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Maintenance tech tip

How to Troubleshoot like an Expert - a Systematic Approach

The approach described here is a logical, systematic approach called the 5 Step Troubleshooting Approach. It is a proven process that is highly effective and reliable in helping to solve electrical problems.

The 5 Step Troubleshooting Approach consists of the following:

Preparation
Step 1 Observation
Step 2 Define Problem Area
Step 3 Identify Possible Causes
Step 4 Determine Most Probable Cause
Step 5 Test and Repair
Follow-up

Take a look at these in more detail, see Warren Rhude' s article How to Troubleshoot like an Expert.

 

SOP to reduce risk to our plants, bridges and water systems...  

A complete PLC policy and procedure manual is out of the scope of this area. However, hear are a few random items below to get you started.

1. Write PLC policies and procedures into your existing maintenance policy and procedures. (SOP) 

2. All personnel working with PLCs will be trained on that PLC equipment. 

3. Backup copies of the PLC programs will be made every 6 months regardless of change status. 

4. If a PLC program has been changed ... 

  a. It will be documented in the software copy, in the printed copy and in the CMMS program. 

  b. Copies of the PLC program will be stored on a media more reliable than floppy disk (CD, USB, etc.). 

  c. Multiple copies will be stored on laptop, maintenance manager's office and off site (corporate). 

  d. If available, EEPROM will be updated with new changed program. 

 Note: If outside vendor changes, a-d will be performed by maintenance personnel 

Please read our article to see more recommendations for SOPs related to future equipment purchases and more tips ... 

Maintenance Management your company's PLC 

 

 

High Demand Training

 

For a long time now, our main company Business Industrial Network (BIN), has had many request for two more advanced topics.

 

* HMI Training (Panelview)

* PID Process Control Training

 

BIN plans to release information about the two new training workshops early in 2006. But before we release the details to the general public, we would like to give our readers and present customers first shot at registering. 

 

As the seating is limited, due to the training equipment required for these hands on workshops.

 

Remember, you heard it here first. :>) just click on the links above to learn more... literally.

 

Reader Feedback
Subject: 

Kudos:

A terrific amount of well presented info on your site.

Greg (Tekdraulics)

__________________

SUPER INFO. SITE

Murry (January Building Inspections)

__________________

A unique site worth visiting for unique programs.

Laxton (MIT Associates)

__________________

Perspective CMMS just launched the latest version of their website with a new, easy to navigate layout and additional content. Pay them a visit at ...

Featured Articles :

Keys for Effective Troubleshooting - By Warren Rhude

Hazardous Area Installation Management - By Abhisam Software

How to Troubleshoot like an Expert ' a Systematic Approach - By Warren Rhude

Plant Maintenance Management of your PLC - By Don Fitchett


Featured Technical Writings:

Moving from Quality Conscious to Accuracy Controlled Production and Maintenance


Industrial News:

Feed Forward Publications and Company News, Week Ending Dec 25,2005 for professionals worldwide.


Archives ...

Click Newsletter to return to current news letter.

space

Volume 15:

Welcome: 

Please select "subscribe to newsletter" on our contact form.

Topic: hazardous area training

Welcome to the 15th issue of our Feed Forward Newsletter; "The Maintenance War Newsletter". This first area of the newsletter is for introductions and commentary. Remember,  the website has many new items added each month. So please browse around and find yourself quality maintenance and engineering information. 

Online version at  www.trade-school.education


I would also like to wish everyone a Safe and Happy Summer.

With the new year all is a buzz around here as we have many new products and information scheduled to release 2008. We have not waited until the New Year to start delivering though, since the last newsletter we have already released a lot of great new products and many articles.

Be sure and review our industrial news area this issue, as we have changed the approach. Typically we forward on to you world news in that area, this time we have used the news area for all our own related industrial news.

The theme this issue is targeted towards our readers from the more hazardous industries and mission critical industries. All of our readers can benefit from the best in class standards those industries are required to maintain, whether it be by law or just by the very nature of the processes they require. 

Hazardous Areas are typically found in large facilities like chemical processing plants, oil production platforms, tank farms, refineries, storage tanks, ships, grain silos, warehouses and other similar areas, which have the risk of explosion or fire due to explosive mixtures of vapors or dusts. While most technical personnel, who work in such facilities or help in designing these installations, are fairly aware of hazardous areas and the risks involved, the report of a recent study carried out by the Health and Safety Executive, UK, is surprising, as well as shocking. It points to the fact, that many so called hazardous area installations, were not up to the standard and some were downright unsafe.  Learn more in the article ...

