POWER August 2010 - 62

PLANT MANAGEMENT
years after that process began, their proactive,
operations-driven culture is promoting
continuous improvement at the facility. A
revamped operator training program, the addition
of six planners and four engineers, the
integration of production teams, and a new
computerized maintenance management system
(CMMS) that is in development keep all
employees aware that they can never go back
to the old ways of doing their work.
As Spurlock staff have learned, time commitments
and strong personal efforts from
everyone are necessary in order for real
change to be implemented. The station manager
often shares his vision of " the desired
future state " with station employees. That vision
includes:
■ Engineered solutions to problems and
improvement opportunities- " continuous
improvement. "
■ Daily and weekly maintenance schedules.
■ Dedicated planned outage resources.
■ Responsibility-centered performance
management.
■ Employee development and succession
plans.
■ Close relationships among supply chain,
warehouse, safety, fuels, and environmental
teams.
■ Multi-skilled production teams.
■ Stronger technical and risk management
evaluations.
■ Enhanced financial tracking.
■ Optimized staffing levels/contract resources.
Business drivers that are part of the desired
future state vision include ensuring employee
and plant safety; being environmentally compliant;
reducing production costs through improved
asset reliability and availability; and
effectively managing labor, inventory, contractors,
and fuel costs.
Building a Foundation for Change
Following a work practices assessment,
Spurlock Station formulated its new structured
work process. Reliability Management
Group (RMG), a work process consultant
firm, assisted the station with WPO design,
implementation, and field coaching. Spurlock
Station management began their WPO
efforts by developing management expectations
for work process elements of the model
shown in Figure 2.
With WPO management expectations in
hand, the deliberations and design team-a
cross-functional group of hourly, salaried,
supervisory, and management employees-
built additional detail into their preferred
work process. Guidelines for the six processes
(the yellow boxes in Figure 2), workflow
diagrams, and measures were developed by
62
consensus, documented, and then affirmed
by management. The station had its roadmap
for the change journey.
Implementing WPO
With station management's commitment and
corporate backing, the WPO implementation
began in January 2009. This major undertaking
was daunting and involved considerable
resources, time, money, and energy. Plant
personnel were transitioning from construction
to commissioning and commercializing
new operations, plus operating three existing
units and handling multiple fuel sources.
Four scheduled outages were also tucked into
the calendar year. Managers weren't crazy,
but some employees wondered what would
motivate them to undertake WPO in light of
all that was going on at the station.
Operators and craft teams were frustrated
by lost time, wasted effort, and bruised
egos when assignments didn't turn out as
expected. They were expected to accomplish
work on short notice with limited communication
and coordination. Employees knew
improvements were needed but wondered
how their work lives would be affected. The
WPO process invited them to share ideas
and feedback, make changes through consensus,
and communicate WPO successes
and challenges-all of which was a new way
of doing business. Not everyone agreed on
what should change, and how. What's more,
the WPO steering committee's initial project
time line needed to be adjusted due to unexpected
events.
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Understanding the delays and frustrations, the
station manager was steadfast in his leadership
and persevered. " I believe the WPO implementation
speed is justifiably slower than my other
experiences (with implementations like WPO).
Regardless, we will achieve our WPO goal, "
Station Manager David Elkins commented.
The remainder of this article explains
how Spurlock personnel dealt with a number
of challenges in implementing WPO at
their facility.
Managing Time
There isn't enough time to do everything.
From the newest to the most experienced employee,
all station employees at some time
during WPO implementation have been overwhelmed,
overworked, and pulled in several
directions. WPO is not a magic bullet; it's a
tool. Work scheduling helps maximize getting
the right work done at the right time, but
true emergencies will never be eliminated,
only minimized.
Work demands are still heavy, yet gradually
Spurlock personnel are using WPO
as a tool to manage first things first. Today
Spurlock staff are managing risk and
resources more proactively than they did
two years ago. Patience, effort, and communication
(in groups and one-to-one) are
required. Safely accomplishing the most
important work for the station is the top
priority of the staff, and focusing on the big
picture helps put time pressures and station
life in perspective.
POWER | August 2010
2. How work process optimization works. The yellow boxes identify basic work
processes, and the " wheel " illustrates how their interrelationships support efficient work practices
and continuous improvement efforts. Source: Reliability Management Group
Work
Proactivity zone
Problem
solving
Work analysis &
measurement
Work
planning
Collect and utilize data
Work
documentation
Joint
Daily
schedule
compliance
Work
accomplishment
prioritization
Work Culture
Productivity zone
Work
scheduling
identification
Pain
zone

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POWER August 2010

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