Image

Preventive maintenance — dull, except for the bottom line

July 6, 2010
Mechanics are like anyone else; they like excitement and a challenge. So if equipment goes down because a pump fails or a valve sticks, everyone gets stressed out because they need to get equipment running again. So in comes the maintenance technician to save the day.


While attending the Reliable Plant Conference & Expo last year, one of the speakers said something I thought was pretty profound, but he seemed to just brush it off as common knowledge.

Terry Taylor, of Arch Coal Inc., St. Louis, presented a paper titled, “Highwall Miner Reliability — From Rags to Riches.” Taylor outlined some of the practices his company’s management team followed to increase the production of one of its highwall miners — which was producing only about half of its potential. Taylor explained how they evaluated the machine’s service records to determine the most common types of failures, their frequency, and severity.

Many of the failures involved the hydraulic system. However, it was also determined that most of these failures — hydraulic or otherwise — were preventable. Leaking hoses and fittings, premature pump failures, and sticking valves can all be avoided simply by performing routine preventive maintenance.

Some of this preventive maintenance involves periodic inspections, followed up by corrective action. If you find a hose has worked loose from its restraint, fix it. If a fitting has come loose, tighten it.

However, most preventive maintenance involves routine service. Take regular fluid samples to assess the cleanliness of hydraulic fluid. Change filters at regular intervals. Hook up filter carts to clean fluid in reservoirs.

All this routine service is pretty dull, and this is where Taylor grabbed my attention. He said mechanics are like anyone else; they like excitement and a challenge. So if equipment goes down because a pump fails or a valve sticks, everyone gets stressed out because they need to get equipment running again. So in comes the maintenance technician on his white horse. He pulls out his collection of super tools and instruments, changes out the pump or frees the sticky valve, and the machine comes back on line. He becomes the man of the hour, our hero.

I can also picture how management might view preventive maintenance. Management may wonder why they’re paying all these guys good money to change filters and tighten fittings. They don’t realize — or have forgotten — that it’s all this routine maintenance that keeps machines from suffering unscheduled downtime. Typically, they may reduce the workforce to cut costs, but then they’re surprised when downtime increases.

Unfortunately, management may never realize that the $50,000 they might save from laying off someone ends up costing the company three times that (or more) in unscheduled downtime over that same year. It’s not unusual for high-production machinery to be worth $1000 or more per hour. At that rate, it only takes a few breakdowns to offset any savings in the payroll.

About the Author

Alan Hitchcox Blog | Editor in Chief

Alan joined Hydraulics & Pneumatics in 1987 with experience as a technical magazine editor and in industrial sales. He graduated with a BS in engineering technology from Franklin University and has also worked as a mechanic and service coordinator. He has taken technical courses in fluid power and electronic and digital control at the Milwaukee School of Engineering and the University of Wisconsin and has served on numerous industry committees.

Continue Reading

May 10, 2017
Author Brendan Casey lays out his hydraulics know-how that he acquired over 27 years in a simple handbook made for people that want to improve their skills in troubleshooting ...
Nov. 28, 2023
The CY1000 robot reduces the manual labor required for production of wire harnesses, helping to address manufacturing and supply chain challenges.

Sponsored Recommendations

May 15, 2024
Production equipment is expensive and needs to be protected against input abnormalities such as voltage, current, frequency, and phase to stay online and in operation for the ...
March 13, 2024
With experienced Product Engineers and Customer Service personnel, Altech provides solutions to your most pressing application challenges. All with one thought in mind - to ensure...
March 13, 2024
Introducing the All-In-One DC-UPS, a versatile solution combining multiple functionalities in a single device. Serving as a power supply, battery charger, battery care module,...
March 13, 2024
With experienced Product Engineers and Customer Service personnel, Altech provides solutions to your most pressing application challenges. All with one thought in mind - to ensure...