asset class approach to design the optimum maintenance process. But the difference in the accuracy by which tasks are executed is profound, depending on how specific the task description is in the PM. Therefore, ask yourself if you have explicitly captured every detail necessary to lubricate your machines in your lube PMs, or if you are tacitly expecting that Joe will get it right every time. As always, this is our opinion; we are always interested to hear yours. |
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Special Deals and Sales ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Anvil offers rentals of our hydraulic clamshell buckets stock units on a weekly basis. There is a minimum period of 2 weeks. Give us a call for pricing and availability. At Anvil, we also offer special long term rentals and rent to own pricing. |
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Anvil News ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Product News Anvil hydraulic clamshell buckets are working on the GE Environmental cleanup on the Hudson River upstate New York, more on this in our next letter. Staff News Congratulations to the New Orleans Saints for winning SuperBowl XLIV. |
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Featured Part - Bolt on Reversible Edges ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ Bolt on Reversible Edges Anvil stocks Bolt on Reversible Edges in several sizes for quick delivery. The material we use exceeds AR500. These edges are a wear product that provides a longer life for your original lips. If you are interested in getting more information or a quote on our bolt on reversible edges or any other part, please contact Melisse in Parts at 1-225-654-8223 x 250.
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