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This ice cream maker proves that computerized
maintenance management systems are now a
viable option for midsized and small plants,
too.
The next ice cream you buy at Denny’s or
Costco, may have come from Coast Mountain
Dairy, an ice cream making plant situated
in Chilliwack, British Columbia. This small
plant has grown in size to 12,000 sq. ft.
of ice cream-making equipment, ranging from
40 different pumps ( including stuffer pumps
and feed pumps) to 120 different valves,
to a large inventory of specialized parts.
However, with increases in demand and production
came an increase in problems
associated with maintenance of the company’s
equipment. It became apparent to management
that it was imperative to purchase and implement
a CMMS (computerized maintenance management
system) to address these maintenance management
problems and to streamline maintenance planning.
For most of this creamery’s history, the
scheduling, maintenance and management of
its equipment was done on an ad hoc basis.
There was a dearth of credible information
on maintenance activities and data on previous
work orders was not retained. Operators
knew little about the specific repair history
of any particular machine. Invaluable component
parts information such as the vendor, the
costs of the equipment, and part numbers
were unrecorded. If a work order to
repair a stuffer pump (used to feed ice
cream mix to the freezing barrels) was issued,
no one knew what the status was of the work
being requested.
“Downtime translated to at least 45 minutes
per day due to equipment failure, malfunction,
or maintenance,” states Stan Howarth, facility
manager for the plant. “Basically, it was
panic maintenance instead of preventive
maintenance.” But Coast Mountain is
neither large enough to employ an IT staff
to develop its own customized CMMS software,
nor does it have the capacity to employ
a full-time planning engineer/technician
planner. The plant only has three maintenance
trades people including the supervisor.
Howarth knew that, even though CMMS software
had been around a long time, most of these
programs failed to meet their users’ objectives
- especially with respect to small companies.
Often, these software programs are designed
so that only highly skilled, dedicated,
technical staff can operate the system.
Their costs are often prohibitive to smaller
companies with limited budgets.
Furthermore, lower - priced products often
translate into a lower quality, with a poorly
supported product. But more and more developers
are overcoming these obstacles. Companies
specializing in CMMS now develop systems
in which custom-like features allow a company
to effectively and efficiently plan and
execute tasks to ensure maximum uptime of
its equipment. Many of these systems
are priced competitively for small to mid-size
companies and are comparatively easy to
use – even for the technician that is uncomfortable
working with computers.
The management of this creamery was experienced
with in-house customized programs. They
chose an in-depth CMMS with capabilities
that would fit their plant needs and budget.
The Coast Mountain CMMS operates
without the need for planners and both
skilled and unskilled operators can
input into it. This software is competitively
priced against competitors and is supported
by experienced technical staff.
The Main Module of this CMMS offers Coast
Mountain a wide range of capabilities
such as Asset Management, Preventive Maintenance,
Work Orders, Spare Parts, Purchasing and
Reports that assist in effectively managing
their equipment. During the learning curve
of installing and using this program, the
back up from this CMMS was there to make
the operation easy and complete.
The installation of this system was simple.
The database for the CMMS was installed
onto the central server and users
had either the Work Request or Main module
installed on their PCs, which were then
linked to the common database. Four
PC’s were available for input of data.
Previously, work requests were
initiated when equipment failed or
malfunctioned. A work request was
orally made to a supervisor who,
in turn, determined whether a work
order should be made. With the new CMMS,
the work request module now allows any
user to enter from a desktop icon a work
request, with only the work
description being compulsory. After
inputting the work request, the system
then tracks any changes made to that
work request so that a user can see
whether it is cancelled (with reasons)
or is promoted to a work order.
Once the work request evolves into a
work order, the ongoing status of that
work order is tracked until it is
closed.
As with most small companies that plan a
maintenance procedure, Coast
Mountain concentrates on the PM tasks.
The key here in using a CMMS is to input
detailed records of each machine’s
repair history so that the effectiveness
of the PM process is constantly
revisited. Without complete maintenance
detail, this process and the generation
of KPIs and MTBF are meaningless.
When the preventive maintenance sheets
were first printed, the information was
basic. The task of the mechanic was to
not only to follow the procedure, but
also to get as much information as
possible about the equipment. This
information was in turn added to the
CMMS database. Now, one year
later, all employees at the Coast plant
have most of the information about all
of the equipment at their fingertips.
The results in using the CMMS have been
significant and measurable. Work
requests are now made by non-maintenance
staff who track progress without
having to bother the maintenance
supervisor. Preventive maintenance
routines are set up for all the critical
machines, and compliance is being
recorded. Prior to working on a machine,
maintenance technicians quickly scan
previous work on that machine, including
drilling down to work order details.
All purchases are recorded using the
purchasing module, thus facilitating
detail searches for any supplier or
part. Downtime costs in the plant
run approximately $1500/ hour, so the
reduction in downtime of 45 minutes per
day in downtime translates into a cost
savings of $1200 per day.
Howarth is now working on formalizing
his spare parts inventory and checking
out the work log feature that further
simplifies the task of creating and
updating work orders, while at the same
time providing an on-screen daily
logbook of all maintenance work done in
the plant.
Some may denigrate this use of a CMMS as
a filing system, but this is proof that
a value-priced CMMS can be an invaluable
tool for maintenance in smaller plants
or facilities. Herein lies the
present and the future of CMMS –
competitively priced, user-friendly
software that is specifically designed
to assist small to mid–sized companies
in effectively managing, operating and
maintaining their critical equipment.
Better maintenance translates to the
bottom line, in terms of better employee
and machine utilization.
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