Reliability Improvement

Tailored, innovative reliability improvement solutions

Improving reliability in your organisation requires the right decisions being made to optimise the delivery of value. The objective is to ensure the optimised balance between reliability, availability, maintainability and safety of all assets, at optimal cost.

We can help support you with all areas of reliability improvement, including:

  • Data cleansing

  • Defining hierarchy of assets

  • Reliability performance indicators and dashboard

  • CMMS or CAFM selection

  • Optimised maintenance programmes

  • Asset condition surveys

  • Determination of the optimum timing of refurbishment and replacement of assets

Reliability improvement requires reliability optimisation, criticality and condition of the assets by using the most appropriate tools and techniques for supporting the development and revision of maintenance plans. Technology innovations are driving businesses to transform the traditional way of work in reliability maintenance using digitalisation, and the concepts of the Industrial Internet of Things (IIoT). This can utilise predictive maintenance and failure predictions which contribute to managing risk and improving cost, performance, quality and safety.

No matter which type of processes and practices you follow within your organisation, reliability increases can be made with a tailored, innovative reliability improvement plan.

Are you looking for new ways to improve your reliability?

There are many tried and tested methods to improve reliability but many are time and labour intensive. Smart Asset Maintenance use our 30 years industry experience, together with the newest, most innovative technology tools to help you create a new reliability improvement plan. A plan that is clear, concise and simple to follow. A plan that will provide the reliability levels you need to meet your targets.

The rewards of improved reliability

Our approach to reliability improvement has delivered substantial, tangible benefits to our clients in the areas of:

  • Increased uptime of assets

  • Reduced annual maintenance expenditure

  • Reduced inventory

  • Capital avoidance - improved asset performance which has led to the cancelling of planned capital projects often saving clients > £1m

  • Improved project delivery through a better understanding of Early Equipment Management needs

There are also intangible benefits such as providing and better understanding of asset capability and an improved team working between maintenance, operations and projects through sharing of understanding. Also, by improving the utilisation of maintenance skills; maintenance technicians spend less time 'fixing' problems and more time preventing them.

How we can support you with your reliability improvement

We follow a holistic approach to leading reliability improvement programmes, ensuring all contributory factors are investigated and appropriately addressed. The process follows a top-down and bottom-up approach and includes:

  • Identifying assets with poor reliability and understand asset performance standards

  • Reviewing operating standards and understand processes

  • Observing engineering standards and practices to identify any immediate maintenance requirements

  • Reviewing Manufacturers information to identify possible differences to manufacturers recommendations

  • Analysing failure history and trends

  • Assessment of technical maintenance and suitability of current methods

  • Risk based maintenance review

This process actively engages with the maintenance, operations and project staff of the organisation, ensuring sustainable improvements are made for both existing and new installations. Once the assessment is complete and areas of improvement highlighted, a detailed reliability improvement plan will be provided. But we won't leave you there! We can support you implement the plan as well as provide training for your staff and provide recommendations on how you can future proof your reliability through a continuous improvement plan and the better utilisation of existing technology or the implementation of new technology to support condition monitoring or predictive maintenance.

Reduce downtime and improve equipment reliability

Are you ready to achieve your reliability improvement goals? To find out more about how we can help you establish a robust improvement programme contact us for an obligation-free discussion.

Frequently asked questions:

What are the methods of improving reliability?

Failure Mode and Effects Analysis (FMEA) is used to identify the ways in which components, systems or processes can fail to fulfil their design intent.

Failure Modes, Effects and Criticality Analysis (FMECA) is an extension to the above and ranks each fault mode identifies according to its importance or criticality.

Reliability Centered Maintenance (RCM) is used to develop an effective preventive maintenance programme for equipment in accordance with the safety, environmental, operational and economic consequences of identifiable and the degradation mechanics. RCM incorporates the use of FMEA or FMECA as the first part for the process.

Planned Maintenance Optimisation (PMO) is used to develop an effective preventive maintenance programme for equipment but unlike RCM, there are no formal international standards so these can vary from vendor to vendor.

Root Cause Analysis (RCA) can identify the root causes of faults instead of only dealing with the immediately obvious symptoms. RCA can develop and implement solutions that prevent the reoccurrence of the fault.

Reliability, availability and maintainability (RAM) analysis looks at a systems capabilities to identify potential causes of production loss and can be used to develop mitigation plans to reduce losses.

Review of Existing Maintenance (REM) is a process that established maintenance routines and ensures that are fit for purpose.

How do you measure equipment reliability?

The most commonly used measurements to determine equipment performance are: Mean Time to Repair (MTTR), Mean Time Between Failure (MTBF), and Availability.

These measurements are all crucial components of the reliability of equipment and have an impact on cost-efficiency.

What are the factors affecting equipment or machine reliability?

There are many factors which can affect equipment's overall reliability, such as:

  • Poor design

  • Manufacturing defects

  • Quality issues

  • Environmental conditions

  • Overstress or misuse

  • Wear and tear

We can support your ongoing reliability programs.

Whatever reliabilityeee issues you have, we would love to have the opportunity to understand the challenges that you are facing and help you to achieve your productivity goals.

An obligation-free discussion with one of our consultants is the best place to start!