Maintenance Technology October 2015 - (Page 33)
LUBRICATION
Simple Purchasing Practices
Incite Lubrication Failure
Ken Bannister
MEch Eng (UK)
CMRP, MLE
Contributing Editor
While this account of one plant's extremely costly, catastrophic experience
is a tough read, rest assured that the situation was avoidable.
MAINTENANCE DEPARTMENTS MAY
perform their own purchasing/expediting of MRO
(maintenance/repair operations) materials or,
conversely, rely on a formal relationship with the
corporate purchasing department to perform that
task. In either case, it behooves a maintenance
department to have processes and procedures in
place to ensure the exact lubricants required are
successfully ordered and received-every time.
This case study involves a catastrophic event at
an automotive assembly plant located somewhere
in North America. At the time of this lubricationrelated failure, the plant was operating with three
continual shifts, 24/7, to accommodate a fourweek running backlog of vehicle orders. With
an average unit selling price of $35,000 and a
line speed averaging 60 units/hour, downtime
losses were unrecoverable at the rate of more
than $2 million in sales losses/hour.
Despite its successful order book, the
company had engaged in a corporate efficiency
program that required its purchasing staff to
individually review every purchase request and
seek out less expensive alternatives wherever
possible. In exchange, the company would
extend a bonus based on the percentage of all
accumulated savings. As a result, all purchases-
including those associated with critical lubrication
activities-slowed as agents in this motivated
department immersed themselves in the role of
price-cutting negotiator. The situation only served
to reduce the level of service to the maintenance
department and upset its regular group of suppliers.
If the original supplier didn't lower its price,
the purchasing agent would look for an alternative source based on the order specification. If
the specification wasn't exacting, he/she could
seek out a "similar" product. As detailed here,
OCTOBER 2015
this purchasing-efficiency approach fueled a very
expensive lubrication failure.
Brewing a perfect storm
The maintenance purchase requisition simply stated
"two totes of ISO 22 air-tool oil." The automaker's
lubrication program had recently completed
lube-consolidation activities that reduced the site's
different lubricant types/SKUs by half (to single
digits)-leading to six-figure savings. As a result,
lubricating oils were to be purchased in bulk totes
from a reputable manufacturer through a reputable
local supplier.
Cutting corners on lubricant
purchases is usually a ticket to
costly expenses elsewhere.
The lubrication program also
ensured that lubricants were to be
stored separately in a lubrication
crib, and that they be adequately spill
protected with a concrete berm and
drain system. In addition to oils and
greases, several release chemical agents were
also stored in the lubrication crib.
To accommodate safe lubricant transfer, the
maintenance department requested multiple
MAINTENANCETECHNOLOGY.COM | 33
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Table of Contents for the Digital Edition of Maintenance Technology October 2015
My Take
Uptime
For on the Floor
Industry News
Crushing Limestone with Reliability
Choose Reliability or Cost Control
Get To The Root of the Cause
Select the Right Safety Logic System
Simple Purchasing Practices Incite Lubrication Failure
CMMS Upgrade Tips
Pump-Bearing Alignment
Lockout/Tagout Advice
Advancing Ergonomics
Products
Showcase
Ad Index
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