Hazardous Area Installation Management

I think those in chemical processing plants, oil production, refineries, rubber and plastic manufacturing, transportation manufacturers, food industries, power generation facilities and other similar areas will find this volume of our newsletter of particular interest.


Management HelpAlternate Fuel Resources

 


Reliability Engineering:

accuracy controlled enterpriseThe Accuracy Controlled Enterprise: 

Moving from Quality Conscious to Accuracy Controlled Production and Maintenance

 Moving from Quality Conscious to Accuracy Controlled Production and Maintenance. Highly reliable equipment is necessary to reduce production costs and maximize production throughput. High reliability from operating equipment requires high quality reassembly, coupled with the correct operating practices. You can guarantee correct maintenance and proper plant operation by specifying a target and tolerance in maintenance and operating procedures. Having a target and tolerance sets the recognized acceptance criterion. A simple proof-test will confirm if it has been met. Specifying a mark and tolerance range changes the focus from one of simply doing the job; to now doing the job accurately. This results in high quality trades, workmanship and sound equipment operator practices that deliver reliable equipment performance. Those organizations that use "target, tolerance, proof-test" methodology in their procedural tasks move from being a quality conscious operation to being an Accuracy-Controlled Enterprise (ACE). To read more of Mike Sondalini's article, see Accuracy in Production and Maintenance.pdf


The World Wide Web:

What is Value Management? Value Engineering? Value Analysis?

Equally important as the internet being a tool to network knowledge, is it's value to network people. I was exploring a new contact at "www.Linkedin.com" (a site designed to help you build new contacts in business), of which I have been a member for years. A new friend I made had such an interesting site, I thought I should share it with my readers.

I read the content of his site for about an hour, initially just wondering, what exactly is "Value Management"? But after a few minutes it became a quest for me to evaluate how the True Downtime Cost  methodology could be used as a tool to solidify and justify Value Management.

In an email reply to me, Jim explains ...

" I haven't heard of TDC, however, it's possible it could enhance Value Management. True downtime cost could probably be used assist with evaluating the functions of a system that needs improvement. VE stands for Value Engineering. VA is for Value Analysis and VM encompasses both. VE is the term used when the methodology is used in the design phases of a product/process/service. VA is the term used for improving and existing product/process/service."

"Cost usually is an important element when trying to improve value. When cost data is available for a VA/VE study, it is used to determine where improvements should be made and to quantify these improvements. However, in my experience, many times cost data is not available. So then the things you mentioned such as RCA and other techniques such as FMEA are used. In these cases, the emphasis is on improving quality, reliability, or solving root cause problems with the system. VA/VE is a systems approach, using and interdisciplinary team, to problem solving. This is the primary focus of most of my studies. It seems that in the nuclear industry and environmental industries that I have worked in the past 15 or 16 years, these are more important than cost."

Jim was very detailed in his respond, as the conversation went on about one of his articles that provided a case example. My realization of the need to sense a condition in an airplane with total solid state equipment instead of using a micro hole in a diaphragm, who's quality is detrimental to the sensing. As we all know, most failures are mechanical in nature. :>0 

Point being, network with some people this season!


Some TDC and OEE resources online ...

What is True Downtime Cost - This site has been dedicated to exploring the True Cost of Downtime. (More accurate and complicated ABC method, simplified by automation and computing power)

What is OEE & Teep? - Start with a clear understanding of what exactly OEE is and how it is to be used.


Best regards and thanks for being a subscriber to this newsletter,

Don Fitchett
Managing Editor
Feed Forward Publications
https://trade-school.education
Tel : (573) 547-5630

www.trade-school.education teaches your maintenance crew engineering and asset care knowledge so that they can solve more problems, become more knowledgeable, make better decisions and your plant runs more reliably!

Please select "subscribe to newsletter" on our contact form.

Volume 15:

Welcome: 

Please select "subscribe to newsletter" on our contact form.

Topic: hazardous area training

Welcome to the 15th issue of our Feed Forward Newsletter; "The Maintenance War Newsletter". This first area of the newsletter is for introductions and commentary. Remember,  the website has many new items added each month. So please browse around and find yourself quality maintenance and engineering information. 

