Zero Breakdown Strategies: The Key to TPM.

* Zero Breakdown Strategies by Terry Wireman, online, 2001, 2.5 hrs., V-Workshops.com (973-539-7715, www.v-workshops.com), $299 per user.

Total Productive Maintenance (TPM) is an equipment-based maintenance management concept. Philosophically, TPM resembles Total Quality Management (TOM) in many ways: (1) upper-level management must be totally committed; (2) empowered employees are the norm, and they must be able to initiate corrective action; and (3) the process must be long term and ongoing--it's not suitable for shortsighted profit seekers.

No longer regarded as a non-profit activity, TPM aligns equipment maintenance as a vitally important part of the business cycle. Down time for maintenance is scheduled as a part of the production cycle and, in some cases, as an integral part of the manufacturing process. Maintenance is no longer simply squeezed in whenever there is a break in material flow. The goal is to hold emergency and unscheduled (breakdown) maintenance to a minimum.

The concept of zero breakdowns seeks to root out the factors causing breakdowns. What methods can be used to spot the causes of breakdowns? The approach flows from the recognition that total plant profitability is sensitive to uptime and maintenance costs. Management decisions must reflect both the cost of maintenance and the cost of a failure. The course instructor, Terry Wireman, teaches a two-step operation to improve reliability and-decrease costs.

The workshop is presented in an interactive format using a PowerPoint electronic slide presentation delivered over the web, supplemented with real-time audio. A second telephone line with speaker capability is required to comfortably and simultaneously listen to Wireman and watch the slide presentation. V-Workshops staff were quite knowledgeable and helpful in assisting participants with set-up procedures and other course logistics. They provided a well-run experience.

Zero Breakdown Strategies is very useful for maintenance and production managers to train large numbers of employees in the principles of zero breakdowns. Wireman is a recognized expert in maintenance systems and brings a wealth of experience that translates easily into stories that drive home his points. The topic is not cutting edge, but like a good knife that has gotten dull from misuse, this workshop shows us how to sharpen our understanding of what really can be accomplished if we use TPM effectively. The workshop has been well researched, and Wireman has an interesting speaking style that prevents the workshop from sinking into the doldrums.

While the program can be interactive, Wireman didn't ask questions or ask for comments until one hour into the program. This kept the workshop on schedule but wasn't conducive to the exchange of ideas. The same course could have been accomplished using an audio track that would have not required a second telephone line.

Recommendation

At $299 for a 2.5 hours of instruction led by a subject matter expert, this online workshop is reasonably priced, even though it isn't especially interactive. If I were a maintenance manager, I'd bring in all my maintenance and production supervisors, lead hands, foremen, etc., and project the workshop on a large-screen TV with good audio. It would be well worth the cost.

Richard Lowell ([e-mail] or [e-mail]) is the general manager, Training Services, for FMSC Group Inc., a maintenance management and engineering services consulting firm that is part of the FLS midth family of companies.

Zero Breakdown Stratagies product rating
Holds user interest  ***
Production quality   ***
Ease of navigation   NA
Interactivity        **1/2
Value of content     ***
Instructional value  **1/2
Value for the money  ***1/2
Overall rating       ***