A large water utility decided to investigate maintenance and reliability best practices. There were eight different treatment plants and eight different maintenance managers. So, as one can imagine, there were eight different maintenance programs. In fact, that is what was found. Each plant thought their program was okay and they were meeting the regulatory discharge permit, so it was often said – what is the big deal, we’ve been doing it this way, so why change? So, at first it was hard to get them to imagine something different. The chief operating officer at the time had asked that we look at each of the programs across the eight plants. Well, that was a sizable project, so we decided to start with machinery lubrication as a foundation to precision maintenance, as well as laser alignment.
It was decided to formerly charter a lubrication governance committee that was made up of a representative from each of the eight plants. They came together in a kickoff meeting and initially discussed lubrication practices. Each described their program and, at first, it was difficult to imagine what they all looked like. So, as a homework assignment, the eight representatives went back to their respective facility and took photographs of their lubrication (oil and grease) storage areas, dispensing equipment, etc. Following this exercise, each of the eight sent their pictures to one individual and they were put into a combined slideshow presentation to visualize each facility’s program. At the next governance committee meeting, the team reviewed each of the eight sets of pictures and, with awe, they could see the differences between good and great. Once they had seen what great looked like, they all rallied around this one person’s program and wanted to go see the facility. After this site visit, the team came back together and decided to update its charter to require each of the plants to implement a program that modeled the one that was desired. They also decided to have a semiannual audit process, where each facility would be audited with a ten question survey every six months to make sure the machinery lubrication program stayed in focus and in tip-top shape.
After two years of doing this, they hired a professional lubrication machinery consultant to come in and perform a formal gap analysis, which led them to begin implementing a best in class machinery lubrication program. The chief operating officer was thrilled at the work, even though at the beginning there were a lot of people not on board with such a new program.
This machinery lubrication effort, combined with others, such as laser alignment best practices, asset condition management, and a sprinkling of other Uptime Elements best practices, led this utility to be internationally recognized and showcased in several Uptime magazine articles, as well as the recipient of its awards.