Online version at  www.trade-school.education


I would also like to wish everyone a Safe and Happy Summer.

With the new year all is a buzz around here as we have many new products and information scheduled to release 2008. We have not waited until the New Year to start delivering though, since the last newsletter we have already released a lot of great new products and many articles.

Be sure and review our industrial news area this issue, as we have changed the approach. Typically we forward on to you world news in that area, this time we have used the news area for all our own related industrial news.

The theme this issue is targeted towards our readers from the more hazardous industries and mission critical industries. All of our readers can benefit from the best in class standards those industries are required to maintain, whether it be by law or just by the very nature of the processes they require. 

Hazardous Areas are typically found in large facilities like chemical processing plants, oil production platforms, tank farms, refineries, storage tanks, ships, grain silos, warehouses and other similar areas, which have the risk of explosion or fire due to explosive mixtures of vapors or dusts. While most technical personnel, who work in such facilities or help in designing these installations, are fairly aware of hazardous areas and the risks involved, the report of a recent study carried out by the Health and Safety Executive, UK, is surprising, as well as shocking. It points to the fact, that many so called hazardous area installations, were not up to the standard and some were downright unsafe.  Learn more in the article ...

Hazardous Area Installation Management

I think those in chemical processing plants, oil production, refineries, rubber and plastic manufacturing, transportation manufacturers, food industries, power generation facilities and other similar areas will find this volume of our newsletter of particular interest.


Management HelpAlternate Fuel Resources

 

 


Reliability Engineering:

accuracy controlled enterpriseThe Accuracy Controlled Enterprise: 

Moving from Quality Conscious to Accuracy Controlled Production and Maintenance

 Moving from Quality Conscious to Accuracy Controlled Production and Maintenance. Highly reliable equipment is necessary to reduce production costs and maximize production throughput. High reliability from operating equipment requires high quality reassembly, coupled with the correct operating practices. You can guarantee correct maintenance and proper plant operation by specifying a target and tolerance in maintenance and operating procedures. Having a target and tolerance sets the recognized acceptance criterion. A simple proof-test will confirm if it has been met. Specifying a mark and tolerance range changes the focus from one of simply doing the job; to now doing the job accurately. This results in high quality trades, workmanship and sound equipment operator practices that deliver reliable equipment performance. Those organizations that use "target, tolerance, proof-test" methodology in their procedural tasks move from being a quality conscious operation to being an Accuracy-Controlled Enterprise (ACE). To read more of Mike Sondalini's article, see Accuracy in Production and Maintenance.pdf


The World Wide Web:

What is Value Management? Value Engineering? Value Analysis?

Equally important as the internet being a tool to network knowledge, is it's value to network people. I was exploring a new contact at "www.Linkedin.com" (a site designed to help you build new contacts in business), of which I have been a member for years. A new friend I made had such an interesting site, I thought I should share it with my readers.

I read the content of his site for about an hour, initially just wondering, what exactly is "Value Management"? But after a few minutes it became a quest for me to evaluate how the True Downtime Cost  methodology could be used as a tool to solidify and justify Value Management.

In an email reply to me, Jim explains ...

" I haven't heard of TDC, however, it's possible it could enhance Value Management. True downtime cost could probably be used assist with evaluating the functions of a system that needs improvement. VE stands for Value Engineering. VA is for Value Analysis and VM encompasses both. VE is the term used when the methodology is used in the design phases of a product/process/service. VA is the term used for improving and existing product/process/service."

"Cost usually is an important element when trying to improve value. When cost data is available for a VA/VE study, it is used to determine where improvements should be made and to quantify these improvements. However, in my experience, many times cost data is not available. So then the things you mentioned such as RCA and other techniques such as FMEA are used. In these cases, the emphasis is on improving quality, reliability, or solving root cause problems with the system. VA/VE is a systems approach, using and interdisciplinary team, to problem solving. This is the primary focus of most of my studies. It seems that in the nuclear industry and environmental industries that I have worked in the past 15 or 16 years, these are more important than cost."

Jim was very detailed in his respond, as the conversation went on about one of his articles that provided a case example. My realization of the need to sense a condition in an airplane with total solid state equipment instead of using a micro hole in a diaphragm, who's quality is detrimental to the sensing. As we all know, most failures are mechanical in nature. :>0 

Point being, network with some people this season!


