Evaluation of a preventative maintenance system at an automotive weld plant.

Abstract

Abstract The automotive industry is an organisation that competes globally with other organisations and internally with other plants. Through the implementation of various competitive strategies namely total quality management, just in time and production systems, these organisations have taken on the mantle of world-class organisations. To compete in this space, world class organisations must ensure that all aspects of the business are strategically aligned to the organisational goals. Total Preventative Maintenance is a strategy that world-class organisations use to ensure that maintenance activities are competitive by minimising costs and maximising production. The aim of the study is to evaluate the Preventative Maintenance System of an automotive weld plant to understand the struggle points that result in high repeat breakdowns. The study makes use of a quantitative study, for the evaluation of the plant, amongst 73 employees. The employees are from the maintenance and engineering sector of the weld plant and the information is gathered using a questionnaire. It is found that the respondents have limited resources with regard to staff size and that the organisation structure is a limiting factor in application of their tasks. It is also noted that skills and training are rated high amongst respondents. The main finding is the lack of a Preventative Maintenance (PM) management system and planners. This results in the lack of historical data and the lack of PM improvements. This is a contributing factor to poor maintenance and resultant equipment failure. It is recommended that management address the low morale by ensuring the organisation structure and staff complement is adequate. The best practices of Preventative Maintenance with information from equipment failures must be followed forming the base for further improvement to the PM system. This can only be done with accurate record keeping and daily planning. The implementation of a permanent planner is an essential factor in ensuring that PM is managed and updated to ensure repeat breakdowns do not occur.