CNC Milling Machine Automotive

Project Info

The client is a manufacturer of parts for the automotive industry. One machine on the production line was causing a backlog in production, due to repeat failures. The machine was a single point of failure. A discussion was held with site management to determine a strategy of action which would improve the current situation.

Solution

The decision to either perform a Root Cause Analysis on the failures or to run a Reliability Centred Maintenance study on the machine was discussed. It was agreed that maintenance plans were insuffi cient and not well executed through a formal planning and scheduling process. It was therefore decided to run the RCM study to determine the optimum maintenance program including a review of the daily TPM (Total Productive Manufacturing) activities.

An improvement team made up of a mechanical, production and process engineer were brought together to perform the study.

The process began first with the development of an equipment hierarchy which was not current in the companies CMMS system. All current maintenance activity and failure reporting was being captured at production line level. Once the equipment hierarchy was built, it was followed with a failure mode and effects analysis (FMEA) that identifi ed the failure modes of the machine. The team then examined each failure mode to determine the optimum maintenance policy to reduce the severity impact of each failure.

The chosen maintenance strategy considered the cost, safety, environmental and operational consequences. The effects of redundancy, spares costs, maintenance crew costs, equipment ageing, and repair times were also considered.

Once the optimal maintenance policies had been identified within the RCM process, the team were then able to see the performance predictions
and costs, expected spares requirements and maintenance crew manning levels.

Results

The optimised maintenance strategy was also used to determine several outputs including:

• Maintenance Strategy Comparison
• FMECA Summary
• Maintenance Plan

Conclusion

The implementation of the recommended maintenance strategy will reduce business effects by minimising losses to production through unplanned outages and increase plant availability.

With a combination of simple methodologies and practical training delivery, Pro-Reliability Solutions support Asset and Continuous Improvement Managers to proactively manage their assets and ensure their equipment delivers the required level of availability while minimising risks to the business.

Whether it is a new project in the design phase or an existing facility that needs improvement, ProReliability Solutions can help customers realise bottom-line results.

This Reliability Study was performed using Isograph Availability Workbench Software.

Further Information

If you are interested in performing a Reliability Maturity Self-Assessment at your facility or would like to develop a roadmap for your Reliability future, then please get in touch.