Up Time Magazine- February/March 2008

reliability upload Making Ice Cream More Reliably Wells Dairy - In the Midst of the Journey by Larry Hoing G oing from vision to reality in a reliability journey – and how the process grows and changes as the culture transforms from the complacency of run to failure, to the accountability of continuous improvement – is an experience that anyone in the maintenance and reliability profession should get excited about. In this article, we will take a look at a reliability centered effort still in the midst of this journey. Instead of seeing a program at the pinnacle of its maturity, where the culture has already changed, and the processes are producing consistent positive results, we will explore a program that might look a lot like yours, one that is in the middle of the voyage. We will share the struggles and the victories we have had, and what we have learned thus far. definite lean towards technology and automation. From what I have heard from some of our vendors, we are probably the most advanced technological manufacturer of ice cream. With that said, we have a great need in today’s business environment to reduce costs and also to increase throughput. In my eyes, that is a perfect equation for the need for reliability. That is why we are where we are today. Let’s define journey: Within the journey of reliability there are many specific and viable perspectives of what increased reliability means to a company. Take, for instance, the difference between production staff on the floor to the maintenance managers in the office. From each perspective reliability looks very different. Of course this all depends on your knowledge and background, but it also depends on your vantage point. If I were viewing from far above a stampede running full bore towards a cliff, I would want to stop them because of the danger I can see for them. If however, I was in the midst of the stampede I am only going to want to go with the crowd so that I don’t get trampled. Not knowing, of course, the impending danger just in front of us. Without continuous training to the entire organization, and clear direction from an overall view, we can easily perform great things but still be heading, as an organization, in the wrong direction. I would like to first introduce you briefly to my company. Wells Dairy, Inc. has been in business since 1913, and is still a family owned business today. Since I joined the company 22 years ago, our sales have always increased. In fact, they have doubled in the last 10 years and the company has changed drastically. In this rapid growth environment, and in our maturation into a larger family owned company, we have gone through some super-fantastic changes. A great deal of these items, combined with our basic Midwest culture, lead us to be very busy people that like to get things done with high activity. In other words, for those of you that know anything about Birkman, we are basically a RED company. This gives us an advantage in that we are high energy, high activity, so we do a lot of work. The down side is that we do a lot of work, so it is not always planned out as well as it could have been. Much of it also does not have structure and sustainability. Additionally, we are a very innovative company with a journey: 1: A trip or expedition from one place to another. 2: A gradual passing from one state to another regarded as more advanced, e.g. from innocence to mature awareness. Culture Understanding your starting point for your journey sets the direction for how to get to your destination. In a company, each department, asset, work group and, yes, each person has their own starting point, a beginning of their own journey. Remember each of us brings to the table a different perspective of what reliability is. Some don’t have a clue that reliability efforts should even exist. In psychology, I believe that has been called Unconscious Incompetence (ignorance is bliss). Others have been living it every day, and have either Conscious Incompetence (Loss of Innocence) or Conscious Competence (culture shock). Each of our vantage points, background, knowledge, position, or history, gives us a unique view of what has taken place in the past, which helps to condition, or filter, our view of the possibilities in the future. This is one area to be cognizant of if the intent is to change the culture from one of a reactive nature, complacency, ignorance is bliss, to one of a proactive nature, accountability, or mature competence. Our filters need to be adjusted in order to open our minds to the possibility of change needed to set our course in the right direction. 68 february/march 2008

Table of Contents Feed for the Digital Edition of Up Time Magazine- February/March 2008

Up Time Magazine- February/March 2008 Contents Upfront Upclose: Lessons Learned from the Walter Reed Story Information Technology: Parenting and Asset Performance Infrared: It's Alive! Lubrication: A Sense of Change Maintenance Management: PdM, Standardized Motor Testing: Being Well Connected Precision Maintenance: How to be Marketable Reliability: The Voyage of Wells Dairy Ultrasound: Two is Better Than One Vibration: Diagnosing a Cracked Shaft Upgrade: A Different Kind of Journey

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