12 PERSPECTIVES AW OCTOBER 2021
e aintenance inance afety Connection By David Greenfield
Editor-in-Chief/Director of Content
M
ost coverage of computerized maintenance management systems (CMMS) tends to focus on their ability to reduce downtime, guide maintenance teams, and improve production operations. What’s not typically discussed is how CMMS can be used to mitigate physical and financial risks. Paul Lachance, senior manufacturing advisor at Dude Solutions (a CMMS supplier), noted the following downtime statistics for industrial shop floor operations: • In 2016, the average cost of downtime across all businesses was $260,000 per hour—a 60% jump from 2014, according to Aberdeen Research. In some industries, the cost is considerably higher. In the auto industry, for example, downtime can cost up to $50,000 per minute or $3
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million per hour. • The true cost of downtime is unknown. Consultants believe that 80% of industrial facilities are unable to accurately estimate their downtime. A common estimate is that factories lose anywhere from 5% to 20% of their productivity due to downtime. • Human error causes 23% of unplanned downtime in manufacturing—2.5x higher than other sectors, according to ServiceMax. • A 2017 ServiceMax survey found that 70% of companies lack complete awareness of when equipment is due for maintenance or upgrade. • Manufacturers experience an average of 800 hours of downtime every year. “There are risks all around us. Life and work are all about balancing those risks,” said
Lachance. “Some are financial risks, like unplanned downtime, poor financial planning due to inadequate information, or even compliance gaps. Others are more operationsand team-related risks, such as safety, team inefficiencies, or even poor communication.”
Compliance
Providing an example of how CMMS can be used to mitigate operational risks, Lachance pointed to ISO and OSHA compliance. “ISO 9000 is a way of measuring your quality management systems,” he said. “Failing an ISO audit can lead to extra burdens, increased direct and indirect costs, and loss of goodwill with clients, vendors, and suppliers. OSHA-related violations certainly create financial and operational risks. Team safety is clearly a primary goal, but the secondary costs of an OSHA-
10/8/21 8:27 AM