Some TDC and OEE resources online ...

What is True Downtime Cost - This site has been dedicated to exploring the True Cost of Downtime. (More accurate and complicated ABC method, simplified by automation and computing power)

https://www.mt-online.com/articles/0701_hiddencost.cfm - This article explains how to calculate them using company financial information and simple rules of thumb.

https://www.mt-online.com/current/02-00mm.html - How Reliability Affects Earnings Per Share

What is OEE & Teep? - Start with a clear understanding of what exactly OEE is and how it is to be used.


Best regards and thanks for being a subscriber to this newsletter,

Don Fitchett
Managing Editor
Feed Forward Publications
https://trade-school.education
Tel : (573) 547-5630

www.trade-school.education teaches your maintenance crew engineering and asset care knowledge so that they can solve more problems, become more knowledgeable, make better decisions and your plant runs more reliably!

Please select "subscribe to newsletter" on our contact form.

"The War on Maintenance" newsletter is listed at Mega-Zine (Engineering Ezines)

Maintenance tech tip

How to Troubleshoot like an Expert - a Systematic Approach

The approach described here is a logical, systematic approach called the 5 Step Troubleshooting Approach. It is a proven process that is highly effective and reliable in helping to solve electrical problems.

The 5 Step Troubleshooting Approach consists of the following:

Preparation
Step 1 Observation
Step 2 Define Problem Area
Step 3 Identify Possible Causes
Step 4 Determine Most Probable Cause
Step 5 Test and Repair
Follow-up

Take a look at these in more detail, see Warren Rhude' s article How to Troubleshoot like an Expert.

 

SOP to reduce risk to our plants, bridges and water systems...  

A complete PLC policy and procedure manual is out of the scope of this area. However, hear are a few random items below to get you started.

1. Write PLC policies and procedures into your existing maintenance policy and procedures. (SOP) 

2. All personnel working with PLCs will be trained on that PLC equipment. 

3. Backup copies of the PLC programs will be made every 6 months regardless of change status. 

4. If a PLC program has been changed ... 

  a. It will be documented in the software copy, in the printed copy and in the CMMS program. 

  b. Copies of the PLC program will be stored on a media more reliable than floppy disk (CD, USB, etc.). 

  c. Multiple copies will be stored on laptop, maintenance manager's office and off site (corporate). 

  d. If available, EEPROM will be updated with new changed program. 

 Note: If outside vendor changes, a-d will be performed by maintenance personnel 

Please read our article to see more recommendations for SOPs related to future equipment purchases and more tips ... 

Maintenance Management your company's PLC 

 

 

High Demand Training

 

For a long time now, our main company Business Industrial Network (BIN), has had many request for two more advanced topics.

 

* HMI Training (Panelview)

* PID Process Control Training

 

BIN plans to release information about the two new training workshops early in 2006. But before we release the details to the general public, we would like to give our readers and present customers first shot at registering. 

 

As the seating is limited, due to the training equipment required for these hands on workshops.

 

Remember, you heard it here first. :>) just click on the links above to learn more... literally.

 

Reader Feedback
Subject: 

Kudos:

A terrific amount of well presented info on your site.

Greg (Tekdraulics)

__________________

SUPER INFO. SITE

Murry (January Building Inspections)

__________________

A unique site worth visiting for unique programs.

Laxton (MIT Associates)

__________________

Perspective CMMS just launched the latest version of their website with a new, easy to navigate layout and additional content. Pay them a visit at ...

Featured Articles :

Keys for Effective Troubleshooting - By Warren Rhude

Hazardous Area Installation Management - By Abhisam Software

How to Troubleshoot like an Expert ' a Systematic Approach - By Warren Rhude

Plant Maintenance Management of your PLC - By Don Fitchett


Featured Technical Writings:

Moving from Quality Conscious to Accuracy Controlled Production and Maintenance


Industrial News:

Feed Forward Publications and Company News, Week Ending Dec 25,2005 for professionals worldwide.


Archives ...

Click Newsletter to return to current news letter.

space

Viewers understands that any content or other information offered on or through trade-school.education is provided for informational purposes only. Viewers should evaluate any content or other information offered on or through trade-school.education in light of viewer's own individual circumstances. © 2008, Feed Forward - A subsidiary of Business Industrial Network