Frequently Asked » What is TPM ?

TPM (Total Productive Maintenance) is the maintenance philosophy emphasizes on raising the effectiveness of the productive equipment we invested in. The goal is to eliminate equipment time losses associated with equipment maintenance by driving waste out of the manufacturing process and maintenance routines. In other words, enable equipment producing only good products, as fast as possible with no unplanned downtime.

Traditionally, maintenance been viewed as a support function and treated as a separate entity outside of the manufacturing process. TPM requires re-examing the role of maintenance in the production process and a shift in thinking. Besides the need to integrate maintenance with manufacturing to improve productivity and asset availability, the organization must review its operation policy to enable stepwise change from a reactive/corrective maintenance environment to one that is based on preventative maintenance through predictive maintenance.

Successful TPM implementation is a group effort where the entire organization takes the responsibility to maintain and improve the equipment seriously. Just as lean manufacturing relies on Kaizen or continuous improvement; continuous re-evaluation of the maintenance cycle allows for kaizen in maintenance programs. Similar the PDCA or DMAIC, root cause analysis exposes the underlying issues to be addressed. Implementing appropriate counter measures eliminate once and for all. Many organizations have hailed TPM as their critical success factor in their lean journey.

TPM focuses on restoring equipment into its original operating condition and preventing breakdowns through Autonomous Maintenance and Planned Maintenance. Autonomous Maintenance is a key aspect of TPM which trains workers to take care of basic maintenance on their own equipment and machines. It relies on endless Kaizen to speed up repair after breakdowns occurred (breakdown maintenance), mistake-proofed equipment in order to eliminate product defects (quality maintenance) or install equipment to make maintenance easier (corrective maintenance) or eliminate the needs of maintenance (maintenance prevention).

OEE (Overall Equipment Effectiveness) is a TPM metric developed to measure the success of total productive maintenance programs by associating the Six Big Losses with three measurable indices: Availability, Performance and Quality. OEE enables organizations to gauge for the progress of TPM and a framework to identify areas that can be improved.

Pamalex consulting provides Total Productive Maintenance training and support program for TPM implementation. Contact us at enquiry@pamalex.com for more information.