“If your plant’s mechanical availability is not above 96 percent, chances are you have valuable untapped margin. And if your maintenance cost as a percentage of plant replacement value is not well below 2 percent, you are spending too much,” said Al Poling, project manager for the RAM Study. “Solomon Associates’ proprietary gap analysis reveals where participants can improve their maintenance operations, which can result in millions of dollars in margin gain.”
Over 1,000 plants with more than 8,000 process units have participated in Solomon Associates’ previous RAM Studies. The comparative analysis reveals where companies can increase capacity without costly capital investment and reduce expenses without sacrificing performance. The measures utilized can be incorporated into each plant’s internal metrics to help set realistic improvement targets.
Specific metrics and benchmarks analyzed in the study include:
- Maintenance effectiveness index (margin gain combined with cost reduction)
- Mechanical availability (downtime attributable to reliability and maintenance causes)
- Downtime (scheduled and unscheduled)
- Routine maintenance labor (direct and indirect)
- Routine maintenance material
- Turnaround maintenance labor (direct and indirect)
- Turnaround maintenance material
- Turnaround frequency and duration
- Staffing ratios
- Labor rates
- Planning rate
- Schedule compliance
- Society for Maintenance and Reliability Professionals (SMRP) metrics
European Federation of National Maintenance Societies (EFNMS) indicatorsTo help operators prepare for participation in the RAM Study, Solomon Associates offers in-person and/or web-based training seminars for data collection and entry, assistance with confidential web-based data input, validation of data to confirm accuracy of input, and the in-person presentation of quantified results to ensure maximization of study benefits.
“The RAM Study provides each plant with a wealth of insights regarding its reliability and maintenance performance and points to likely causal factors for areas of underperformance,” Poling said. “Reliability can be maximized with a corresponding maintenance cost optimization, thereby providing the best return on your investment in physical plant assets.”
Interested companies may learn more about the RAM Study by visiting http://solomononline.com/ram2/ or contacting Al Poling at +1.972.739.1731 or via email at Al.Poling(at)Solomononline(dot)com.
About Solomon Associates
Based in Dallas, HSB Solomon Associates LLC is the world’s leading performance improvement company for energy companies seeking to identify and close gaps in operational performance. Combining proven, patented methodologies with objective data analysis, and led by a team steeped in hands-on operational experience, Solomon Associates consistently helps clients with energy-intensive assets achieve greater efficiencies, enhanced reliability, and improved margins. Solomon Associates is part of HSB Group, Inc. To learn more about Solomon Associates, visit www.solomononline.com
